The comic book “They Called Us Enemy” is about what happened to Japanese Americans following the surprise attack on Pearl Harbor by Japan on December 7, 1941. The narrator is a little boy named George whose family got taken from their homes and put into internment camps by the US government. These Japanese Americans stayed in these camps for five years throughout the war under legalized racism.

While reading, it brought to my attention realize how my parents and I have been through similar circumstances while living in the US when it comes to racism. After fleeing from the communist north in Vietnam and coming to the US, my parents had a hard time getting by adapting to a completely new country. Because the US is so ethnically diverse, racism can be a big deal and no matter how hard we try to stop it, it will still be there. I like how the book relates to the topic and shows a firsthand point of view of such events.

The problem of racism especially has spiked in recent times following the outbreak of the Sars-CoV-2 virus initially originating in Wuhan, China. Because of its origin, people from China and generally of Asian descent have seen alarming levels of racism simply because of their appearance. They’ve been told to go back to their country or even have been victims of hate crimes. I’ve seen racist remarks in the comments section of posts on social media. “Racism and physical attacks on Asians and people of Asian descent have spread with the Covid-19 pandemic, and government leaders need to act decisively to address the trend,” said John Sifton, Asia advocacy director. This shows how the government needs to address racism just like in “They Called Us Enemy.”

Overall, the aspect of racism is a common theme throughout the book as well as in real life. The US government has let down many ethnic minorities and caused many families to suffer as a result. However, even through the tough times, a lot of persistence and determination allowed them to prosper in society even after the problems and limitations they went through.