For Elaine Black Yoneda, it wasn’t a choice. When authorities informed her that her three-year-old son Tommy would be imprisoned in a concentration camp for the crime of being half-Japanese, Yoneda — a white Jewish woman — insisted on going with him. Her Japanese American husband Karl was already being detained at Manzanar, a camp in the desert beneath the Sierra Nevada mountains. Now, just as the Yonedas had adjusted to the idea of a long period of separation, they would live as a family once more — albeit behind barbed wire.

<p>For Elaine Black Yoneda, it wasn&rsquo;t a choice. When authorities informed her that her three-year-old son Tommy would be imprisoned in a concentration camp for the crime of being half-Japanese, Yoneda &mdash; a white Jewish woman &mdash; insisted on going with him. Her Japanese American husband Karl was already being detained at Manzanar, a camp in the desert beneath the Sierra Nevada mountains. Now, just as the Yonedas had adjusted to the idea of a long period of separation, they would live as a family once more &mdash; albeit behind barbed wire.</p>

KQED serves the people of Northern California with a community-supported alternative to commercial media. We provide citizens with the knowledge they need to make informed decisions; convene community dialogue; bring the arts to everyone; and engage audiences to share their stories.

<p>KQED serves the people of Northern California with a community-supported alternative to commercial media. We provide citizens with the knowledge they need to make informed decisions; convene community dialogue; bring the arts to everyone; and engage audiences to share their stories.</p>

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