Everyday, we still see posts of racial and religious inequalities posted on forums and websites for all to see. From police brutality to hate crimes, it’s disheartening to see that many people still hold firm to their beliefs of segregation by race and race superiority, stemming from old, disesteemed ideologies. In relation to these acts, reading They Called Us Enemy by George Takei, a personal memoir recalling the incarceration and mistreatment of the Japanese Americans during World War II, provided insightful context behind the Japanese’s treatment and the treatment of other races as well.

Presented in a comic style, it’s an easy to pick up and hard to put down type of book. The illustrator, Harmony Becker, perfectly captured to the expressions of fear, love, distraught, and hope on the faces of the characters throughout the book. These faces give the reader an idea of the dramatic feelings that the Japanese experienced throughout the war. Writing in a comic format allowed for the creation of powerful, emotional scenes that could not be captured otherwise.

Moreover, the memoire is still related to current events, like the Stop AAPI Hate and the Black Lives Matter movements. Just like how the Japanese were mistreated and wrongfully represented in America, similar acts of mistreatment still happen all around the world and in the country. However through modern media, it’s now easier to bring attention to these problems and collectively resist against the inhumane treatment of people of different backgrounds and/or beliefs. This does not dismiss that the issue is still as prevalent as it was in the twentieth century, though. Especially in eastern countries where like China still mistreat Muslims.

A question relating these topics that I learned more about through They Called Us Enemy is whether it’s best to conform or resist against improper treatment. In the comic, many Japanese conformed and held close to their dignity as they prayed for their days of incarceration to come to an end. Others formed unions to seek out proper justice for their constitutional rights. In the end, both played parts in allowing the Japanese to regain their rights as American citizens. Peaceful resistance allowed for their wishes and demands to be heard clearly and justified. Similar acts of peaceful resistance, through protesting and mass media, also allows for modern issues to be addressed with a strong backing.

Although They Called Us Enemy captured a happy ending for some of the Japanese, there’s a greater, more realistic scope that does not always end happily. Lives are still being lost and families are still being separated because of the color of their skin or their ideas of worship. Some still call us, the Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders community, enemy today. We are blamed for issues that we had no part in, like the coronavirus pandemic. Others have been blamed for similar problems, like the Jewish for Germany’s economic depression and the African American community in America.

My reading of They Called Us Enemy and research into modern racial injustice has led me to believe that such acts are a result of ignorance. Some still fail to understand that not all of one race are the same and not all worshippers of one religion are the same. This ignorance was seen against the Jewish during the World Wars, the Japanese during World War II, and most recently against the AAPI and black community. Collectively, by educating one another and defining an explicit line between right and wrong behavior, racism and religious prejudice may have a foreseeable end.

“If we are to have peace on earth… our loyalties must transcend our race, our tribe, our class, and our nation; and this means we must develop a world perspective.”

– Martin Luther King Jr.