The key here is the date that executive order was signed, just a scant 2 months after the attack on Pearl. I don't think we knew quite where the next threat to our people would come from. Saboteurs? Spies? Enemy Agents? My Dad was with the 181st IR 26th ID at Camp Edwards at that time. As you can imagine, there was alot going on (understatement). On Jan 14th '42, the 182nd was released from the 26th ID and assigned to Task Force 6814 which was later designated the Americal Division and fought some of the first battles of the war at Guadalcanal, Leyte, and the Philippines. On Feb 12, 1942 the 26th was reorganized and redesignated as "HQ 26th" and consisted of headquarters and one Military Police company (My dad was assigned to that MP Co which would later be reassigned to VI Corps as 206th MP). Dad was then sent to CT on "Coastal Patrol" with other units of the YD. They were
patroling the Eastern Seaboard looking for Submarines, spies, and saboteurs. Hindsight
is 20-20, but it was the logical thing to do at the time. Internment of japanese civilians wasn't
right - we can say that in hindsight because history has proven that they weren't a threat,
but we didn't have that history in '42. All we knew then was that we'd suffered an horrendous
unprovoked attack by Japanese. The Japanese were the known enemy, but we didn't know when, where, or how they might strike us again.
m2