Japanese Internment Camps In Canada

At the beginning of World War II, there were 23,278 Japanese living in Canada. Of these, 14,119 were Nisei (second-generation Canadian born), 3,159 were naturalized as Canadian citizens, and 6,000 were still Japanese citizens when all suspected Japanese-Canadians were branded as ‘enemy aliens’ after Japan’s attack on Pearl Harbour. The War Measure ACT shortly came after giving the government authority to detain or remove any suspected people of having a Japanese descent. The Canadian government took the Japanese community from their homes and treated then harshly during their time in the camps.

Firstly, the Japanese-Canadians were removed from their homes.” On March 4,1942, the BC Security Commission was established to carry out the ‘systematic expulsion’ of the Japanese from the
The Japanese heritage were restricted to what they could bring to the camps. “Each person was allowed one suitcase each [...] [for] clothing, bedding and cooking utensils.” Restrictions like these made it even harder for the Japanese community. The men also had to work in order to stay in the camps. The men would work for “[...] 25-35 cents [per] hour, of which 22.50 dollars was deducted each month for room and board, and another 20 dollars was deducted from married men for family support.” The men did not make enough money while they were in the camps especially the married men. They were paid below average which gave them quite a struggle. These Japanese- Canadians were also violently treated, especially the men: “Any men who showed the slightest resistance were imprisoned and sent to P.O.W. camps [...].” Japanese-Canadians who lives in the camps and who didn’t live in the camps faced discrimination. The ones who did not live in the internment camps would be rejected from jobs and could not walk down the street without facing any racism. Overall, the Japanese-Canadians were treated wrong and