10 Heinous Projects That Remained Hidden In Classified Documents
8. Concentration Camps For Japanese In The US
On February 19, 1942, Executive Order 9066 would be approved by the Roosevelt government, dictating that every ethnic Japanese living in the US must sell their property in less than a week and be placed in a concentration camp.
Because of the attack by Pearl Harbor, the US government declared war on the Japanese empire. The “retaliation” against Japan would end with the launch of two atomic bombs against the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki on 6 and 9 August, 1945.
The US in turn demanded the collaboration of other American countries (subjugated to US imperialism); Argentina, Paraguay and Chile rejected the US mandate. However, Bolivia, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Haiti, Honduras, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Panama and Venezuela were collaborative.
Some of these people were only descendants of Japanese and had never been to Japan. They were moved to concentration camps in the US and Panama, except for 860 who were sent as part of a war exchange to Japan.
In 1944, the War Department recommended the dissolution of the camps to President Roosevelt. However, because Roosevelt was seeking re-election that year, the decision was postponed.
After, the re-election of Roosevelt, the camps were closed in 1948. Upon departure, the evacuees received a train ticket and $25.