Report Title:

Japanese Latin Americans, Redress

RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, during World War II, approximately 120,000 Japanese Americans and permanent resident aliens of Japanese ancestry were interned, relocated, or evacuated from their homes in the United States because of their race; and

WHEREAS, nearly fifty years later the country apologized for this grave injustice, and passed the Civil Liberties Act of 1988, authorizing payments of $20,000 to each such person who suffered as a result; and

WHEREAS, the Civil Liberties Act does not cover or even address the Japanese of Latin American ancestry who were interned in the United States during World War II; and

WHEREAS, during World War II, the United States put pressure on thirteen nations in Central and South America to deport to the United States and intern their citizens and legal residents of Japanese of Latin American ancestry; and

WHEREAS, 2,264 Japanese of Latin American ancestry were so deported and interned: some were involuntarily exchanged for prisoners of war and of the ones who remained in United States concentration camps, more than half were deported to Japan after the war and the rest forced to work for subminimum wages on farms, twelve hours a day, seven days a week; and

WHEREAS, a small token apology was made in 1998 resulting from settlement of the case of Mochizuki v. United States, in which the United States offered an apology and a token settlement of $5000, to be paid from the 1988 Civil Liberties Act fund as long as the moneys are available; and

WHEREAS, the monetary reparation is symbolic and the discrepancy between the reparations given to the Japanese of American ancestry and the Japanese of Latin American ancestry is insulting, painful, and denies the very real fact that these people were ripped from their homes, deported to another country, and classified as "illegal enemy aliens" after the war; and

WHEREAS, the 1,600 surviving interned Japanese of Latin American ancestry are passing away and the equalization of reparations should be done while they can appreciate its symbolism; and

WHEREAS, justice dictates that the suffering of the interned Japanese of Latin American ancestry be recognized and that this wrong be righted; now, therefore,

BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Twenty-first Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2001, the Senate concurring, that Hawaii's congressional delegation is urged to support and co-sponsor legislation in Congress to equalize reparations for Japanese of Latin American ancestry interned during World War II; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Concurrent Resolution be transmitted to the President of the United States, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, the President of the Senate, and the members of Hawaii's congressional delegation.