Last week the AP Environmental Science class took a 5 hour journey across to the Owens Valley. The trip was specifically meant to teach us about water and its own journey from the Owens Valley River into L.A.’s water system. We saw the river, we saw Mono Lake, we saw the aquaducts, but one thing that caught my eye out of all the things we learned was the relocation camp known to us as Manzanar.

In the early 40’s America was faced with yet another war which led to a nationwide paranoia. So, as a result we decided to avoid “danger” and contain all Japanese people – citizens and non-citizens of the U.S. – in one area (in several different states). It was a relocation camp. President Franklin D. Roosevelt argued that this “cleansing” was justified because the government  would go about establishing the evacuation using “the American way”. We all know that that was just a euphemism for “we won’t kill them”….(unless of course they don’t follow our rules). Three cheers for the American way!

In the end, a trip that started out as an informative, water discovery, week-long, field trip turned into a heart breaking, mind changing, discovery of ourselves and our history.  Thank you Mr. Wickenhaeuser and thank you Ms. Davis for that amazing – and amusing – camping trip.