VANCOUVER — Japanese Canadians across the country are meeting to discuss how an apology by the British Columbia government could be backed by meaningful action for those who were placed in internment camps or forced into labour because of racist policies during the Second World War.
“We accepted the apology but we just want to have that follow-up piece that was missing so that is what the current B.C. government has agreed to and started with this process of having community consultations,” she said of the redress initiative funded by the province. Consultations began in May and by the end of July will have been concluded in Toronto, Hamilton, Winnipeg, Calgary, Edmonton, Vancouver and seven other communities in British Columbia.
Addie Kobaishi, 86, was born and raised in Vancouver but her family had to leave their home when they were relocated to the Tashme internment camp, the largest in Canada, near Hope, B.C. “My uncle said to me many, many years later that it spoiled his life. He did marry, he had two children, but he did end up an alcoholic,” she said of Koazi Fujikawa, who had been sent to Yukon during the war as part of a crew constructing the Alaska Highway.
The Japanese are some of the most racist people on the face of the planet, go and fix that first. Internment has nothing to do with racism, it’s carried out during times of war due to matters of national security.
Oh please I’ve never apologized for anything in my entire life. Shows weakness
Yep well apologize for torturing Canadians during death marches. It was war, shit happens.
go home !
I wonder if the Japanese have apologized to the POW's they tortured & starved to death and executed en masse in WW2. I wonder if they have apologized to the families of millions of victims raped and burned alive and beheaded in Manchuria and other places they invaded in ww2?
I’d like an apology from Japan for Fukushima. An update on ongoing measures to reduce the impact on the planet. But hey y’all going genuflect over what a bunch of dead people did 80 years ago.
During this period of history racism was pervasive throughout humanity, not least under the Empire of Japan and its allies. Though offensive today, the gov't made a realistic security call at the time. By all means address lost property, but don't tell us racism was one-sided.
The worst racism has been government racism.
The Japanese government should pony up $$$ for killing my grandfather.