The "relocation centers" typically stood in desolate areas. Internees in the detention camps faced harsh daily conditions under constant surveillance. Food rations were often limited, and outbreaks of food poisoning were all too common in the face of poor sanitation. Medical care was inadequate, with both medical staff and the necessary medicine in short supply. These conditions threatened the well-being of the incarcerated Japanese Americans, especially the elderly and small children. Living quarters were rudimentary. Families shared space in cramped, hastily erected barracks with thin tarpaper walls that afforded precious little protection from the elements. The inland regions of the camps were subject to extreme climates: summers brought scorching heat with little reprieve and winters, bitter cold and snow. Privacy was nearly impossible to find: communal toilets typically had no partitions, and the barracks were crowded, often with only sheets between family living spaces. Amidst these living conditions, internees forged a community by establishing makeshift schools, gathering in Christian and Buddhist church groups, and engaging in hobbies.
Gaman: Making Do & Finding Beauty
Within the confines of the detention centers, Japanese Americans held onto the Japanese belief in gaman—quiet and dignified suffering in the face of hardship. Despite captivity and the grim living conditions, the internees found glimpses of beauty and set about creating a sense of normalcy. Some established gardens to bring patches of verdant green to the desert grounds within the camps. Arts and handicrafts brought comfort, beauty, and escape; some internees carved intricate []; others sketched and painted or created textiles from what little materials they could find or acquire. This spirit of gaman and ingenuity fortified the internees to endure uncertainty and difficulty of camp life.
拠所 Yoridokoro: Solace in Spirituality & Community
Spirituality and community offered dual sources of strength and support in the detention centers. In spite of pressures to cast aside aspects of Japanese culture considered incompatible with the dominant U.S. culture, Buddhism continued to play a significant role in the daily lives of many internees. Cam worship facilities were Christian, and so Buddhists adapted to the American environment: they created hymnals with orders of service and songs modeled on the Christian . English services began, and children with English services and youth groups. Japanese Christians also leaned strength in their faith, and remarkably, shared worship spaces often emerged, highlighting interfaith solidarity.
Japanese holidays and community events marked the passing of the seasons, helping the interned maintain their Japanese identities even as they forged a new sense of solidarity and belonging together. Internees organized community groups and councils to oversee camp life while children studied in schools established there. Recreational activities included sports and young people who had played musical instruments in their lives before incarceration formed bands to fill the community spaces with big band music. These efforts to forge belonging anchored in shared heritage and spirituality offered respite and strength as incarceration stretched on.
絆 Kizuna: Family Ties & Bonds of Friendship
Through the upheaval of forced removal and the grim conditions of camp life, family ties and bonds of friendship connected internees to one another and a sense of strength. Some families faced separation at assembly centers but later found themselves reunited upon arrival in the detention centers. Other families were separated; in many such cases, fathers were sent to one detention center and the remainder of the family to another. Family members sometimes faced multiple moves from one detention center to another.
The bonds of friendship between individuals and among families deepened as internees leaned on one another to endure the stark realities of daily life in captivity. Children formed friendships with others who had once lived far away as they studied together in schools or played together on the grounds. Adults worked long hours together and spent some of their free time preparing for community events or improving the physical structures around them as best they could. These connections, forged in the face of common adversity, became both lifelines and reminders of shared humanity.
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