Final answer:
Japanese Americans were interned during World War II due to racial prejudices and fears of disloyalty after Pearl Harbor. This resulted in the unfair treatment of over 110,000 individuals of Japanese descent, who were placed in internment camps under Executive Order 9066. The government later acknowledged the injustice and provided reparations.
Step-by-step explanation:
During World War II, Japanese Americans were interned due to wartime anti-Japanese sentiment, accentuated by the attack on Pearl Harbor. Under Executive Order 9066 signed by President Roosevelt, over 110,000 individuals of Japanese descent were rounded up and placed in internment camps without due process, which was justified by wartime national security concerns. It was later concluded that the internment was a result of race prejudice, war hysteria, and a failure of political leadership. In 1988, the U.S. government formally apologized and provided reparations to surviving internees.
Despite the internment, many Japanese Americans demonstrated their loyalty to the United States through military service. The War Relocation Authority oversaw the relocation of these individuals to internment camps. The conditions of the camps were often dismal, and internees faced discrimination and loss of property, without any proven cases of disloyalty or espionage.