The world as we know it was changed December 7, 1941 when the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor. Two months later, in an attempt to protect the country from inside threats, President Roosevelt issued Executive Order 9066. This Executive Order became a dark moment in our history, but why? What is Executive Order 9066 and why did it become a dark moment? February 19, President Roosevelt issued Executive Order 9066. This executive order, misplaced thousands of American citizens all because they had a Japanese background. This order gave local authorities, the right to relocate Japanese American citizens to local camps. They were also given the authority to run these camps in the best way they saw fit (Executive Order 9066). Japanese Americans were given orders and a report date as well as a location to where they would report. They were told to only bring what they could carry and were limited to one bag per person. They were not informed of how long they would be relocated (Civilian Exclusion Order No. 79). In her article, “Camp Harmony” from Nisei …show more content…
Forty years later, the Civil Liberties Act was issued preventing something like this from ever happening again. As part of the Civil Liberties Act, an apology was issued to all Japanese Americans that had been victims of Executive Order 9066 and each victim received $20,000 (Burns). The country will forever be changed because of Executive Order 9066. Thousands of lives were uprooted and forever changed because of the fear that was gripping the country. American citizens were treated like prisoners because of their Japanese background. Though years later these citizens were given an apology and compensation for what they lived through, this moment will always be a moment that will put a shadow on the history of