During World War II, fear and hatred towards Japanese-Americans grew rapidly in the United States. This was demonstrated by the novel “They Called Us Enemy.”

At this time, Japanese-Americans were treated differently compared to regular Americans. It created this idea of discrimination, intolerance, and the feeling that Japanese-Americans were inferior to Americans. Today, we classify this idea as racism. Racism has been commonly spread throughout the world, even today. No matter where you are, there will always be hatred towards a specified group of people. For example, racism towards African Americans has become a huge part of our history today.

We’ve all heard the same stories in American history. Martin Luther King, Rosa Parks, racial segregation towards white/black people, and slavery. All of these historical figures/events have shaped our society today. Although racism still remains a problem today, it has changed tremendously throughout decades. Before, African Americans couldn’t even do normal things in everyday life. They were constantly separated from white people, and were inferior to them as well. Many of them didn’t have rights, freedom, or a voice to be heard. Similar to Japanese-Americans during World War II, African Americans have always been discriminated against due to the color of their skin. Imagine waking up every morning, hearing comments of people telling you to go back home? Isn’t America their home? Instead of giving respect towards fellow African Americans, many Americans took advantage of their rights and used them as their property. This was commonly known as slavery. Slavery is well known throughout the world, as it was a huge thing decades ago. 

Why were African Americans specifically targeted toward this behavior? Although it is difficult to answer, it’s important to be aware of what they had to face for decades. These events have built our world today. Without these known movements, African American discrimination would continue to be harshly mistreated. Many authors, writers, and creators, create/write stories about these events as it’s important to recognize nowadays. Even though racism is still an issue today, it will not compare to the racism we had centuries ago. I believe this is something that needs to be emphasized even more in our society, as it will continue to affect many people.