I keep hearing this but, I am not convinced it was a travesty. Unfortunate, yes. I hope the people weren't mis-treated but, I understand the percieved need to do this. I hope we don't enter an era where we are terrorized as the Israelis are. We may again see the need to separate ourselves from a large group of specific people. This is war.
I have received a lot of responses to my post that are quite disappointing. Yours was actually the most resonable.
To clarify my position regarding this issue, I'm very much for profiling. It is a rational thing to do, whether in war time or not. Not only from the gov'ts operation, but from a personal point of view. If a Middle Easterner (ME) is acting strangely, report them to the authorities, and certainly keep an eye on them.
In this matter, I'm referring to the fact that the majority of ME Americans are loyal U.S. citizens and should be treated as such. The guy you buy gas from, the dentist, the local store owner, these men and women don't deserve your hostility, threats, or attacks. This is foolishness and does nothing to help the war effort. It was a waste of resources in WWII with the Americans of Japanese descent, and is a waste of effort in this war.
The fact that you admit your lack of knowledge about what the Americans of Japanese descent went through during WWII, speaks to your honesty and open mindedness. I suggest you educate yourself in this matter, because it was a travesty. If you happened to be on the receiving end of it, you would know how much of a travesty it was. These American citizens were mistreated. They lost all of their property, and lived in miserable camps during the war. The most decorated American unit in WWII? A unit of Japanese descended Americans fighting in Europe.
People often use war as an excuse to trample on the rights of American citizens, not this time though.
If the ME Americans are a little quiet, perhaps its because they are receiving multiple death threats daily, and fear to leave the house thinking they might be killed by some idiot mistaking bigotry for patriotism.