This Oath is divisive, ultimately turning many once-loyal Japanese Americans against the US.Īs the years progress, conditions in Manzanar improve, and those inside accept the camp as their new normal. While the “December Riot” is quickly dispersed, it leads to the introduction of the Loyalty Oath, which all those incarcerated must answer so the US government can assess their loyalty and willingness to enlist. The general mood of frustration leads those in Manzanar to rise up against the camp administration in December 1942. Life in Manzanar is difficult for Jeanne and her family: Papa turns to alcohol, resulting in increasingly abusive behaviors the family unit begins to disintegrate and conditions at the camp are generally poor. After almost a year, he arrives at Manzanar however, he is a changed man in both appearance and habits. For the first year, Jeanne lives with Mama and her siblings in barracks, and the family waits for Papa to be released from his detainment. However, after the US enters WWII in 1941, Papa is arrested for possible espionage, and the family is forced to move to Manzanar camp in a remote location of inland California. Prior to the bombing of Pearl Harbor, she lives with her mother ( Mama), father (Papa), and many siblings in Long Beach, California. Jeanne narrates her experience as a seven-year-old girl living in a concentration camp for Japanese Americans during World War II (WWII). Content Warning: This guide discusses the US imprisonment of Japanese Americans during World War II it uses the phrase “concentration camp” to describe what were known at the time as “internment camps.” It also references alcohol addiction, domestic abuse, and racism/xenophobia.

Farewell to manzanar by jeanne houston