Women in the Camps

Honouliuli internment camp held at least 10 women in the camp, eight of whom were Japanese incarcerees and two that were of European descent who were Hawai‘i-born wives of naturalized citizens. The Japanese women were walled off in a separate section of the compound from the men where they lived together in a singular building. Due to the few historical records related to Honouliuli available, little is known about the women's daily lives held there.

Most of the information on this page speaks to the Japanese American women's experience in camps on the continent.

 

Changing Roles

Japanese American women's roles shifted drastically during wartime following the arrests of their husbands. There was little to no warning when their husband, who typically supported the family financially, would be sent to the camps and uncertainty about when, or if, the family could be reunited. Women ended up taking on the emotional, mental, and financial brunt of the family left behind, a challenge in those days as families often had large numbers of children and it was a cultural practice to also care for the elders. With Japanese Americans being barred from jobs and access to banks, it seemed a near-impossible task to keep a family afloat.

Some women voluntarily interned themselves and their children because they believed staying united as a family unit with their husbands under incarceration was better than being "free" but separated. Those who chose not to go to the mainland camps automatically stepped up as heads of the household, a role even taken on by older children as well.

With this newfound autonomy, women began to team up and participate in collective communities, which lessened domestic pressures and duties. Those who could find jobs were making money for the first time in their lives. Small advantages in women's independence always came at a price though, usually being separated from a loved one.

 

Taking a Stand

Although juggling newfound responsibilities and being removed from their homes, Japanese American women in the camps did not let their circumstance prevent their active involvement in advocating for better camp conditions.

A notable labor strike at the Minidoka Relocation Center known as the Boilermen Strike saw the number of boilermen and janitors of the camp reduced while labor hours increased. In protest, the laborers shut off hot water in the camp to strike for better working conditions (the hospital was spared from this shut off to aid the needy).

After two days without hot water in the freezing Idaho winter, a group of seventy five issei (first generation) and nisei (second generation) women met with the camp's assistant director, demanding a letter be sent to Washington D.C. to pressure the government to fulfill the striker's requests and restore hot water. They argued that their families and children were the ones being punished by the U.S. government, their men were fighting for the U.S., and it was cruel to punish them when they were victims of circumstance.

Access to hot water in the winter was essential for not only warmth, but also for proper washing of items that prevented the spread of disease. Close quarters invited the proliferation of tuberculosis and food poisoning with no way to sanitize people sufficiently.

Hearing their anger at the injustice, the government consented and hot water was restored within a week, but it was only thanks to the strong women who made their arguments as mothers and caretakers did the rest of the camp community rally their cause.

 

Minidoka Relocation Center. Mrs. Mabel Shigaya. X-ray technician. Hospital. View in X-ray Laboratory.

Stewart, Francis, War Relocation Authority photographer, Photographer; National Archives at College Park

Women at Work

Incarcerated Japanese American women across the nation held a variety of jobs to assist in the war effort, even while imprisoned, due to the reclassification of Japanese Americans that made them elegible for the draft as the war dragged on. Women took jobs as nurses, joined the Women's Army Corps, and acted as linguists and translators. Despite being treated with anti-Asian discrimination, many felt a strong drive to help the American war effort to prove their loyalty.

Around 500 women served in the armed forces, filling in jobs that men had to leave to go to the front lines. They became cooks, truck drivers, typists, and military clerks, to name a few occupations. Not everyone in their family viewed this breaking of traditional norms as favorable, and many women were met with the scorn of their families.

Despite the pushback, many women seized the opportunity to escape the camp and gain valuable job skills while enlisted, along with receiving a free education. They left their service time feeling proud to have served just as any other American would, and in doing so, left a legacy that continues to inspire the women of today.

 

A mother and her two children awaiting evacuation by bus.

Dorothea Lange; National Archives at College Park

Internment on Women's Health

A 2024 study done by Grossman, Khalil, and Panza examined if there were intergenerational health effects seen in Japanese American women and their children post-incarceration. Only 1% of the Japanese population living on Hawai‘i was interned compared to 100% of Japanese residents along the west coast. Therefore, comparing and constrasting the effects internment had on Japanese American women's health has been a relatively easy task and intergenerational consequences have been shown.

On average, Japanese American women living in Hawai‘i birthed babies 77 grams heavier than their mainland counterparts. Hypotheses suggest that the mother's health condition while incarcerated dramatically affected the birthweight of their future children, mainly due to nutritional deprivation, continued stress and mental trauma, and a rough adjustment back to post-incarceration life.

Trauma had a deep and lasting effect on women's health and also the future generations. Knowing how it affected Japanese mothers during incarceration on the mainland serves as a strong warning that even after being "freed" from the camps, even the next generation could not escape them.


More readings about women in the camp:
Photo Essay: Japanese American Mothers During WWII
Ruth Nomura Tanbara
Hannah Tomiko Holmes
Dr. Kazue Togasaki
Mitsuye Endo