The Unknown Internment: An Oral History of the Relocation of Italian Americans During World War II

by Stephen R. Fox

Book Overview

Stephen Fox unveils a forgotten chapter of the American experience in the first book to reveal the federal government's policy of internment of Italian and German nationals during World War II. From February to December 1942, approximately 10,000 California residents were relocated from their homes, and several hundred were interned. Fox presents their oral testimony as a powerful reminder of the often precarious state of civil liberties. Testimony...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0805791086
• ISBN13: 9780805791082
• Release Date: January 1990
• Publisher: Twayne Publishers
• Length: 223 Pages
• Weight: 1.32 lbs.

Customer Reviews

Very well researched.......not widely discussed

This book is a very valuable and thoroughly documented illustration of the Italian-American non-citizen experience during WWII in coastal California. Most people are aware that Japanese Americans (citizens and aliens alike) were forced to relocate to camps as far away as Montana, and to sell their houses and businesses after Pearl Harbor, because of a fear that they would assist in further attacks or sabotage in America. This book details, through personal interviews, how Italian-Americans were also singled out, though to a lesser extent. Many families were forced to move from coastal areas to points inland and subjected to curfews. Many workers, especially commerical fishermen, lost jobs and had their fishing vessels confiscated. What is fascinating is how the government and military balanced the need for national security with the economic cost of sequestering tens of thousands of "enemy aliens". In the end, these restrictions lasted just a few months, as it proved politically and economically too difficult to classify an entire group as dangerous, as it would have compromised the war effort domestically. Unfortunately, the Japanese-Americans had no such luck, whether due to racism, or the fact that their population in the Pacific states was relatively small. Interesting to note that the large population of Japanese descent in Hawaii was not relocated, for the same logistical and economic considerations that eventually derailed the military's obsession with Italian and German aliens. It is sad to note that this wholesale approach was even considered, rather than a more measured case-by-case examination of suspicious individuals and their activities. The failure of goverment to provide a voice of reason and common sense based on individual rights during a time of war is disturbing. This is where the author could have provided more analysis, although I understand the book's main purpose is to be a historical document. I sincerely hope that the wartime experience of Italian, German and Japanese-Americans is something we will not forget and never repeat.