The Nisei and “Never-Never Land”

A dearth of patriotic feeling may be bad. And there has been much hullabaloo about American apathy, but this apathy is a blessing compared to the narrow-minded patriotism which recently has been exhibited. From the way college presidents and state governors have been acting, one would think the only purposes of American armed forces is to remove all traces of Japanese race and culture from the earth.
This attitude may well win the war, but it will never preserve the ensuing peace. Of course we have friends and relatives who have been killed in this war. Think of the Nisei. They have American friends who have been killed — and Japanese, racial and blood brothers, who are killing and being killed by fellow Americans.
One cannot blame Mrs. Williams for taking such a stand. But there is no reason why she should vent her spleen on the American-born Japanese because their former country-men have killed her cousin.
We don’t say nasty things about our neighbors of German ancestry. They had nothing to do with Hitler. The Nisei have as little to do with the present situation. Why should they be crucified by narrow-minded patriotism?