Born in the USA: A Story of Japanese America, 1889-1947

(Paperback)

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Description

This unique oral history presents the Japanese American saga as told by those who lived through it. Frank Chin details the lives of first and second generation Japanese Americans before World War II with a rich kaleidoscope of images drawn from interviews, popular songs, novels, and newspaper articles. The heart of his story is the tragedy that followed the bombing of Pearl Harbor, when Japanese American citizens lost their homes and property and were forced into internment camps. The author deftly weaves interviews and testimony from the Japanese American Citizen's League (JACL) with opposing, in-depth conversations with those who resisted the JACL's support for U.S. policy. This shameful episode in American history resonates deeply today as we witness similar erosions of civil rights in the name of wartime security.

Reviews

A monumental documentary. . . . Frank Chin is first and last a master story-teller. Some things cannot be cured by reparations or by apologies from the JACL, but, as Chin demonstrates, the stories can be told with passion and with art. * Western American Literature *
This book is a welcome addition to the growing literature on Asian American studies. Recommended. * Choice Reviews *
Frank Chin takes what would nornally be a cacophony of voices and carefully melds them into masterful stories. * Nichi Bei Times *
This is a valuable book. * International Examiner *
Although the main subject presented is wartime internment the interviews and documents provide insight into issues confronted by both first(Issei) and second(Nisei) generation Japanese Americans. * Anthropology Review Database *
On May 11, 2002, the Japanese American Citizens League (JACL) apologized to the 'resistors of conscience' who had refused induction while they and their families were confined in American-style concentration camps during World War II. Why Bursting with passion, Born in the U.S.A. uses insiders' accounts of the resistors' lives to explain their cause and their persecution. This is an indispensable contribution to the literature on Asian America. -- Lane Ryo Hirabayashi, University of California, Los Angeles

Author Bio

Frank Chin is a playwright and novelist. He is the author of Donald Duk: A Novel and Gunga Din Highway.