What happened to the Japanese Canadians
Because of the attack on pearl harbor, Canadians thought Japanese were a threat to Canada because they might be spies. Most of them were sent to B.C where they would be taken on trains where they were sent ghost towns to live in. They lived in very poor conditions (this is not to be confused with a concentration camp) and those who are displaced were sent to road camps in Jasper. This was the greatest mass movement in Canada.
There were about 23,000 Japanese Canadians, three quarter of them are naturalized or native born citizens. They were sent straight to camp/jail without a trial at the court. Their basic rights were also taken away and the government were allowed to remove any person of Japanese origin. And they also had authority to seize Japanese boats. Some Japanese were even deported back to Japan! The newcomers had been largely discriminated by the white “Canadian Society”. The Canadians even lied to the Japanese that their property would be seized and given back when the problem is over. Japanese Canadians were issued special laws for special clothing and were forced to do manual labor. The war caused a large labor shortage especially for the sugar beets farmer. Then B.C started to blame all their troubles and problems on the Japanese since they have no one else to blame it on. Now let’s talk a little about the camps. There were 10 intern camps, it consisted of three road camps, two prisoner of war camps, and five self-supporting camps throughout Canada. Men camps are separated from women camps. Children stays in the women’s camps. Within the intern camps many families were forced to live in cramped quarters. Historians believe internments camps came about because of racist attitudes held toward Japanese Canadians many whom lived in B.C |