The Boston Festival of Films from Japan: Resistance at Tule Lake

During World War II, up to 120,000 people of Japanese ancestry were incarcerated in camps in the western US. The dominant narrative about these camps tells us that Japanese Americans behaved as a “model minority,” cooperating without protest and proving their patriotism by enlisting in the Army. Konrad Aderer’s documentary overturns this misconception, telling the story of 12,000 Japanese Americans labeled “disloyal” because they dared to resist the US government’s mandate of mass incarceration at Tule Lake Segregation Center. Through rare footage and the voices of survivors and their descendants, Resistance at Tule Lake illuminates stories of dissent marginalized for 70 years—even more vital today amidst new threats to the rights of immigrants and minorities.