California Story Fund
Aliens Among Us:
Japanese and Italian Americans
Under Siege During World War II
Northern Humboldt Union High School DistrictMcKinleyville
Project Director: Jack Bareilles
What happened to Italian- and Japanese Americans in Humboldt County during World War II?
This project served to educate local students, teachers and community members about the experiences of Italian Americans and Japanese Americans during World War II through a website and a conference at local Humboldt County schools.
Early in 1942, Humboldt County Italian Americans were forced to leave their homes and move inland. This forced relocation lasted 10 months and affected hundreds of residents. That story, documented by Stephen Fox, an emeritus professor of history at Humboldt State University, was part of the project.
No Japanese Americans were living in Humboldt County at the time of the war, but 27 Japanese American from the Tule Lake Relocation Camp were tried there for draft evasion. That case was one of seven similar cases in the Western states and the only one where the charges were dismissed. Part of the project will include the story of the judge in the case, Louis E. Goodman, and the stand he took.
Bareilles said, “We believe that the project heightened awareness of how these events during World War II affected the local community and encouraged an open discussion of how people’s civil rights can be challenged and sometimes taken away in a time of war.”