Inclusion Infusions: Internment of Japanese Canadians
Posted on Friday, September 18th, 2020
To be called a goddamn Jap – it will never escape you.
— Raymond Moriyama, architect
This summer I had the opportunity to be a tourist in my own backyard here in Ottawa. My family and I took a guided tour of the Canadian War museum. During this tour, we learned about the powerful architecture of the building and the man behind the design, Raymond Moriyama. He is an acclaimed Canadian architect, an Officer of the Order of Canada, and has created a physical legacy in Canada and beyond with his buildings, folding social justice into the fabric of his designs. Some of his most notable projects include the Ontario Science Centre, The Canadian Embassy in Tokyo, the Bata Shoe Museum in Toronto, Ottawa City Hall, and of course the Canadian War Museum. This was an important opportunity for me to learn and reflect on another instance of racism and xenophobia in Canada’s history.
We should recall that Canada’s celebration of Moriyama’s brilliance wasn’t always the case. On 14 January 1942, Prime Minister Mackenzie King ordered the removal of all adult males of Japanese ancestry from the coast. The government ordered that the men be sent to work in road labour camps. As with 21,000 other Japanese Canadians, his father was forcibly taken from his home, and his family interned during the second world War. Next Tuesday September 22nd, is the 32nd anniversary of the issuing of a formal apology by the Canadian government for its treatment of Japanese Canadians.
This new documentary Magical Imperfection: The Life and Architecture of Moriyama will allow you to hear about the Japanese experience of living in a Canadian internment camp; watch from 50:48 to 41:28 to hear about this experience is his own words.
While nature may be ravaged by human acts of war, it inevitably survives, regenerates and renews itself.
— Raymond Moriyama, architect
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