10 Camps, 10 Stories: "Beyond the Barbed Wire"

The Home of Franklin D. Roosevelt National Historic Site in Hyde Park, N.Y. is humbled to present a new video series titled, “10 Camps, 10 Stories: Beyond the Barbed Wire”. At Franklin Roosevelt's home, the story generally focuses on his accomplishments and successes, but we feel it is also important to highlight the mistakes. Possibly the worst mistake of FDR's presidency was Executive Order (E.O.) 9066. Policies such as this should never happen again along with the events they cause.

Park Ranger Kevin Oldenburg was inspired to tell the story of the people affected by E.O. 9066 after returning from a seminar in Utah in November of 2022. That trip included a visit to the site where Topaz Camp once stood. Topaz Camp was a World-War-II era, Japanese internment camp. It was eye opening for Kevin to experience a place of reverence firsthand and to see the paths made of stones carefully placed by inhabitants attempting to make the space feel more personal. Trinkets damaged by the elements lay on the ground, and remnants of building foundations which housed the incarcerates were still noticeable. The tragic history and weathered items humanized the desolate landscape. Ranger Oldenburg wanted to commemorate the people who were unjustly incarcerated.

One person from each of the ten internment camps was chosen to profile and recognize what they experienced and overcame. These are amazing stories that need to be told. With collaboration from his colleagues, Ranger Oldenburg began crafting videos which displayed the authentic stories through historic photos, historic video footage, and oral histories of family members. Park Ranger Will Simone was instrumental in editing and finalizing the twelve videos produced from Kevin's inspired research.

A new story was showcased each month from February through December of 2023. The conclusion of the series was released on December 10^th, Human Rights Day. On that day in 1948, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights was ratified. Eleanor Roosevelt was instrumental in drafting the document, and the year 2023 marked the 75th anniversary of the document's ratification. December 10th was a perfect day to conclude the series. We hope these stories will inspire others to consider Executive Order 9066 in a different way and to think of the human lives that were forever altered by its institution.

Use the links below to view the videos on our YouTube Channel. The titles of the links denote the episode number, person featured, and the camp in which they were incarcerated.

Introduction: 10 Camps, 10 Stories

1: Kiyoshi Muranaga – Camp Amache

2: Kenichi Zenimura – Gila River

3: Toyo Miyatake – Manzanar

4: Ruth Asawa – Rowher

5: George Yoshinaga – Heart Mountain

6: Mary Tsukamoto – Jerome

7: Mine Okubo – Topaz

8: George Fujii – Poston

9: Jimi Yamaichi – Tule Lake

10: Henry Miyatake – Minidoka

Conclusion: 10 Camps, 10 Stories