"One of the most hauntingly pressing issues facing Japanese Americans
today is their concentration camp experience during World War
II. Yet, the major group of survivors -- the Nisei -- generally
do not confront the implications of it within themselves or with
their own children. In many respects the Nisei have been permanently
altered in their attitudes, both positively and negatively, in
regard to their identification with the values of their bicultural
heritage; or they remain confused or even injured by the traumatic
experience."
- "Identity Crisis of the Sansei and the Concentration Camp", Nobu Miyoshi, 1978.
"Recognizing the great injustice that took place, they carry with
them the legacy of their parents' internment. Time has not severed
the psychological ties to events that preceded them, nor has the
fact that their parents will not openly discuss the internment.
On the contrary, the vast majority of Sansei (third generation)
feel that the incarceration has affected their lives in significant
ways..."
- "Legacy of Injustice: Exploring the Cross-Generational Impact of
the Japanese American Internment", Donna K. Nagata, 1993.
"Trauma may directly or indirectly affect the children of trauma
victims. The multiple pathways of its effects create a variety
of consequences. Despite the silence, or perhaps because of it,
the Sansei who had a parent interned felt the effects of that
experience in numerous ways. They are sad and angry about the
injustice and attribute a number of negative consequences in their
own lives to their parents' internment. These include feelings
of low self-esteem, the pressure to assimilate, an accelerated
loss of the Japanese culture and language, and experiencing the
unexpressed pain of their parents."
- "Legacy of Injustice: Exploring the Cross-Generational Impact of
the Japanese American Internment", Donna K. Nagata, 1993.
"Long-term health consequences included psychological anguish
as well as increased cardiovascular disease. Traumatic stress
was buffered by culturally constructed coping mechanisms that
were less inculcated in the youngest detainees. They reported
more post-traumatic stress symptoms of unexpected and disturbing
flashback experiences than those who were older at the time of
incarceration. "
- "The Experience of Injustice: Health Consequences of the Japanese
American Internment", Gwendolyn M. Jensen, 1997.
"Survey information found former internees had a 2.1 greater risk
of cardiovascular disease, cardiovascular mortality, and premature
death than did a non-interned counterpart. California Nisei-age
individuals, the proxy for internment, died 1.6 years earlier
than Hawaiians who represented non-interned status. I concluded
traumatic stress has life-long consequences even in the presence
of efficacious coping strategies."
- "The Experience of Injustice: Health Consequences of the Japanese
American Internment", Gwendolyn M. Jensen, 1997.
See also: Dr. Ina's Tule Lake Symposium Remarks
