Greenwood residents are very familiar with the story of the internment of Japanese Canadians and Japanese Americans during World War II. But they may not be aware that other countries on the Pacific also interned their Japanese citizens.
The Greenwood Public Library hosts the screening of a film clip of Hidden Internment, a documentary that exposes the kidnapping, smuggling, and imprisonment of Japanese Latin Americans during World War II, on Thursday, October 17, 2019 at 2:00 p.m. Art Shibayama, who was born in Lima, Peru, was imprisoned, along with his parents and five siblings, in Crystal City, Texas. Hidden Internment is produced by Peek Media in association with the Japanese Peruvian Oral History Project. The film will be preceded by an introduction and followed by a short Question and Answer period.
We will also be hosting a reading from the book, Sideways: Memoir of a Misfit, featuring the life of young Nikkei female protagonist. The Nelson author, Diana Morita Cole, is Art Shibayama’s sister-in-law. Diana was born in a concentration camp in Minidoka, Idaho during WWII.
The memoir presents the struggles of a young girl to overcome the stigma of being a member
of a despised group and features the lives of important cultural icons: William Hohri, who led a massive class action lawsuit against the United States; Iva Toguri, who was convicted of treason and subsequently pardoned; Roy Miki, who was born in exile in Manitoba; and the Murakamis of Salt Spring Island.
The program concludes with a book signing and the sales of the Hidden Internment: The Story of Art Shibayama. Refreshments will be served; everyone is welcome!
For location information, click here.