Books About Honouliuli

All summaries are from Goodreads

Breaking the Silence: Lessons of Democracy and Social Justice from the World War II Honouliuli Internment and POW Camp in Hawai‘i

Edited by Suzanne Falgout and Linda Nishigaya
Published by The University of Hawai‘i at Manoa

Breaking the Silence: Lessons of Democracy from the World War II Honouliuli Internment and POW Camp in Hawai'i is a collection of articles authored by University of Hawai'i-West O'ahu faculty from eight different academic disciplines and scholars and community partners from Japanese Cultural Center of Hawai'i, Densho, King Kamehameha V Judiciary History Center, and the National Park Service. The research amassed from oral histories, archival collections, and field work examines the archaeological, historical, sociological, political, psychological, and cultural aspects and impacts of World War II confinement in Honouliuli. The physical remains of Honouliuli Internment and POW Camp still lie hidden deep within a gulch located just a few miles inland from the famed World War II site of Pearl Harbor. That is not all that is hidden. The stories, experiences, and lasting influence of the internment of American civilians and resident aliens of Japanese and Okinawan ancestry, local "suspect" Europeans categorized as "Germans" and "Italians," as well as POWS of Japanese, Okinawan, Korean, Italian and Filipino origin remain largely unknown and untold. In this special issue of Social Process in Hawai'i we aim to uncover the facts of the Honouliuli internment and imprisonment experiences and the valuable lessons that can be learned, so that these harrowing injustices might never be repeated again.

Honouliuli POW and Internment Camp: Archaeological Investgations at Jigoku-Dani 2006-2017

Written by Mary M. Farrell
Published by the Japanese Cultural Center of Hawai‘i

A free online copy of the book is available.

During World War II, the U.S. incarcerated at Honouliuli not only prisoners of war but also diverse U.S. citizens and resident aliens under the authority of martial law. This history was long forgotten until 2002, when the Japanese Cultural Center of Hawai‘i (JCCH) rediscovered the site, which had been known as Jigoku-Dani, or Hell Valley, to some of its civilian prisoners. Archaeological investigations undertaken by the JCCH and the University of Hawai‘i West O‘ahu (UHWO) led to the Honouliuli Internment and Prisoner of War Camp Site (State Site No. 50- 80-08-9068) being listed on the National Register of Historic Places on February 21, 2012 at the national level of significance. As an internment site, Honouliuli represents the fragility of constitutional rights and the effects of martial law; as a POW camp, Honouliuli exemplifies the management of enemy troops, as the military balanced the need for national security and the need to comply with the Geneva convention. Thanks to the efforts of the JCCH, the National Park Service, UHWO scholars, the public, Hawai‘i legislators, and Monsanto Hawai‘i, which owned the land, the site was designated the Honouliuli National Monument by President Barack Obama on February 24, 2015. To facilitate the Park Service’s management, this report summarizes the archaeological work conducted before the site became a National Monument. It compiles information from several previous reports and the National Register nomination, and incorporates the results of the 2014 UHWO field session, the last before the site became a unit of the National Park Service.

A Resilient Spirit: The Voice of Hawaii's Internees

Edited by Clare Sato and Violet Harada
Published by The Japanese Cultural Center of Hawaii

History and personal stories of Japanese imprisoned in Hawaii without cause during World War II.

Dark Clouds Over Paradise: An Overview of World War II Japanese American Confinement Sites in Hawai‘i

Written by Mary M. Farrell
Published by The Japanese Cultural Center of Hawai'i

A free online copy of the book is available.

This report, sponsored by the Japanese Cultural Center of Hawai‘i, describes what is left at 23 sites associated with the incarceration of civilians in Hawai‘i during World War II. Most of the civilians incarcerated were community leaders; many were U.S. citizens; some were targeted simply because they had helped immigrants with paperwork and forms required by their home country. Seven of the sites had been identified in a previous archaeological overview conducted ten years ago; since that time, researchers associated with the Japanese Cultural Center of Hawai‘i, University of Hawai‘i West O‘ahu, Maui Nisei Veterans Memorial Center, Kapi’olani Community College, National Park Service, and others have identified additional locations associated with the internment. Some of the sites look much like they did 75 years ago, and would be instantly recognized by those who were unconstitutionally incarcerated. Some of the sites have been completely razed, and in a couple cases, paved over: these locations were discovered by correlating archival information and historic maps with oral histories and local expertise. The sites are spread over six of Hawai‘i’s seven populated islands, from sea level to 4,000 feet elevation, from downtown Honolulu to isolated valleys. All 23 sites are potent symbols of injustice undertaken in the name of national security. This report includes the author’s recommendations for research, preservation, interpretation, and commemoration so that these places can honor the legacy of those who were unjustly interned, and remind us how we need to be vigilant and wise to live up to the U.S. Constitution and our American ideals.

The Gate of Memory: Poems by Descendants of Nikkei Wartime Incarceration (to be released April 2025)

Contributions by Sharon Fujimoto-Johnson
Published by Haymarket Books

An anthology of poetry on Nikkei incarceration, written by descendants of the WWII prisons and camps.

A tribute to the 150,000 people harmed by the United States and Canada during WWII, this anthology is the first of its kind. Its poets express a range of experiences and perspectives from the afterlife of this historical yet enduring injustice through poetry. With a foreword by acclaimed poet, activist, and concentration camp survivor, Mitsuye Yamada, and an introduction by the editors, Brynn Saito and Brandon Shimoda. Descendants explore intergenerational trauma as the contributors, all descendants themselves, sift through an intimate record of wartime incarceration.

Contributors to this anthology include poets of Japanese American, Japanese Canadian, Okinawan American, Okinawan Canadian, Japanese Hawaiian, Alaska Native/Tlingit, mixed race Nikkei, and Japanese descent. These poems inhabit and retell the story of incarceration and its many legacies, through a diversity of modes and themes, creating a kaleidoscopic whole exploring anti-Asian racism, assimilation, loyalty, resistance, and redemption. The anthology illuminates individual perspectives and reveals collective experience. It insists upon the imperative of poetry in the processes of solidarity and transgenerational healing.

Waipahu at War: The War Record of a Hawaiian Sugar Plantation Community

Compiled by R.H. Lodge
Published by the O‘ahu Sugar Company

Waipahu at War is a photo compilation with photographs taken by R.H. Lodge documenting the military's presence and civilian life during wartime in 1940s, O‘ahu.

The Koreans in Hawai'i: A Pictorial History, 1903-2003

Written by Roberta Chang and Wayne Patterson
Published by The University of Hawai‘i Press

The Koreans in A Pictorial History, 1903-2003, brings together hundreds of photographs to tell the powerful story of the people who have shaped the Korean immigrant experience in America over the past one hundred years. Although Koreans faced the same hardships and barriers as other East Asian immigrants in the New World, the story of their migration, settlement, and assimilation into American society has received relatively little attention. This volume not only commemorates the centennial of Koreans in Hawaii, but also offers readers an unprecedented look at the rich history of a community that continues to develop and change to this day.

The photographs, which illuminate and complement writings and oral histories found elsewhere, provide insight into Hawaii's Korean immigrant community, politics, and everyday life. They reveal the struggles and successes of the first and subsequent generations, allowing viewers to connect with the past. Together with chapter introductions, the wide range of photographs (many only recently discovered in archives and family albums) represents an engaging record that uncovers the deep roots of Korean Americans in Hawaii.

Ganbare! An Example of Japanese Spirit

Written by Patsy Saiki
Published by Mutual Publishing

Giving life to a little-known part of American history, Ganbare! tells the individual stories of the people caught up in historical events beyond their control. It details the hardships, despair, as well as the moments of joy and hope that Hawaii born Japanese faced following the bombing of Pearl Harbor. Ultimately a story of triumph, Ganbare! -- which means "don’t give up!" -- shows how the human spirit can rise above even the greatest of adversities. It reminds us of how closely human beings are connected to one another, and how the differences that separate us are really not so great at all. Truly embodying the meaning of "ganbare," the men, women and children detailed in Patsy Saiki’s book persevered in the face of suspicion, detention and internment with their humanity and dignity intact.