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They didn't incarcerate the Japanese-Americans in Hawaii. That's the place that was bombed. But the Japanese-American population was about 45 percent of the island of Hawaii. And if they extracted those Japanese-Americans, the economy would have collapsed. But on the mainland, we were thinly spread out up and down the West Coast.
George Takei
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Interpretation

What this quote means

This quote highlights the economic implications of the internment of Japanese-Americans during World War II.

George Takei's quote reflects on the internment of Japanese-Americans during World War II, particularly how the concentration of this population in Hawaii was crucial for the local economy. In contrast to the mainland where Japanese-Americans were more dispersed, Hawaii's economy relied on their presence, leading to different treatment and outcomes regarding their civil liberties during a time of war and prejudice.

Themes

Japanese-AmericansWarInternmentEconomyDiscrimination

In practice

Example use cases

This quote can be used in discussions or presentations about historical injustices.

More from George Takei

I remembered some people who lived across the street from our home as we were being taken away. When I was a teenager, I had many after-dinner conversations with my father about our internment. He told me that after we were taken away, they came to our house and took everything. We were literally stripped clean.
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My father told me about American democracy. And he said you have to be actively engaged in the political process to make our democracy work. So I've been doing that my entire life. Civil rights movement. The peace movement during the Vietnam conflict. The movement to get an apology and redress for Japanese-Americans.
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In many ways, my decision to come out changed the course not only of my personal life but of my professional one as well.
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