I read this book in 1998, couldn't put it down.

This book is a bit one-sided in its condemning hindsight toward the internment, but often fair minded in its coverage of this intense, dramatic, detailed and shameful saga in American history. It is considered by many to be the definitive source on this fascinating subject. I feel this book has the following shortcomings:

- Way too little coverage of Japanese espionage efforts prior to WWII including spying by American citizens of Japanese descent such as the Itaru Tachibana spy ring and compelling evidence from MAGIC intelligence intercepts known to the US government and instrumental in driving the decision to intern.

- too little coverage of the 30,000 internees who were able to resettle outside the camps away from the west coast to freedom during the internment.

- too little emphasis of the fact that nearly everyone, from the supreme court to the highest levels of military intelligence to the JACL itself, believed that Japanese raids if not a full scale invasion of the American west coast was a big possibility if not downright imminent, while at the same time it was crystal clear that Hitler could not extend an invasion across the English channel, let alone the Atlantic Ocean. Complicity by Japanese residents could have gone a long way to enhancing the effectiveness of any such Japanese attacks.

- too little coverage of the general atmosphere of the responsible military intelligence thinking that made the internment seem necessary at the time, chalking it all up to mere racism and war hysteria.

There is another book out in 1999, "MAGIC" by David Lowman, that angrily yet responsibly addresses many of these holes in the dyke, and more. Only the first chapters are as gripping a read as Personal Justice Denied and it is not as comprehensive in its overall coverage of the internment, but it is fascinating as it portrays the side of the story that has been buried for so long. It is far less sensitive to the plight of the internees. Between the two books, however, you do finally get the whole story, which PJD by itself decidedly does NOT give you.

I'm doing research on the Internment and this is by far the most balanced source that I have yet to come upon. It is well written and passionate - qualities in short supply in most government publications.

It is fair to say that this report achieves what was intended: a simple hard hitting report to the Congress and the American people describing the horrible acts committted against those of Japanese descent in the name of national defense.

It is not a perfect document and one must use other sources to fill out the picture. Not nearly enough is devoted to the role of President Roosevelt. More could have been done to show the roots of the racial prejudice against Orientals and other races of color dating back into the nineteenth century in California. While groups leading the charge against the Japanese are named, more specifics would have been welcomed.

Not nearly enough about the role of Earl Warren is included. In addition, much more should have been done to spell out the roles of other leading citizens in California, the rest of the West, and from other parts of the country.

The report is an excellent source of information on the role of the army, especially of the leadership of General John De Witt in this tragedy, but more could have been provided on the influence that Col. Karl Bendetsen had on the general, a vital question in the events.

But these are minor flaws of a report that calls the shots against its own employer. It is possible that by responding to my critique the report would have been far too long and its value would have been diluted by overwhelming verbiage. The distinguished panelists and the outstanding staff can be justly proud of the role they played in setting the record straight on this very ugly period in our history.

I have never read a more gripping or poignant work published by a governmental body. Personal Justice Denied is a stunning account of the prelude to internment, the incarceration itself, the exclusion, and the long road home for over 100,000 Japanese Americans. While I found the report to be generally very well written, I would have liked to have seen a more balanced presentation of the evidence involving the evacuation and exclusion of the Japanese Americans. For example, the report detailed very well how numerous Japanese Americans were taken advantage of by "friends" or "caretakers" during the evacuation with regards to personal property. Surely there were examples of "friends" and "caretakers" who actually took care of property and belongings and returned these to the Japanese Americans when they were released. Also, according to the report, there were numerous persons of different ethnic backgrounds (Japanese, German, Italian) who were arrested by the Justice Department and incarcerated before and after Pearl Harbor. No specific examples were mentioned.

I was most impressed with the vivid descriptions of the evacuation process and the living conditions within the assembly centers and relocation centers. I knew from my limited study that the situation was spartan and bleak, but I had no idea of the destituteness of the centers. Additionally, the economic loss incurred by the Japanese Americans was also extremely well documented. The 20,000 dollars paid to survivors of this personal injustice is wholly inadequate and our government should make further restitution. I was most ashamed of the average white American and the profoundly ignorant, biased, and bigoted attitudes displayed. The pervasive hysteria was unacceptable and the government, both in Washington D.C. and the western states, did nothing to abate it.

I enjoyed this book and would highly recommend it for anyone seeking to understand more about the internment of the Japanese Americans. While its examination is a bit biased, it is extremely well documented as a result of the three weeks of hearings and personal testimonies.