Looking Like the Enemy

It is hard to imagine what it would be like to be imprisoned, no matter where the location or how short the period of time. But to imagine being imprisoned for no apparent crime or reason, only on the basis of your ethnic makeup, is nearly impossible. But the impossible happened to over 100,000 Japanese-Americans during World War II and it took years for them to break their silence and come clean about what they experienced in various internment camps around the country. Author Mary Matsuda Gruenewald was a teenager when her family of four was forced to leave their comfortable home on Vashon Island, Washington and move into a prison camp. Just how long they were to stay there, no one knew. And as the days turned into years, optimism grew dim and spirits began to dwindle, but the Matsuda family tried to keep hope alive. Looking Like the Enemy tells their story and sheds light on an American history that has long been swept under the rug.

Although Japanese on the outside, the Matsuda family lived and worked for the American dream like everyone else in their small, farming town. Both of Mary’s parents were born in Japan but had their children in America, making Mary and her brother Yoneichi American citizens. They ran a small fruit farm, making a decent living which allowed them to live comfortably in a cozy home and attend a local Methodist church and public school. Mary writes that she never felt any different than her classmates and that there were only a couple of instances where racial prejudice showed its ugly face. She felt completely American, although she honored her Japanese heritage by speaking the language at home and eating the food her mother prepared. Never was there a time when she thought she could be singled out by her own government for having Asian features and in fact, her family was more pro-American and trusting of those in power than many people are today.

All this changed when Japan bombed Pearl Harbor and the United States went to war. The government ruled that all people with Japanese ancestry, American citizen or not, should be rounded up and placed into internment camps so that they could be kept under a watchful eye. The fear was that these Japanese-Americans could still harbor loyalties to Japan’s government and be plotting attacks on American soil. Mary and her family were apprehensive about what would happen to them, their farm and their home but still believed that the government would figure out that they were loyal to the US alone. But it was still with great sadness that they packed up few belongings and made the uncomfortable train ride to Pinedale Assembly Center, the first internment camp of many that they would call “home”.

The camps were made of rows and rows of rugged barracks set on bleak, barren land. Each family was assigned a small living space, usually of 20 x 20 feet that they sometimes had to share with another family or couple. There was no privacy and voices carried throughout the entire length of the barrack. The bathrooms were primitive and the food was tasteless and left much to be desired. Basically, there was no room for creativity, comfort or pleasure and the internees quickly discovered that restlessness and boredom would take over.

Japanese culture stresses serenity and passiveness, with deep roots in private strength and not showing visible emotion. While Mary’s parents were very traditional in their Japanese customs, Mary was Americanized and was also somewhat sensitive, at least in the beginning. As the future became more and more uncertain for her, she sunk into depression and withdrew from social interaction. She writes that it was hard for her to make friends and remember life on the outside. In fact, she actually began to resent her fellow Japanese campers because she did not like being grouped with “non-Americans”. She was embarrassed of the black hair, facial features and skin color that made them different from the Americans who were not suspected as enemies in the war. She had long identified herself as an American so that to now be told that she was just Japanese put her into an identity crisis.

The most striking and heartbreaking part of Mary’s story was when the internees were allowed to apply for transfer into mid-Western states or to the US military. They were given a questionnaire that asked them about their loyalties and qualifications to join the Army. The very government that had imprisoned them in camps because of their ancestry was now asking where their allegiance lay! This caused a great deal of angst and disruption among the internees because to pledge loyalty to the government would make it seem like what had happened to them was okay. To say they did not want to join the military would make them seem disloyal and they would remain imprisoned for longer. It was a double edged sword. In the end, Mary’s family chose to pick the “loyal” box and Yoneichi drew his draft number. He was now going to risk his life for the country that had decided he was not an equal citizen.

As Mary matured throughout her experience in the camps, she began to see the impact her mother and father’s beliefs and strengths had on her. They remained strong and positive through the entire imprisonment at camp and although they worried, they did not show any weaknesses on the surface. The family unit was the most important structure to them and keeping the family together and safe was the essence of their survival. Unfortunately, this did not apply to all Japanese families in the internment camps. Westernization, fear, anger and boredom all threatened to ruin the traditional Japanese family. Young people grew restless and began to stir up trouble for something to do. Families also stopped eating together- a tradition that was set in stone before the imprisonments. Mary, however, chose a different path. She began working as a nurse in the camp infirmary and applied to nursing school outside of the camp, through the Army Nurse Corps. For the first time since the start of the war (and in her life), she would be away from her family.

With Yoneichi overseas fighting and Mary in nursing school, the Matsuda parents were left without their children for the first time in their lives. Mary’s mother went to work on a farm and her father passed the time in camp. As news of the ending of the war began to trickle into the camps, people tried to figure out where they would go once they were set free. A lot of people had lost their homes, businesses and farms and had no where to go. Racial prejudice against Japanese on the West Coast was rampant and many were hesitant to return, but knew no other homes. Mary struggled to figure out how to regain ownership of the family fruit farm and how their debts would be paid off once they returned- if anything was left to return to.

The Matsuda family fared better than many Japanese-American families during World War II. Their farm, though a little worse for the wear, was still intact and they were able to salvage their business. Yoneichi never talked about his experiences fighting overseas and Mary never had to serve her time in the Army. But the scarring still occurred. Mary said that she would never feel 100% American again and that it would take years to come to term with the emotions and hurt she had sustained from the discrimination of the US government. A Supreme Court ruling stated that racial discrimination was okay during times of war, which means that something like the internment camps could happen again during our time. I have often wondered if the threat was big enough, would the government still detain citizens because of their genetic background? Or would Americans look at history and protest such a thing? I would hope so but one can never be sure. The majority always rules and during times of war, the majority looks out for their own interests.

It is important to take lessons from the Japanese-American internment camps to make sure they never happen again. This “quiet race” allowed the government to get away with what they did for too long and it took years for any written accounts to come to light. Just because people do not complain about what happened to them does not mean they are not affected. Understanding the mistakes that the US government has made is valuable because it will help prevent future occurrences. No one is safe from prejudice and no excuse justifies the physical imprisonment and mental damage that the Japanese-American citizens faced during this time. Reconciliation also applies to this group of people for the mistakes and injustices they had to deal with and kept quiet for so long.