Attorney General

A heavy-duty legal job, the attorney general is the top dog of the Department of Justice (DOJ), the highest-ranked law enforcement officer, and the government's #1 lawyer. At the time E.O. 9066 was issued, Robert H. Jackson was the U.S. attorney general. He was a notable opponent of the mandate.

Concentration Camp

Okay, so there's no nice way to discuss concentration camps.

Concentration camps—a.k.a. internment camps, prison camps, and in some cases labor or death camps—are methods of forced imprisonment. They were used extensively during World War II, especially by the Nazis. The United States also used concentration camps to confine people of Japanese, German, and Italian ancestry. There is no such thing as a humane concentration camp.

Department of Justice

It's the DOJ, baby! The Department of Justice is a part of the federal executive branch of the U.S. government. It is in charge of law enforcement and, well, doling out justice. The big boss of the DOJ is the attorney general.

Embargo

Generally speaking, an embargo is an official order that suspends or ceases trade between two countries. Think of it this way—governments often initiate an embargo on cargo.

Espionage

Sexy spy stuff. And treason. Mostly treason.

Executive Departments

These are the departments of the U.S. federal government that oversee the making, amending, and enforcement of law and include the Department of State, Department of Justice, and Department of War/Defense (depending on the year). The heads of the various executive departments form the Cabinet of the United States.

Together, they advise the president in the making of major decisions that impact the whole country. The executive departments are very important governmental entities because their decisions directly affect the lives of U.S. citizens.

Executive Order

An executive order, or E.O. for short, is an instruction by the president that guides the activities and governing of the executive departments. An E.O. is a public announcement, but it pertains to individuals and entities within the government (unlike a presidential proclamation). However, executive orders often directly impact the lives of citizens.

For example, Executive Order 8972 (which gets a shout-out in E.O. 9066) increased the power of the military to defend and protect "Certain National-Defense Material, Premises, and Utilities From Injury or Destruction" in the name of national security. It also helped make enactment of E.O. 9066 possible.

Issei

A Japanese-language term for first-generation immigrants. Issei are people who were born in Japan but live and often have families in another country. Their children are called Nisei, and their grandchildren are called Sansei.

Military Areas

Geographical zones that are under the control of the U.S. military. In the context of World War II, most of the West Coast was designated a military area for security purposes after the attack on Pearl Harbor. This led to the removal of nearly 120,000 Japanese Americans to internment camps during the war.

Nisei

A Japanese-language term for second-generation immigrants. Nisei are people whose parents were born in Japan (called Issei), but they themselves were born in another country. They are often citizens of that nation. Their children are called Sansei.

Presidential Proclamation

Warning: boring but important.

A presidential proclamation shapes public policy in the United States. Not to be confused with executive orders, presidential proclamations deal with issues, agencies, and individuals who aren't part of the government.

In the case of Presidential Proclamations 2525, 2526, and 2527, they affected the status of non-citizens from Germany, Italy, and Japan who were located in the United States. These people became "enemy aliens" (and we're not talking about UFOs here).

Their respective designations are as follows:

Presidential Proclamation 2525: Alien Enemies—Japanese
Presidential Proclamation 2526: Alien Enemies—German
Presidential Proclamation 2527: Alien Enemies—Italian

Proclamations of December 7 and 8, 1941

This is a slightly vague reference by FDR to Presidential Proclamations 2525, 2526, and 2527, and the declaration of war on Japan, which all went into effect between December 7th and 8th, 1941.

Sabotage

A person who commits sabotage is often involved in espionage. In the context of wartime, it is the underhanded disruption of processes, productions, and plans for an enemy's benefit. It is also an act of treason.

Sansei

A Japanese-language term for third-generation immigrants. Sansei are people whose grandparents were born in Japan (called Issei), but their parents, like themselves, were born in another country. Often, both Nisei and Sansei are citizens of the country of their birth.

Secretary of War

Don't be misled, the secretary of war wasn't someone who took memos, scheduled lunches, and grabbed coffee for soldiers in battle. The secretary of war was the head of the Department of War, which oversaw the function and activities of the Army as part of the executive departments of the federal government. In 1947, the Department of War was restructured and became part of the Department of Defense.

At the time E.O. 9066 was issued, the secretary of war was Henry L. Stimson. He was critical, yet supportive, of the mandate.

War Hysteria

An irrational and uncontrolled response to political, cultural, and military situations during wartime. War hysteria refers to crazy and extreme (as in, bad) behavior that inspires xenophobic and racist actions.

War Relocation Authority Relocation Center

Grim stuff, guys.

The War Relocation Authority (WRA) was a civilian-run organization that helped operate relocations centers for Japanese American prisoners displaced by the effects of E.O. 9066. The WRA relocation centers were long-term concentration camps in which 120,000 people were forced to live in substandard conditions after being vetted at WCCA assembly centers. Relocation centers were mostly located in barely inhabitable landscapes. One of the best-known camps was called Manzanar.

Wartime Civil Control Administration Assembly Center

The military-operated Wartime Civil Control Administration (WCCA) set up a series of temporary housing facilities called "assembly centers" for Japanese Americans who were being "evacuated" from the military exclusion areas on the West Coast. These centers were makeshift barracks often constructed in barns, horse stalls, and other super-duper inhospitable, grimy, and otherwise no-good locations.

Xenophobia

The fear of foreigners and strangers. Xenophobia often leads to absurd hatred of people and cultures other than one's own. It's directly linked to racism.