Kristen Hayashi

What happened to all those people in Hawaii?

Hawaii was put under martial law the day that Pearl Harbor was attacked. And there was a sizable Japanese population in Hawaii, but there wasn't a mass removal like on the continental U.S. So there was a detention center on Oahu, but a lot of the leaders of the community were rounded up.

Hawaii was put under martial law the day that Pearl Harbor was attacked. And there was a sizable Japanese population in Hawaii, but there wasn't a mass removal like on the continental U.S. So there was a detention center on Oahu, but a lot of the leaders of the community were rounded up.

Hawaii was put under martial law the day that Pearl Harbor was attacked. And there was a sizable Japanese population in Hawaii, but there wasn't a mass removal like on the continental U.S. So there was a detention center on Oahu, but a lot of the leaders of the community were rounded up.

So maybe if you were a Buddhist priest or you were a martial arts instructor or a Japanese language instructor or just gave a donation to a Japanese organization, you may have been on the list. But leaders of the community in Hawaii oftentimes were brought to the mainland and incarcerated at a Department of Justice camp.

So maybe if you were a Buddhist priest or you were a martial arts instructor or a Japanese language instructor or just gave a donation to a Japanese organization, you may have been on the list. But leaders of the community in Hawaii oftentimes were brought to the mainland and incarcerated at a Department of Justice camp.

So maybe if you were a Buddhist priest or you were a martial arts instructor or a Japanese language instructor or just gave a donation to a Japanese organization, you may have been on the list. But leaders of the community in Hawaii oftentimes were brought to the mainland and incarcerated at a Department of Justice camp.

I see. Let's describe these camps. Those of us who've seen the movies understand they were very simple and not easy to live in. They were formal barracks, Topaz in Utah, Minidoka in Idaho, Gila River in Poston in Arizona, Heart Mountain. Now we know how many there were. At the time, this had to have been so disorienting. So uprooting.

I see. Let's describe these camps. Those of us who've seen the movies understand they were very simple and not easy to live in. They were formal barracks, Topaz in Utah, Minidoka in Idaho, Gila River in Poston in Arizona, Heart Mountain. Now we know how many there were. At the time, this had to have been so disorienting. So uprooting.

I see. Let's describe these camps. Those of us who've seen the movies understand they were very simple and not easy to live in. They were formal barracks, Topaz in Utah, Minidoka in Idaho, Gila River in Poston in Arizona, Heart Mountain. Now we know how many there were. At the time, this had to have been so disorienting. So uprooting.

Talk to me about the effect emotionally and culturally on these families that had to do this and how long they had to live there for.

Talk to me about the effect emotionally and culturally on these families that had to do this and how long they had to live there for.

Talk to me about the effect emotionally and culturally on these families that had to do this and how long they had to live there for.

Right. So most of the Japanese Americans who were forcibly removed and incarcerated during World War II lived in very temperate climates on the West Coast. And again, they didn't know where they were going or for how long. And so weren't really able to pack accordingly.

Right. So most of the Japanese Americans who were forcibly removed and incarcerated during World War II lived in very temperate climates on the West Coast. And again, they didn't know where they were going or for how long. And so weren't really able to pack accordingly.

Right. So most of the Japanese Americans who were forcibly removed and incarcerated during World War II lived in very temperate climates on the West Coast. And again, they didn't know where they were going or for how long. And so weren't really able to pack accordingly.

I'm not even sure if they would have had, you know, the right clothing to fare the extremely cold winters or extremely hot summers. But these camps were in desolate areas of the interior of the country where the climate was, you know, very extreme. I think, you know, they had no idea where they were going.

I'm not even sure if they would have had, you know, the right clothing to fare the extremely cold winters or extremely hot summers. But these camps were in desolate areas of the interior of the country where the climate was, you know, very extreme. I think, you know, they had no idea where they were going.

I'm not even sure if they would have had, you know, the right clothing to fare the extremely cold winters or extremely hot summers. But these camps were in desolate areas of the interior of the country where the climate was, you know, very extreme. I think, you know, they had no idea where they were going.

They were, these camps, you know, held like some 10,000 people and just in a few square miles. And so they were very crowded. Hastily built barracks is where they lived. And inside each barrack, it was very sparse. There was a single light bulb and a pot-bellied stove and army cots. And that was it. And so I think, you know, it must have been really terrifying.