Japanese Americans sought to build a sense of community within the bounds of the internment camps during World War II using participation in religious activity.
creator
Hamamoto, Sydney.
Title
Building Community Behind Barbed Wires: The ‘Religious Life’ of Japanese American Youth In Internment Camps
advisor
Holmes-Tagchungdarpa, Amy.
supporting host
Grinnell College. Religious Studies Department.
supporting host
Research, Scholarship and Creative Activity Symposium, 2017
Index Date
2016
Date Issued
2016-11-14
Publisher
Grinnell College
Type of Resource
text
Genre
presentation
Digital Origin
reformated digital
Digital Extent
9 pages
Media Type
application/pdf
note
Presented at the Research, Scholarship and Creative Activity Symposium 2017. Created for Religion 295: Empire and Religion in Asia and the Pacific with Professor Amy Holmes-Tagchungdarpa
description
During the Second World War, over 110,000 people of Japanese descent living on the Pacific Coast were removed from their homes and relocated into internment camps. Within the camps, the Nikkei (Japanese people) worked to establish any semblance of normalcy in their lives. This research paper is a study of how Japanese Americans sought to build a sense of community within the bounds of the camps. Some did turn to faith, but many simply participated in religious activity to retain a sense of community. This is complicated by the fact that within Japanese American culture, religion is embedded within culture. No matter their religious beliefs, by participating in cultural events, Japanese Americans are taking part in a faith-based activity. While religion was an important aspect of the internment experience, sports and other social activities were as equally important. In this time of extreme stress, Japanese Americans wholeheartedly embraced sports, clubs, and groups. On Sunday mornings, some preferred to be at the baseball diamond rather than at church. No matter what they turned to for comfort, the Japanese Americans needed a strong community to withstand the psychological stress that incarceration caused.
Language
English
Topic
Cultural assimilation.
Topic
Japanese Americans.
Topic
Evaculation and relocation, 1942-1945.
Topic
World War, 1939-1945.
Topic
Concentration camps.
Topic
Religious aspects.
Topic
Americanization.
Geographic
United States.
Temporal
Nineteen forties.
Temporal
20th century
Classification
D769.8.A6
Related Item
Digital Grinnell
Related Item
Student Scholarship
Related Item
Undergraduate Student Symposium
Identifier (local)
grinnell:18952
Access Condition
Copyright to this work is held by the author(s), in accordance with United States copyright law (USC 17). Readers of this work have certain rights as defined by the law, including but not limited to fair use (17 USC 107 et seq.).
