In, Farewell to Manzanar, a memoir, Jeanne Wakatsuki Houston details her experience in Japanese internment camps during World War II and the lasting effect that affected her as well as the hundreds of thousands of other Japanese Americans who were imprisoned in the camps. Throughout history there have been examples of times when evil acts were justified because they occurred during a time of mass terror and hysteria. During World War II, this became especially true, with so many countries attacking each other, that races and groups began to blame each other for their problems. It becomes a question of how far a nation will go in times of panic and uncertainty. After the bombing of Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, President Roosevelt instituted Executive Order 9066, which called for the internment of all persons of Japanese ancestry. Would such an act be so widely supported today? For the victims of the internment camps, no remorse was ever shown, only small apologies after the fact. People, in times of severe hysteria and suffering, turn to a scapegoat to blame everything on, which is why evil acts are easy to occur and are also supported by the masses. Scapegoating is generally how people deal with the stress and fear of the unknown that accompany mass terror. This phenomenon has been observed countless times around the world. When people suffer, especially when the masses suffer in the same way and for the same reasons, we tend to want to make others suffer more. “The stories, the whispers, the headlines of the last few months have stuck the word HATE in my mind.” (page 136). In this way they can feel in a position of greater power, they can pay... middle of paper... for injustices. From examples of history and examples of everyday events that we experience every day, it has become evident that there is a thin line between protecting national security and depriving people of their basic civil rights. History always repeats itself when it comes to the way people treat each other. There have been too many times when such a horrible and directed act towards a group has been followed only by an apology. Excuses are often made because everyone wants to think of themselves as perfect and doesn't want to admit their mistakes. So mistakes are rather covered up with small apologies to those who actually had to suffer. A government and its people will do everything in their power to protect their own safety and security, but it is too difficult to say that this will not once again be at the expense of others..