By Kathy Masaoka, Matthew Weisbly, Matt Marumoto and Katie Masano Hill
Recently, a federal court heard arguments in a case challenging President Donald Trump’s invocation of the Alien Enemies Act, the wartime law that he used in March to deport Venezuelans to a notorious prison in El Salvador. As the litigators sparred over whether Venezuela had “invaded” the U.S. and the Act could continue to be used to diminish immigrants’ rights, many in the Japanese American community recalled painful memories.
Eighty-five years ago, the same wartime law was used to intern thousands of Japanese immigrants without due process. And the use of the Alien Enemies Act against immigrants quickly gave way to a sweeping claim of executive power to incarcerate U.S. citizens of Japanese descent.
Our organizations, which led the fight for redress for Japanese incarceration, have drawn the court’s attention to this history. The Japanese American story cautions the courts against blessing abuses of power.
But our community’s struggle does more: It shows that an honest accounting of the abuse of wartime power can help communities heal and ultimately make America stronger. It creates a path for the nation to follow in the wake of Trump’s abuse of the Alien Enemies Act and other war authorities.
After WWII, and little by little, Japanese Americans came forward and spoke publicly about the suffering and loss they experienced due to the incarceration policy. In 1980, this culminated in Congress’ creation of the Commission on Wartime Relocation and Internment of Civilians, a bipartisan fact-finding body that investigated whether the treatment of Japanese Americans had been justified by wartime exigency and constitutional power.
The commission held hearings in more than 20 cities, heard testimony from over 750 witnesses and reviewed thousands of pages of government records. Survivors described their experience of forced removal, confinement, family separation and economic devastation — many sharing their pain for the first time.
The CWRIC revealed that the Roosevelt administration’s “military necessity” justification for detaining Japanese Americans was false. Indeed, it found that the administration’s own intelligence assessments had concluded that the Japanese American community posed no security threat to the U.S.
In its final report, “Personal Justice Denied,” the CWRIC concluded that the treatment of Japanese Americans stemmed from “racial prejudice, war hysteria and a failure of political leadership,” not legitimate national security interests.
There is reason to believe that a modern-day commission, dedicated to Trump’s peacetime use of wartime powers against Venezuelans, would uncover similar facts. Already, independent investigations have found that many of the Venezuelans targeted under the Alien Enemies Act had no criminal history and were in the country lawfully.
They were not “narcoterrorist” invaders as administration officials claimed. Separate investigations have concluded that the Venezuelans faced torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment upon their deportation to a Salvadoran prison.
A now-declassified intelligence assessment undermines key assertions about the threat posed by Venezuela that Trump relied on when invoking the Act. A formal, bipartisan commission could create a definitive record of where the government has advanced unsupported narratives to harm innocent people.
A modern-day commission could also make policy recommendations that cut through the noise of our divided political landscape. Congress was so moved by the account of Japanese Americans’ experiences in “Personal Justice Denied” that it adopted the report’s recommendations and passed the Civil Liberties Act of 1988.
Since 1988, the Civil Liberties Act has been cited by courts to bolster constitutional due process and equal protection for all Americans, irrespective of their ethnic background.
An investigation today, as then, could strengthen our constitutional protections and grow our civic culture. At minimum, the Venezuelans targeted under the Alien Enemies Act deserve an opportunity to speak for themselves and place their experiences on the public record.
And our leaders in Congress must root out government malfeasance and identify where our institutions remain vulnerable to abuse. These are necessary steps toward rebuilding a shared belief in the rule of law and the ideals of liberty and justice.
American history is complicated. In it, there are targeted and deliberate actions against marginalized groups, often immigrant communities. But so, too, are there actions taken to reckon with these wrongs and build a better future for all.
Daniel Inouye, who served in the historic 442nd Infantry Regiment during WWII and went on to become the first Japanese American U.S. senator, described democracy as “an imperfect concept slowly seeking perfection.” In the 1980s, Congress committed to doing the work of democracy, admitting error and addressing past harms. Will Congress do the same today?
Kathy Masaoka is a member of Nikkei Progressives/Nikkei or Civil Rights & Redress; Matthew Weisbly is JACL education and communications manager; Matt Marumoto is the JACL Daniel K. Inouye Fellow; and Katie Masano Hill is the JACL Norman Y. Mineta Fellow.