Panic on the Pacific: How America Prepared for a Japanese West Coast Invasion after Pearl Harbor

History Unplugged Podcast

History Unplugged

Society & Culture, History

4.2 • 3.7K Ratings

🗓️ 1 May 2018

⏱️ 71 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

The aftershocks of the December 7, 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor were felt keenly all over America—the war in Europe had hit home. But nowhere was American life more immediately disrupted than on the West Coast, where people lived in certain fear of more Japanese attacks.

Today I talk with Bill Yenne, author of “Panic on the Pacific.” He describes how from that day until the end of the war, a dizzying mix of battle preparedness and rampant paranoia swept the states. Japanese immigrants were herded into internment camps. Factories were camouflaged to look like small towns. The Rose Bowl was moved to North Carolina. Airport runways were so well hidden even American pilots couldn’t find them.

We talk about the panic on the Pacific coast and fear the Japanese were coming. As a result the most notorious events of World War Two in America—namely the internment of American citizens of Japanese ancestry—took place. It is a cautionary tale about how hysteria can cause leaders to seize on political issues in the name of public safety that may cause much more harm than good.

Transcript

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0:00.0	They were some of the most powerful men who've ever lived.
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0:15.0	this American president. In each episode of this American president, we explore how flawed men
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0:30.0	The history of the Popes of Rome and Christianity reaches into nearly every aspect of history.
0:36.4	In the history of the papacy podcast, we step over the rope. We dive into discover more about the
0:42.6	people events and background that define the influence of the Popes of Rome and church not only
0:48.0	on the west, but the world. To start listening now, go to pathanonpodcast.com or search for
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1:02.8	Welcome to the history unplugged podcast, the unscripted show that celebrates unsung heroes,
1:09.4	Mythbust's historical lies, and rediscoveres the forgotten stories that changed our world.
1:16.0	I'm your host, Scott Rank.
1:19.0	December 7, 1941 might have been a day that lived in infamy, but what followed after that was,
1:30.6	well, pure confusion. These after effects were keenly felt all over America because the war in
1:36.8	Europe had hit home finally, but nowhere was it more immediately felt than in the west coast,
1:42.9	where people feared that imperial Japan could attack. After all, if they made it halfway across
1:47.6	the Pacific to Pearl Harbor, why couldn't they go halfway more and strike California?
1:52.4	From that day until the end of the war, there were all sorts of battle preparedness and rampant
1:57.9	paranoia that swept the states. Infamously, Japanese immigrants were hurt into
	...

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