Japanese Internment: Mirikitani & Fictive Fragments of a Father and Son

The story of Japanese interment during WWII has been a part of America’s poor decision-making based on the ethnicity of an entire race. Over 120,000 Japanese-American citizens were imprisoned in camps that forced individuals to sell their homes, businesses and assets. Many individuals died due to poor conditions of the camps or were brutally murdered by the American military. An executive order was enforced by President Roosevelt in order to “prevent espionage and sabotage.” Despite the reparations that were received by the survivors of this injustice, many were heavily impacted mentally and physically impacted due to the stress of being interned in the camps.

The stories of Mirikitani and Fictive Fragments of a Father and Son both depict the dark stories of what the narrator and Jimmy Mirikitani encountered, but it also shapes the characteristics that are instilled in the men as well as the narrator’s children in Fictive Fragments of a Father and Son. As a result of his father being held within an internment camp during WWII, the narrator in Fictive Fragments of a Father and Son, has a difficult time finding his identity as a “Sansei,” which is a third generation Japanese-American. The narrator visits Hiroshima, with the hopes of forming a better connection to his father and the difficulties he has faced however the stories that are mostly created from his mind and the interment forces his father disassociates himself as Japanese ancestry and embraces the complexities associated as an American citizen in order to “fit in.”  and loses his identity in the process of doing so,  “After the war you will be free again and back in American society. But for your own sakes try and be not one, but two hundred percent American…” It’s unfortunate that although America is supposed to be a melting pot of diversity, individuals who come here in the hopes of seeking the same freedoms and opportunities as “whites” but even if they give up their culture and conform to what it is to be “American” they still are not entitled to the same prospects. In many lights whiteness, is considered to be MORE AMERICAN, or more prosperous in many cases. “.. but she is white, her beauty is self-evident. I sense somehow that she must be more beautiful than Asian women, more prestigious.” Unlike the narrator in Fictive Fragments of a Father and Son, Jimmy Mirikitani embraces the tragedy he faced through illustrating Japanese Art and being Anti-American in a sense. Because Jimmy recalls the negative encounters such as his family members dying, the mistreatment and separation of his family members forced him to have a strong dislike for Americas. Even as a homeless man, he originally didn’t want any help from the filmmaker or from SS. Mirikitani embraced his culture before, during and after his interment and even taught the filmmaker a lot of his Japanese ancestry from the samurai movies, stories of his internment, the art that is special to his culture and other cultural values of those of Japanese ancestry.

Japanese internment has shaped the survivors in many ways, some embrace their culture even stronger, some have a strong dislike for Americans and many conform to American culture and forget their own. The devastating truth is that this part of history shapes the potential of these people in many ways and ultimately are influenced with the coping mechanisms the individuals chose to deal with this injustice.

 

"Family Ties"

Jimmy Santiago Baca’s, Family Ties discusses the cultural differences and a lack of belongingness that one family has while attending a family gathering. There is a cultural disconnection between the families’. While the majority of the family is joining the barbeque, and engaging the common cultural practices of those of Mexican ancestry, with the preparing of tacos and tamales, conversations while indulging in beer and whiskey and discussing land grant issues leaves one family feeling displaced. The narrator discusses that he feels, “No love or family tie here.” Opposed to his families cultural practices the narrator rather go hiking and be in an abandoned rock cabin within the mountains. It is likely that the cultural disassociation correlates with having a more Americanized background opposed to his family that incorporates Mexican culture and values heavily into their everyday lives.

I relate to the narrator’s disassociation to my connection to my family when I travel to South Carolina to visit my host of aunts, uncles, grandparents and cousins. A common practice of my Southern family is the women spending hours preparing home cooked meals (corn bread, baked macaroni & cheese, mustard greens, fried chicken; etc.) Food is a major part of African American’s culture is considered to be, “Soul Food.” Soul Food was a term used to describe recipes with the roots of slavery and civil rights within rural areas of the South. Soul food and Southern meals are completely different, according to John T. Edge the director or the Southern Foodways Alliance; “The differences between the foods of Black and White Southerners are subtle. More capsicum pepper heat, a heavier hand with salt and pepper and a great use of offal meat are comparative characteristics of Soul vs. Country Cooking.” Soul food cooking thrives from the recipes created with the lack of resources provided to African Americans. Although the South, has made tremendous strides to surpass the negative stigmas associated with the region do to the slave trade & the Civil Rights Movement the dark history of the South is a lot more blatant than anywhere else. While visiting my family in the South Carolina, another custom that is heavily practiced is the making of whiskey & scupadine wine while telling stories of encounters of racism, segregation or discrimination. In many ways I can understand why the narrator has a disassociation with his Mexican family, and like him I can relate to not understanding why certain things are important to his family. However, unlike the narrator I like to embrace my family's culture; and the recent project that I just completed for class has peaked my interest even more because I learned a lot more of harsh encounters endured by my family's members which is a lot of the reason why my connection is strong to my African American heritage.