​













Forever will the unjust internment of thousands of Japanese Americans during World War II remain an irrevocable stain on American History, revealing the fraudulent nature of the ideals of freedom, democracy, and acceptance that are fundamental to the American national identity. The Tule Lake Segregation Center and National Historic Landmark, opened in 1946, was the largest of ten internment camps opened by the War R

elocation Authority, holding 18,000 detainees in a maximum security facility. Previously named Tule Lake, the site was later named as a segregation cen

ter, made for Japanese Americans who answered ‘no-no’ to question 27 and 28 on a loyalty test.

Question 27: “Are you willing to serve in the armed forces of the United States on combat duty, wherever ordered?”

Question 28: “Will you swear unqualified allegiance to the United States and faithfully defend the United States from any or all attack by foreign or domestic forces, and forswear any form of allegiance or obedience to the Japanese emperor, or any other foreign government, power, or organization?”

 These questions were unfair to many Japanese Americans, as answering ‘yes’ to question 27 meant that they were willing to enlist, and answering ‘yes’ to 28 was forgoing potential citizenship from a nation that had done less harm to them than America. (Tule lake.org). Those who did not answer yes to these questions on the test, as well as those who refused to be enlisted in the army, were considered to be a be disloyal and a danger to the American people. Unjustly detained in a concentration camp of 4,685 acres on semi-arid land, Tule Lake was built to be a completely self sufficient facility complete with housing, farming, schooling, and health care facilities. All enclosed by a barbed wire fence, guard towers, and the threat of military tanks, Tule Lake demonstrates the hypocrisy of a nation that prides itself of being a melting pot of diversity while forcibly and irrationally alienating a group from society solely based on race .