You probably never heard of her but because of her, we know of one of the blackest spots of American History.
Born in Stockton, California to Japanese immigrants Michi was raised by migrant farmers who worked the farmland of Brentwood, California. (yes, that Brentwood) However, that all changed when the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor.
Michi and her family were rounded up and taken to the Gila River War Relocation Center in Arizona. When her family was “evacuated” they could only take with them what they could carry. They went from being a family unit to being placed in a communal world where privacy was no longer given to anyone. Life in the camps was hard. Built on barren land they could not grow their own food and the weather was harsh. If anyone stepped out of line they were most certainly shot.
But these atrocities were not recognized by the US Government not until Michi made them recognize them.
Michi went on to have a very successful career as a costume designer but her she did not forget her time in the camps. In 1976 she published Years of Infamy, the Untold Story of America’s Concentration Camps. Her book is considered to be the primary source for the history of what happened. In it she examines reports, details the abuses that occurred in various camps and how the government manipulated the American population for it’s own means.
Michi went on to fight for reparations to not only Japanese Americans but also Japanese South Americans, which were kidnapped by American officials. In 1988 President Ronald Reagon signed the Civil Liberties Act which compensated 10,000 Japanese Americans that were wrong by internments.
It is because of Michi’s bravery and determination that we remember what happened to these Americans.
Creating Herstory 