| Muriel Kitagawa (born Fujiwara) was one of 22,000 Canadians of Japanese origin who were evacuated from the Pacific Coast under the War Measures Act, in the belief that their presence threatened the security of the country. The government moved them to the interior of British Columbia and other provinces, and sold their property to discourage their return after the war. In an excerpt from her recollections, Kitagawa describes the mounting tension: "Curfew hit us a terrible blow, not only because we could not stroll along the shopping centre, or go to the movies at night, or to church, or to visit our friends, but also because... there flourished an atmosphere of suspicion, unrest and dark rumours, fears and a sense of horrible impotence ..." MG 31 E 26 |