Prejudice and hate during the turbulence of World War II culminated in injustices being enacted upon Japanese Americans for over 3 years. From 1942 to 1946, 8,500 Japanese Americans suffered incarceration in internment camps in Southeast Arkansas for no other reason but for American anger and fear of the Japanese. Though their lives had been uprooted and their freedom had been taken from them, these communities kept hope alive and survived to tell an inspiring narrative. The Japanese American experience within the WWII internment camps represents an integral moment in the history of Arkansas, therefore we have compiled relevant resources here that can contribute meaningfully to history classrooms. 

Resource Highlights:

Rising Above | Rohwer Reconstructed

For over 3 years, from 1942 to 1946, 8,500 Japanese Americans were relocated and incarcerated in a camp built by the United States government in the Mississippi Delta flatlands of Southeast Arkansas. This camp has since vanished and in an effort to preserve the memory of its existence and in tribute to the community of people who lived within its walls, the Rohwer Reconstructed Project was created. The purpose of this website is to create an online, immersive digital environment that aims to bring the camp "back to life." The website is comprised of a digital archive of objects and historical documents house in Arkansas institutions; an interactive timeline that places events at Rohwer in the larger historical context of World War II; a series of interactive thematic maps that illustrate the physical, social, and functional context of the Rohwer site as it evolved between 1942 and 1945; and a 3D visual reconstruction of one of the residential barracks blocks as it might have appeared in the later years of the camp.

As we expand our digital presence in 2021, we will be continually adding resources to this guide and others in our AAPI Histories of the South collection.