Desert Exile: The Rooting of a Japanese-American Family is a primary source written by Yoshiko Uchida. Uchida and his family were one of many Japanese-American families forced to live in concentration camps in the United States during World War II. In these “relocation centers,” Uchida and other Japanese Americans suffered great injustice and dehumanizing acts at the hands of the U.S. government. In his memoirs, Uchida stated, "The army... made no attempt to introduce into these camps even the most common civilizations of life for us."[1] Despite the setbacks, the Uchida family gained the maximum from their situation. In Desert Exile, Uchida tells a universal story of maintaining happiness and humanity despite facing great oppression. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Uchida's father, Takashi, was a successful businessman and first-generation Japanese immigrant. Immediately following the bombing of Pearl Harbor, Takashi Uchida was physically deprived of his family, friends, and business. Takashi, along with 90 other Japanese community leaders in his area, were eventually sent to an internment camp in Missoula, Montana, and labeled “enemy aliens.” Later, Takashi would be able to join his family at their “relocation center” in California and then in Utah. Despite being completely taken away from his home and having many, if not all, of his rights taken away, Takashi held on to what made him happy and, more importantly, what made him feel human. Uchida perfectly describes his father's perspective on life towards the end of his memoir. "[His involvement] allowed him to keep busy and help others, the two essential ingredients of his life." [2] Helping run organizations within the internment camps, Takashi continued to live his life as he wanted while remaining in captivity. Takashi will work on projects ranging from funeral processions to communicating relationships between prisoners and the military. He did all this without needing recognition or compensation. Takashi completed these tasks despite threats from his fellow Japanese internees. Keeping busy while helping other humans, Takashi courageously maintained his humanity despite encountering dehumanizing oppression. Yoshiko Uchida, the author of this memoir, also shows her extraordinary willingness to hold onto humanity and see glimmers of happiness during the dark and forsaken times of her internment. Uchida writes that his family was moderately wealthy and happy before the forced internment. She describes having regular guests at the house, having nice clothes to wear, and not noticing the effects of the Great Depression within the family. These examples of happiness were in stark contrast to the bleak conditions of the camp. It would have been easy for Uchida to become sad about his situation, but he didn't. Instead, Uchida often found beauty in as many situations as he could. “The voices quieted and the car went silent as we all stared at the vast, glittering body of water, momentarily forgetting our tired and aching bodies.”[3] This quote is one of many where Uchida pauses his story to explain the beauty he saw amidst the terror. Rather than becoming consumed with the negative aspects of her situations - as the troublemakers did in chapter eight - Uchida found beauty in everything she could, leading her to remain hopeful for as long as she.