Amache: American Concentration Camp
Of course, many of you will know exactly what "Amache" refers to. It is one of the sites of an atrocity committed by our government upon its own citizens. It's in Southeastern Colorado, just outside the tiny town of Granada--a concentration camp where Americans of Japanese descent were imprisoned for most of WWII. Why? A mixture of stupidity, racism and unreasoning fear. The Japanese attacked us at Pearl Harbor, therefore, no one of Japanese heritage could be trusted . . . not even Americans. And so they usurped their houses and everything they owned, save what they could carry, herded them onto trains (far too resonant of the Jewish experience in Europe ) and imprisoned them for years. One might think that this would have militant-ized at least a few, but there is not a single record of a Japanese American committing an act of sabotage or other treasonous activity during the entire course of the war. Almost 2,000 died of disease in the drafty, uninsulated, slapdash barracks they were housed in. These were unrelentingly grim surroundings--especially early in this process, with few amenities and, much worse, the knowledge that your new world was surrounded by high fences and barbed wire and overseen by guard towers with machine guns at the ready. For those who may try to excuse this abominable behavior by noting that these camps weren't as bad as those in Germany--nothing like stating an obvious, but irrelevant fact. How can the German's behavior excuse ours? It cannot.
It's an unhappy truth that the fantasy of the United States coming to the rescue of the world in WWII, saving it from despotism in a selfless, noble, utterly virtuous effort is not and never has been totally true. There is much that our country can be proud of during that time, but there is also a great deal about which we should feel great shame. Too many are content to ignore, paper-over, or deny the evils committed by our government and armed forces between 1941 and 1946, but to pretend they didn't happen is to ensure they will happen again. I for one do not wish to see us repeat these mistakes.
There is very little left to show that there ever was a concentration camp at this location--a few concrete slabs and foundations, some twisted metal--with only a few signs to indicate what once had gone on here. In this photo, you can see a bit of one of those foundations, with an appropriately gnarly tree in the foreground. I just happened to stumble on the place as I drove semi-aimlessly through a portion of Colorado I'd never been to before--on my eventual way to Rocky Mountain National Park. When I saw the sign for "Amache," it rang a bell, but it took me a bit to recall its significance. I believe the only time I had heard of this specific place was when I visited the memorial in DC to all those who suffered through the ordeal. "Amache" was one of the sites it listed. Later, I would more purposefully seek out "Manzanar" in Western California, where much more of the camp has been preserved. The next time I visit Arkansas, I plan on visiting the sites there, "Jerome" and "Rohwer."
YIKES! Me Englishe has done got badd. Twice n the preceeding paragraf--in the sam sentense--I wrote "their" insted of "there" (know correctted). TWICE! My dain bramage seams two bee geting more worser--soon, no doubt, too became most worsest!
Amache: American Concentration Camp
Of course, many of you will know exactly what "Amache" refers to. It is one of the sites of an atrocity committed by our government upon its own citizens. It's in Southeastern Colorado, just outside the tiny town of Granada--a concentration camp where Americans of Japanese descent were imprisoned for most of WWII. Why? A mixture of stupidity, racism and unreasoning fear. The Japanese attacked us at Pearl Harbor, therefore, no one of Japanese heritage could be trusted . . . not even Americans. And so they usurped their houses and everything they owned, save what they could carry, herded them onto trains (far too resonant of the Jewish experience in Europe ) and imprisoned them for years. One might think that this would have militant-ized at least a few, but there is not a single record of a Japanese American committing an act of sabotage or other treasonous activity during the entire course of the war. Almost 2,000 died of disease in the drafty, uninsulated, slapdash barracks they were housed in. These were unrelentingly grim surroundings--especially early in this process, with few amenities and, much worse, the knowledge that your new world was surrounded by high fences and barbed wire and overseen by guard towers with machine guns at the ready. For those who may try to excuse this abominable behavior by noting that these camps weren't as bad as those in Germany--nothing like stating an obvious, but irrelevant fact. How can the German's behavior excuse ours? It cannot.
It's an unhappy truth that the fantasy of the United States coming to the rescue of the world in WWII, saving it from despotism in a selfless, noble, utterly virtuous effort is not and never has been totally true. There is much that our country can be proud of during that time, but there is also a great deal about which we should feel great shame. Too many are content to ignore, paper-over, or deny the evils committed by our government and armed forces between 1941 and 1946, but to pretend they didn't happen is to ensure they will happen again. I for one do not wish to see us repeat these mistakes.
There is very little left to show that there ever was a concentration camp at this location--a few concrete slabs and foundations, some twisted metal--with only a few signs to indicate what once had gone on here. In this photo, you can see a bit of one of those foundations, with an appropriately gnarly tree in the foreground. I just happened to stumble on the place as I drove semi-aimlessly through a portion of Colorado I'd never been to before--on my eventual way to Rocky Mountain National Park. When I saw the sign for "Amache," it rang a bell, but it took me a bit to recall its significance. I believe the only time I had heard of this specific place was when I visited the memorial in DC to all those who suffered through the ordeal. "Amache" was one of the sites it listed. Later, I would more purposefully seek out "Manzanar" in Western California, where much more of the camp has been preserved. The next time I visit Arkansas, I plan on visiting the sites there, "Jerome" and "Rohwer."
YIKES! Me Englishe has done got badd. Twice n the preceeding paragraf--in the sam sentense--I wrote "their" insted of "there" (know correctted). TWICE! My dain bramage seams two bee geting more worser--soon, no doubt, too became most worsest!