Narrating Japanese Cnadaian Womens Life Stories

ORAL HISTORY AND MEMORIES OF INTERNMENT
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ORAL HISTORY AND MEMORIES OF INTERNMENT
The Japanese Canadian internment was a watershed moment in the history of the Japanese community in Canada during and after WWII. Following the attack of Pearl Harbor by Japanese forces, the Canadian government began the confinement of Japanese Canadians in British Columbia. These actions emanated from the perceptions that the community was a threat to national security, and the country was at risk of espionage. However, this proved otherwise as almost all people confined were harmless, but they did not receive adequate compensation for their sufferings. For oral historians story telling is a vital aspect of the methods used to gather information that in most cases is not available in print.
Preliminary research before carrying out the interview is an important aspect of the methodology. A brief description of the Japanese Canadian internment enabled Sugiman to give evidence that preliminary research occurred and highlighted on the events that followed after the confinement began (Sugiman 2004, p. 360). The author highlights on the consequences of the internment to the extent that the Japanese suffered economic hardships after was seizure of their property by the state which was sold at auctions. There were also other violations that denied Japanese people citizenship and voting rights on the basis of their ethnicity. The biographical data include second generation Japanese Canadian women residing in Canada, the research also used information from community newspapers and archived documents (Sugiman 2004, p. 363).
Research on oral history must identify the goals and objectives of a research before a researcher chooses the methodology to use. From the onset of the research Sugiman states that the aim of the research was to explore the role of memory in bridging the gap between widely accepted account of the internment and individual recollection. Consequently, the researcher sets the interviewing technique and method of storing information based on the overall goals of the study. Thus, Sugiman chooses to have individual interviews gathering testimonies from thirty participants, because the study is mostly academic the data collection is rigorous, but there are no rigorous rules on data collection and information seeking. The researcher spent time with participants engaging in informal talk, with communication n extending beyond the internment experience.
Determining the eligibility of participants also defines the methodology applicable on the study of detention of Japanese Canadians. Consequently, the researcher sought to find information on the topic through interviewing second generation Japanese Canadian women in Ontario and British Columbia. The choice of these locations was essential because members of the community from British Columbia suffered the most as the detention mainly occurred in the area. In additi...