Community responses to resistance

In December 1947, President Truman pardoned all wartime draft resisters, including Nisei from the concentration camps. The pardon removed the criminal convictions from the resisters' records. However, other Japanese Americans, including some U.S. Army veterans and leaders of the Japanese American Citizens League (JACL), continued to label resisters as disloyal, unpatriotic, cowardly "draft dodgers." Some Japanese Americans blamed the resisters for increasing the public's negative attitudes toward people of Japanese ancestry. These consequences affected many resisters for the rest of their lives. Despite an official JACL apology to the resisters in 2000, many Japanese American veterans' groups and others continue to harbor negative feelings toward the resisters. Legacies of the World War II ostracism of resisters contribute to ongoing division within Japanese American communities.

World War II (231)
Resistance and dissidence (84)
Community responses to resistance (61)

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61 items

doc Flyer for Rally sponsored by the Japanese American Council for Democracy (ddr-densho-122-418)

https://ddr.densho.org/ddr-densho-122-418/

doc Letter from Bill Hosokawa to Cedrick Shimo (ddr-densho-122-874)

Re: reconciliation between various segments of Japanese American community over actions during the war

https://ddr.densho.org/ddr-densho-122-874/

doc Letter to Yuri Domoto from Yoshito Shibata (ddr-densho-356-223)

Letter to Yuriko Domoto Tsukada from Yoshito Shibata in which he recalls a month long recruitment trip to some of the WRA camps for qualified Niseis to join MIS. His writing includes a mention for being present to an incident at Poston (possibly the Poston Strike or the incidences that lead to the strike). He talks …

https://ddr.densho.org/ddr-densho-356-223/

doc Postcard from Sgt. Frank Honda to Iku Morita (ddr-densho-497-12)

Postcard of Promenade des Anglais, Nice, France.

https://ddr.densho.org/ddr-densho-497-12/

vh Jim Akutsu Segment 24 (ddr-densho-1000-2-24)

Postwar community ostracism of the draft resisters

Interview was conducted over two days because of delays caused by technical difficulties.

https://ddr.densho.org/ddr-densho-1000-2-24/

vh Jim Akutsu Segment 42 (ddr-densho-1000-2-42)

Impact of two brothers who both resisted the draft

Interview was conducted over two days because of delays caused by technical difficulties.

https://ddr.densho.org/ddr-densho-1000-2-42/

vh Jim Akutsu Segment 23 (ddr-densho-1000-2-23)

Mother's suicide as a result of ostracism by Japanese American community postwar

Interview was conducted over two days because of delays caused by technical difficulties.

https://ddr.densho.org/ddr-densho-1000-2-23/

vh Gene Akutsu Segment 24 (ddr-densho-1000-1-24)

Impact of draft resistance on family: harsh response from Japanese American community contributes to Mother's suicide

https://ddr.densho.org/ddr-densho-1000-1-24/

vh Gene Akutsu Segment 21 (ddr-densho-1000-1-21)

Reaction of the Japanese American community towards draft resisters

https://ddr.densho.org/ddr-densho-1000-1-21/

vh Bill Hosokawa Interview Segment 16 (ddr-densho-1000-129-16)

Thoughts on the resisters: admired their courage, but felt that "it wouldn't gain us anything"

https://ddr.densho.org/ddr-densho-1000-129-16/

vh Bill Hosokawa Interview Segment 22 (ddr-densho-1000-129-22)

Feelings about the resisters: have to understand the situation at the time

https://ddr.densho.org/ddr-densho-1000-129-22/

vh Gene Akutsu Interview II Segment 13 (ddr-densho-1000-210-13)

Being recognized for wartime draft resistance

https://ddr.densho.org/ddr-densho-1000-210-13/

vh Gene Akutsu Interview II Segment 10 (ddr-densho-1000-210-10)

Thoughts on the Japanese American Citizens League postwar

https://ddr.densho.org/ddr-densho-1000-210-10/

vh Gene Akutsu Interview II Segment 12 (ddr-densho-1000-210-12)

Thoughts on draft resistance

https://ddr.densho.org/ddr-densho-1000-210-12/

vh Masao Watanabe Segment 28 (ddr-densho-1000-103-28)

Feelings about draft resisters in the camps while on the front line

At the time this interview was taped, Mr. Watanabe was recovering from a recent series of cancer treatments.

https://ddr.densho.org/ddr-densho-1000-103-28/

vh Masao Watanabe Segment 50 (ddr-densho-1000-103-50)

A veteran's thoughts on "no-no" boys

At the time this interview was taped, Mr. Watanabe was recovering from a recent series of cancer treatments.

https://ddr.densho.org/ddr-densho-1000-103-50/

vh Harry K. Yoshikawa Interview Segment 30 (ddr-densho-1000-278-30)

Thoughts on the Japanese American Citizens League's actions toward draft resisters: "I think that was kind of appalling"

Due to technical difficulties during the taping of this interview, the interviewer's voice is considerably louder than the narrator's. This material is based upon work assisted by a grant from the Department of the Interior, National Park Service. …

https://ddr.densho.org/ddr-densho-1000-278-30/

vh Harry K. Yoshikawa Interview Segment 29 (ddr-densho-1000-278-29)

Talking more openly about wartime draft resistance

https://ddr.densho.org/ddr-densho-1000-278-29/