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539 articles
Minidoka: An American Concentration Camp (film)
- Films and Video
- Grades 9-12, Adult
- Documentary
- Evils of racism, Importance of community, Power of the past
- Widely available
Documentary film on Minidoka that serves as the orientation film at the Minidoka National Historic Site. Narrated by George Takei and featuring interviews with Japanese Americans who were incarcerated at Minidoka, the film covers the prewar Japanese American community, the mass forced removal of Japanese Americans in 1942, life at Minidoka, the "loyalty questionnaire," the 442nd Regimental Combat Team , the closing of the camp in 1945 and the return home, the Redress movement , and the importance of remembering the incarceration story.
MIS: Human Secret Weapon (film)
- Films and Video
- Grades 9-12, Adult
- Documentary
- Heroism – real and perceived, Role of men, Vulnerability of the strong, War – glory, necessity, pain, tragedy
- Widely available
Feature length documentary film on the history of Japanese Americans in the Military Intelligence Service (MIS) during World War II. Written and directed by Japanese filmmaker Junichiro Suzuki, MIS: Human Secret Weapon is the third film in Suzuki's trilogy of documentaries on Japanese Americans during World War II.
Mission in Manila: The Sakakida Story (film)
- Films and Video
- Grades 9-12, Adult
- Documentary
- Facing darkness, Forgiveness, Heroism – real and perceived, Will to survive
- Limited availability
Documentary film that tells the story of Richard Sakakida , a Nisei intelligence agent in the Philippines who is captured and tortured by the Japanese during World War II and who confronts—and forgives—his torturers after the war. The film is based almost entirely on an interview with Sakakida, augmented by narrator Jerry Kay, archival footage and family photographs, and illustrations by Roberta Twidwell. The 28-minute film was produced by the Military Intelligence Service and the National Japanese American Historical Society for the Military Intelligence Service Fellowship Program.
Mitsugi's Christmas (short story)
- Short Stories
- Grades 9-12, Adult
- Fiction
- Family – blessing or curse, Forgiveness, Love and sacrifice, Optimism – power or folly
- No availability
Short story by Jennifer "Emiko" Kuida about Mitsugi Yamamoto, an elderly widower at the Keiro Retirement Home in Los Angeles who waits to hear from his busy lawyer daughter and his grandchildren on Christmas Day. Julia, a younger Yonsei volunteer nurse, keeps him company sometimes and listens to his stories of the past, particularly his time at Seabrook Farms, New Jersey , where he and his wife Sumi moved after leaving Manzanar .
Mitsuye and Nellie: Asian American Poets (film)
- Films and Video
- Grades 9-12, Adult
- Documentary
- Expression through art, Female roles, Power of words, Role of women
- Available
One of the earliest documentaries to broach the topic of Japanese American wartime incarceration, Mitsuye and Nellie profiles Asian American poets Mitsuye Yamada and Nellie Wong, showing them reading their poetry, meeting their family and visiting the Minidoka and Angel Island sites.
Months of Waiting, 1942-1945 (exhibition)
- Museum Exhibitions
- Grades 3-5, Grades 6-8, Grades 9-12, Adult
- Adult
- Art, History
- Expression through Art, Displacement, Injustice
- No availability
The first group exhibition of art created in the wartime concentration camps. Produced by the California Historical Society in 1972 as a companion to its Executive Order 9066 photographic exhibition, Months of Waiting toured several venues from 1972 to 1974.
Most Honorable Son (film)
- Films and Video
- Grades 9-12, Adult
- Documentary, Biography
- War - glory, necessity, pain, tragedy, Heroism - real or perceived
- Available
Documentary film that profiles Nisei war hero Ben Kuroki , tracing his life from his Nebraska childhood, his fight to be allowed to serve in the military after the attack on Pearl Harbor, his bombing missions over Europe and Japan, and his visits to American concentration camps in which Japanese Americans were held. Kuroki tells much of the story in his own words, which are augmented by many interviews with crew members who flew with him in both Europe and Japan. In addition to archival footage and photographs, the filmmakers also film reenactments of a few key episodes. Among the incidents highlighted are the dramatic raid on the Ploesti oilfields in what is now Romania, one of Kuroki's last missions in Europe; his speech before the Commonweath Club in San Francisco upon his return; and his visit to the Heart Mountain concentration camp of which inmates Eiichi Sakauye, Jack Tono, …
Moving Day (film)
- Films and Video
- Grades 9-12, Adult
- Drama, History
- Evils of racism, Power of the past, Injustice
- No availability
UCLA student film that dramatizes the wartime eviction of a Japanese American farming family. Silent scenes of a family of five (presumably two Issei parents and their three Nisei children) eating, packing their possessions, making musubi for the voyage, and other preparations for removal are accompanied by first-person narration by a female voice, presumably the daughter of the family. The film begins with the words of John DeWitt read in his voice justifying the need for the forced removal of Japanese Americans. The film ends with a coda about the passage of time and how many have forgotten—or have never known about—the events depicted. Moving Day is one of the first—if not the first—film by a Japanese American that depicts the travails of World War II.
Moving Walls: American Nightmare to American Dream (film)
- Films and Video
- Grades 9-12, Adult
- Documentary, History
- Power of the past, Working class struggles
- Widely available
Documentary film about the enduring impact of the Heart Mountain , Wyoming, concentration camp—in particular, its surviving barracks—on both the local Wyoming population and on Japanese Americans who had been incarcerated there.
Mr. Tanimoto's Journey (film)
- Films and Video
- Grades 9-12, Adult
- Documentary
- Individual versus society, Injustice, Power of the past
- Widely available
Documentary film about Gridley, California, farmer and former Tule Lake inmate Jim Tanimoto that focuses on his wartime incarceration and on the postwar memory of that time. The film is built around interviews with Tanimoto and footage of him at his farm and at a Tule Lake Pilgrimage, along with interviews with his daughter and granddaughter. Tanimoto and his family went to Tule Lake directly in July 1942 and were placed in Block 42. He was among the many inmates in that block who resisted filling out the loyalty questionnaire and were subsequently imprisoned and held for a time at Camp Tulelake , a former CCC camp. He was eventually allowed to return to Tule Lake and then returned to Gridley in 1945, where he nonetheless faced a great deal of discrimination from locals. Tanimoto and his family also talk about the postwar silence about the incarceration, redress , and …
Ruth Asawa: A Community Artist (film)
- Films and Video
- Grades 9-12, Adult
- Documentary
- Expression through art, Power of the past
- Widely available
Short documentary film on artist Ruth Asawa by Dianne Fukami. Produced as part of a follow-up project to the creation of the "Garden of Remembrance" at San Francisco State University, the documentary highlights Asawa's role in the garden and documents some of her other public art in San Francisco.
Ruth Asawa: Of Forms and Growth (film)
- Films and Video
- Grades 9-12, Adult
- Documentary
- Expression through art, Nature as beauty, Role of women
- Available
Documentary profile of Nisei artist Ruth Asawa produced and directed by Robert Snyder. Of Forms and Growth includes footage of Asawa at home, in her garden and at work, and features the artist talking about her artistic influences and techniques. In particular, she highlights the influence of artists Joseph Albers and Buckminster Fuller, and the film includes footage of Asawa and Fuller. She goes on to talk about the various media she has worked with, including ink and oil paintings, wire and paper sculptures, and sculptures made from baker's clay. The film also explores Asawa's community work, particularly in establishing art programs in schools as well as a community arts festival. Photographer Imogen Cunningham talks about photographing Asawa and her family and about Asawa's marriage to Albert Lanier. Asawa's early life—including her wartime incarceration—is covered only briefly, and her later work that is influenced by Japanese American history is not …
Nisei Soldier: Standard Bearer for an Exiled People (film)
- Films and Video
- Grades 9-12, Adult
- Documentary
- Patriotism - positive side or complications, Injustice, Heroism - real or perceived
- Limited availability
Influential documentary film by Loni Ding that was the first of many to specifically focus on the story of Japanese Americans who served in the armed forces during World War II.
Nisei Stories of Wartime Japan (film)
- Films and Video
- Grades 9-12, Adult
- Documentary
- Displacement, Facing darkness, Nationalism – complications, Self-preservation
- Widely available
Documentary film by Mary McDonald and Thomas McDonald Mazawa that tells the story of Nisei who were trapped in Japan during World War II based on interviews with ten such Nisei.
The Nisei Farmer (film)
- Films and Video
- Grades 9-12, Adult
- Short
- Communication – verbal and nonverbal, Injustice, Power of the past, Power of the past
- Limited availability
Short dramatic film about a Nisei couple, Hank (Steven Kondo) and Aki (Jude Narita), who farm in Northern California. When news of the Civil Liberties Act of 1988 spreads, Hank becomes morose and angry, as it triggers boyhood memories of his family's incarceration, which are shown in flashback scenes. He also lashes out at Aki, who did not go to camp, when she suggests they use the money to go on a vacation. But after further thought and reflection on the incarceration and redress, he recognizes the source of his anger and comes around to the idea of going away.
No No Girl (film)
- Films and Video
- Grades 9-12, Adult
- Drama
- Family – blessing or curse, Power of the past, Quest for discovery
- Available
Full-length feature film by Paul Daisuke Goodman about the long shadow of the World War II incarceration on a Southern California Nikkei family.
No-No Boy (play)
- Plays
- Grades 9-12, Adult
- Convention and rebellion, Family – blessing or curse, Heroism – real and perceived, Individual versus society, Role of men
- No availability
2010 play by Ken Narasaki based on John Okada's classic 1957 novel . While the play largely followed the plot of the novel, the decision to change the ending to a "happy" one proved controversial.
Of Civil Wrongs and Rights: The Fred Korematsu Story (film)
- Films and Video
- Grades 6-8, Grades 9-12, Adult
- Documentary
- Injustice, Rights - individual or societal
- Available
Documentary film by Eric Paul Fournier that chronicles the story of American civil rights hero, Fred Korematsu , whose refusal to obey orders prohibiting Japanese Americans from remaining on the West Coast led to a landmark Supreme Court case .
Ohakamairi: A Visit to the Graves (film)
- Films and Video
- Grades 9-12, Adult
- Documentary
- Isolation, Power of tradition, Reunion
- No availability
Short documentary student film by Janice D. Tanaka that focuses on the annual pilgrimages to Manzanar made by Buddhist Rev. Sentoku Maeda. Shot in 16mm black and white while a student at the University of Southern California (USC), Tanaka's film lets Maeda tell his story in his own voice, accompanied by historical photos and footage of Maeda at the Manzanar site. Incarcerated at Manzanar as a young man, he recalls the Buddhist services held there despite administrative opposition. He talks about the "I-re-to" memorial and his promise to visit the graves at Manzanar once the war is over. For the next twenty plus years, he came back to perform memorial services, sometimes alone. The film ends with his recognition of the "young people" who have turned his lonely pilgrimage into a community event starting in 1969.
Okage Sama De (I Am What I Am Because of You) (film)
- Films and Video
- Grades 9-12, Adult
- History
- Heroism – real and perceived, Vulnerability of the strong, War – glory, necessity, pain, tragedy
- Widely available
Filmed version of storyteller Alton Takiyama-Chung performing a one-person show mostly centering on the stories of Japanese American soldiers during World War II.
9066 to 9/11: America’s Concentration Camps Then… and Now? (film)
- Films and Video
- Grades 9-12, Adult
- Documentary
- Dangers of ignorance, Evils of racism, Wisdom of experience
- Limited availability
A 2004 documentary film directed by Akira Boch that looks at the World War II expulsion of Japanese Americans into American concentration camps through the contemporary lens of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. Immediately following the attacks, there was an instant public backlash against Arab Americans and Muslims. As the United States government fought a "war on terrorism" with no end in sight, its tactics and policies were noticeably reminiscent of the rhetoric and immediate steps taken that led to the mass incarceration of Japanese and Japanese Americans during World War II. The film draws comparisons between the Japanese and Muslim American experiences, provoking questions about immigration, patriotism, equality and the civil rights and liberties of all American citizens, especially during times of national emergency.
Nakamura Comes Home (short story)
- Short Stories
- Grades 9-12, Adult
- Evils of racism, Injustice, Totalitarianism
- Widely available
Short story about the return of a Nisei veteran to his California hometown by Henry H. Hayden. Kido Nakamura, with his chest full of medals and a limp due to a war wound, returns to Bonneville, where he had grown up as an orphan, and been on his own since age fourteen, until his forced removal to Tanforan . From camp, he joined the 442nd and served in Europe. He stops first at the hotel where he used to live and work, but a former co-worker tells him that the new owners are unwelcoming. He walks through he town, seeing racist signs, tangible evidence of anti-Japanese sentiment. Walking out to a farm he thinks he can get a job at, he is harassed by drunks and ponders his future in the town.
Nebraska's Nisei (film)
- Films and Video
- Grades 6-8, Grades 9-12, Adult
- Documentary
- Importance of community
- Available
Documentary film produced by the University of Nebraska that tells the story of three Nisei from Heart Mountain who left camp to attend the University of Nebraska through the National Japanese American Student Relocation Council during World War II. The three are Pat Sano, Marie Yamashita Snell, and Tom Shiokari. The story is told through interviews, historical photographs, and unidentified home movie type footage of Heart Mountain. No credits are listed for the production of the film. A nine minute version is available on the University of Nebraska's YouTube channel.
Never Give Up!: Minoru Yasui and the Fight for Justice (film)
- Films and Video
- Grades 9-12, Adult
- Biography, Documentary
- Convention and rebellion, Heroism – real and perceived, Individual versus society, Overcoming – fear, weakness, vice
- Widely available
Documentary film on the life of Minoru Yasui (1916–86) made by his daughter, Holly Yasui.
Nasakenai (short story)
- Short Stories
- Grades 9-12, Adult
- Historical Fiction
- Evils of racism, Facing reality, Will to survive, Working class struggles
- Limited availability
Short story about an Issei couple in the San Francisco Bay area in the aftermath of the attack on Pearl Harbor . Both work as servants—the husband as a gardener and the wife as a maid—for prominent white families in a wealthy adjacent community and support three children at home, with a son in the army. After the attack, the husband goes to work and is assured by his employer that she will not fire him despite community pressure to do so. But the wife, who has worked for the family of a prominent lawyer for over a decade, is fired, since the lawyer represents a farming organization that supports anti-Japanese actions. An Issei gardener who works for the same family is also fired. Afterwards, the wife visits briefly with the family of the gardener and goes home to work on her garden, vowing that things will be okay.