Internment of Japanese Canadians

From 1942 to 1949, Canada forced over 22,000 Japanese Canadians to move and live in camps. This was over 90% of all Japanese Canadians in British Columbia. The government said this was for "national security." Most of these people were born in Canada. They were targeted because they had Japanese ancestors.

This happened after Japan fought against the Western Allies in World War II. Important events included Japan's invasion of Hong Kong, the attack on Pearl Harbor in Hawaii, and the Fall of Singapore. Canada then declared war on Japan. In the United States, Japanese Americans faced similar treatment. Japanese Canadians were forced to follow rules like curfews, lost their jobs and property, and some were sent back to Japan.Jordan Stanger-Ross ed., Landscapes of Injustice: A New Perspective on the Internment and Dispossession of Japanese Canadians (Montreal: McGill-Queens University Press, 2020).

From December 1941 to 1949, Japanese Canadians had their homes and businesses taken away. They were sent to camps and farms in British Columbia and other places in Canada, mostly far from cities. The government sold their fishing boats, cars, houses, farms, businesses, and personal things.Sunahara, Ann (1981). The Politics of Racism: The Uprooting of Japanese Canadians during the Second World War. Toronto: J. Lorimer. pp. 66, 76. The money from these sales was used to cover their living costs in the camps.

In August 1944, Prime Minister Mackenzie King said Japanese Canadians had to move east of the Rocky Mountains or be sent to Japan after the war. By 1947, many could return to British Columbia, but it was not until April 1, 1949, that they were free to live anywhere in the province again.Adachi, Ken (1976). The Enemy That Never Was: A History of the Japanese Canadians. Toronto: McClelland and Steward. pp. 343–344.

On September 22, 1988, Prime Minister Brian Mulroney apologized, one month after U.S. President Ronald Reagan apologized to Japanese Americans. Canada offered $21,000 to each living person who had been sent to the camps and gave back Canadian citizenship to those sent to Japan. The Japanese Canadian Redress Agreement in 1988 created a fund to help teach about this history.

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Category:Military history of Canada during World War II
Category:History of Canada
Category:Japan