Along the eastern coast of the United States, where the numbers of Americans of Japanese ancestry
is comparatively small, no concentration camps have been established. From a military point of view,
the only danger on this coast is from Germany and Italy.... But the American government has not
taken any such high-handed action against Germans and Italians - and their American-born
descendants - on the East Coast, as has been taken against Japanese and their American-born
descendants on the West Coast. Germans and Italians are "white."
Color seems to be the only possible reason why thousands of American citizens of Japanese ancestry
are in concentration camps. Anyway, there are no Italian-American, or German-American citizens in
such camps.
Source: Harry Paxton Howard, "Americans in Concentration Camps," The Crisis, September 1942.
Question 5
1 pts
According to the document above, why was no action taken against Germans and Italians on the East
coast?