Thank you for the bravery of posting about truths that move you. Things you can’t see past.
You’re likely to lose a few subs like we do when we post something that shouldn’t be controversial, when speak to historic and current injustices. Take to heart that despite those that leave there will be some that you move towards light and others that you attract and in the end it will all work out.
Seeing you move from hesitancy over the past months to full alignment to who you both are is inspiring.
YES! Thank you for sharing this James. I have been travelling throughout the USA for 6 years now and writing about my adventures (although this is only my first year sharing them here on Substack). As you now know, so much of the history we were taught has been whitewashed. As I began researching the places we visited, I started uncovering and sharing the history that had been swept under the rug like a dirty little secret.
The way Japanese and Japanese-Americans were treated throughout the United States is deplorable, and yet we are rarely reminded of these atrocities or taught about the people and families who endured them. Their offspring say nothing-- have they forgiven us?
While staying in Cody, Wyoming, we learned about the Heart Mountain Interpretive Center in nearby Powell, located on the grounds of another former Japanese American incarceration camp from World War II. It sounds very similar to what you experienced at Minidoka. Walking through that museum was gut-wrenching. Seeing the photographs, reading the personal stories, and realizing that many of those imprisoned were American citizens made it impossible to view this as distant or disconnected history.
It is atrocious how fear and propaganda made ordinary people willing to accept the unacceptable. That is why places such as Minidoka and Heart Mountain are there. They do more than preserve history; they force us to look at what happened and ask whether we would recognize it if it began happening again. Would we recognize it?
Thank you James for refusing to look away and for using your travels to keep these stories alive. Mine is Planes Trains and Rving.
Karen, thanks so much for reading and sharing your thoughts. It's a priceless gift!
I find it appalling that our government and education system have tried to hide the dark history of our country for so long, which goes way above and beyond what happened to the Japanese and Japanese-Americans during WWII, and sadly, many of the historical sites like Minidoka or Heart Mountain don't get as many visitors because they don't get the priority like other places, like the ones where the "white man overcame evil."
We were in Cody, Wyoming, in June. I wish I had heard about Heart Mountain. We visited the Tuskegee Airmen Museum among others, and it made us feel the same way - heartbroken. How people could think and behave the way they do towards others who are different is beyond me.
I think those of us who have our hearts open, who have seen what we have seen, would recognize it, but then even the Germans who saw what Hitler was doing turned a blind eye even when they disagreed with it. Even some people in my family who survived the Nazi regime do not see the same pattern re-emerging today. 😢
Congratulations on your travels! You've been on the road as long as we have. I'm glad you're sharing your experiences and look forward to reading them. Maybe we'll meet up along the adventure somewhere.
Yes agree completely. It was so refreshing to meet kindred spirits who sound the same words as I. Such a privilege to be able to wander and see what is beyond our garden gate. Glad you are doing it too. Wow how cool we have been on the same journey for almost the same time. Yes that would be so awesome to meet up.
Thank you for the bravery of posting about truths that move you. Things you can’t see past.
You’re likely to lose a few subs like we do when we post something that shouldn’t be controversial, when speak to historic and current injustices. Take to heart that despite those that leave there will be some that you move towards light and others that you attract and in the end it will all work out.
Seeing you move from hesitancy over the past months to full alignment to who you both are is inspiring.
YES! Thank you for sharing this James. I have been travelling throughout the USA for 6 years now and writing about my adventures (although this is only my first year sharing them here on Substack). As you now know, so much of the history we were taught has been whitewashed. As I began researching the places we visited, I started uncovering and sharing the history that had been swept under the rug like a dirty little secret.
The way Japanese and Japanese-Americans were treated throughout the United States is deplorable, and yet we are rarely reminded of these atrocities or taught about the people and families who endured them. Their offspring say nothing-- have they forgiven us?
While staying in Cody, Wyoming, we learned about the Heart Mountain Interpretive Center in nearby Powell, located on the grounds of another former Japanese American incarceration camp from World War II. It sounds very similar to what you experienced at Minidoka. Walking through that museum was gut-wrenching. Seeing the photographs, reading the personal stories, and realizing that many of those imprisoned were American citizens made it impossible to view this as distant or disconnected history.
It is atrocious how fear and propaganda made ordinary people willing to accept the unacceptable. That is why places such as Minidoka and Heart Mountain are there. They do more than preserve history; they force us to look at what happened and ask whether we would recognize it if it began happening again. Would we recognize it?
Thank you James for refusing to look away and for using your travels to keep these stories alive. Mine is Planes Trains and Rving.
Karen, thanks so much for reading and sharing your thoughts. It's a priceless gift!
I find it appalling that our government and education system have tried to hide the dark history of our country for so long, which goes way above and beyond what happened to the Japanese and Japanese-Americans during WWII, and sadly, many of the historical sites like Minidoka or Heart Mountain don't get as many visitors because they don't get the priority like other places, like the ones where the "white man overcame evil."
We were in Cody, Wyoming, in June. I wish I had heard about Heart Mountain. We visited the Tuskegee Airmen Museum among others, and it made us feel the same way - heartbroken. How people could think and behave the way they do towards others who are different is beyond me.
I think those of us who have our hearts open, who have seen what we have seen, would recognize it, but then even the Germans who saw what Hitler was doing turned a blind eye even when they disagreed with it. Even some people in my family who survived the Nazi regime do not see the same pattern re-emerging today. 😢
Congratulations on your travels! You've been on the road as long as we have. I'm glad you're sharing your experiences and look forward to reading them. Maybe we'll meet up along the adventure somewhere.
Yes agree completely. It was so refreshing to meet kindred spirits who sound the same words as I. Such a privilege to be able to wander and see what is beyond our garden gate. Glad you are doing it too. Wow how cool we have been on the same journey for almost the same time. Yes that would be so awesome to meet up.