Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Lesson: Immigration

Many of your class members will have heard of Executive Order 9066 and the Japanese internment camps of World War II. Some may even recognize the terms “Issei” and “Nisei,” but few will have heard of Enemy Alien Hearing Boards, of the Asian Exclusion Act of 1924, and of the anti-Japanese “The Horrors of War,” bubble –gum cards. A link to the Smithsonian website, “A More Perfect Union: Japanese Americans and the U.S. Constitution” provides learners with extraordinary images and audio interviews recounting the removal of over 120,000 Japanese Americans to internment camps. The second in a series of lessons introduced by "A Fence Away From Freedom," rather than following the three-day plan offered here, consider expanding the exercise and assigning different segments of the presentation to groups and having them prepare a presentation for the class. The final discussion could center on the legal and moral implications of these actions.