The Uprooting of a Japanese-American Family

					from Desert Exile.doc

from Desert Exile: The Uprooting of a Japanese-American Family
Study Guide

Comprehension
1. What was “Barrack 16”?

2. How did one of the Uchidas’ neighbors cope with the lack of bathtubs at Tanforan?

3. Why did President Ford choose February 19 to give his speech and to sign Proclamation 4417?

4. What did Proclamation 4417 do?

Interpret
5. Is the camp prepared for the arrival of prisoners when the Uchidas arrive?

6. Why do you think Executive Order 9066 was never formally revoked?

7. President Ford describes the imprisonment of Japanese Americans as an “error.” Does that seem accurate to you?

8. What do the conditions at the camp suggest about the government’s attitude toward Japanese Americans? Do you think other groups would have been treated the same?

Literary Focus
Writer’s Purpose
9. Identify one detail in Uchinda’s narrative that you would not find in a history book.

10 Explain how the style of Ford’s speech helps him accomplish his purpose.

from Desert Exile: The Uprooting of a Japanese-American Family, Yoshiko Uchida
"Speech on Japanese American Internment," Gerald Ford
1. In Yoshiko Uchida's memoir, what is "Barrack 16"?
It is housing built especially for internees.
It is an area of the internment camp for children.
It is a stable used to shelter internees.

2. Is the camp prepared for more prisoners when the Uchidas arrive?
No; the camp has a lack of shelter.
Yes; the camp has well-designed housing.
No; the camp has overcrowded conditions and a shortage of supplies.

3. In Uchida's memoir, what do camp conditions suggest about the government?
The government felt sorry for Japanese Americans.
The government did not view Japanese Americans as citizens.
The government thought the camps would not last.

4. Why did President Ford choose February 19 to sign Proclamation 4417?
It is the anniversary of the order of the internment.
It is the anniversary of the peace treaty with Japan.
It is the day on which Japanese Americans were allowed to leave the camp.

5. Why was Executive Order 9066 never revoked?
The government wanted to leave open the possibility of future internment.
The government did not want to publicize the camps.
People assumed that the order would never be enforced again.
Extra Credit

from Desert Exile: The Uprooting of a Japanese-American Family, Yoshiko Uchida
Write Diary Entries

In the excerpt from Desert Exile: The Uprooting of a Japanese-American Family, Yoshiko Uchida describes her experiences living in an internment camp. During World War II, the United States government forced Japanese-American citizens and people of Japanese ancestry to leave their homes and live in camps, such as the one described by Uchida. Operated by the Wartime Relocation Agency, these camps forcibly moved, detained, and imprisoned well over 100,000 people. Using the Web sites listed, gather information about what it was like to live in one of these camps. Then write five diary entries from a first-person perspective of a detainee.
Marriot Library's Japanese-Americans Internment Camps During World War II contains photo archives and brief history from the internment camps at Tule Lake, California, and Topaz, Utah.
Japanese American Internment provides information on the camps from the United States Justice Department.
Children of the Camps: Internment History provides links to historical documents, a time line of events, information on health conditions, and links to sites on different camps.
First, spend some time considering how it must have been to live under such circumstances before you begin writing. Then write one entry per day as you would a real diary. Build on the previous day's entry to keep it consistent. You may, as the diarist, choose to be any age and gender. When you are writing your diary, incorporate facts you have gathered in your research.