THE JAPANESE "THREAT"
MOVING TOWARDS INTERNMENT

II. LESSON PLAN: ASSESSMENT

WORLD WAR II ESSAY

  • Your assignment is to write a five-paragraph, persuasive essay (the type we have done all year) on World War II.
    handout: Essay Assignment

  • You must respond to one of the two following statements. Either agree or disagree with one of them. You will base your thesis statement on this. [Just to remind you, justified means: there was good reason for it.]

    1) The internment of the Japanese and Japanese Americans on the west coast by the United States government was justified.

    2) The United States’ decision to drop atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan was justified.

    In both cases, do not think only in terms of morals—whether something is “right” or “wrong.” Think about whether there were good reasons for each of the decisions that were made (Executive Order 9066 by Franklin Roosevelt and Harry Truman’s decision to drop the atomic bomb on Japan--twice). Was it a necessary military decision?

WHERE TO FIND SUPPORT

Japanese Internment:  
  • The reading from Double Victory by Ronald Takaki.
  • The Fred Korematsu trial and any information from the sources we used.
  • Books.
  • Legitimate information from the internet.
  • Any handouts from class.
An Oakland, California grocery store bears a SOLD sign as well as an "I Am An American" sign showing the patriotism of its owner. The Japanese-American owner of the shop put up his sign the day after the attack on Pearl Harbor. Soon afterward, the government shut down the shop and relocated its owner to an internment camp.
The Atomic Bombs:  
The United States drops an atomic bomb on Nagasaki, Japan three days after dropping one on Hiroshima. Japan surrendered five day later, ending World War II.
  • The yellow handout of Pros and Cons. (These are from the Seattle Times)
  • A People’s History by Howard Zinn (white packet).
  • Don’t Know Much About History (p 393-396)
  • Reactions to the movie including the effects of the atomic bomb which were learned through testing.
  • Books.
  • Legitimate information from the internet.