An American Contradiction

Year: 2011
Country: USA
Run Time: 13 minutes

Seeking knowledge about her country and heritage, filmmaker Vanessa Yuille journeys to her mother's birthplace, Heart Mountain, Wyoming, where Japanese Americans were incarcerated during WWII. Internees reflect upon the experience of leaving their homes as children and the wartime hysteria that stripped them of their lawful rights. This dark chapter of American history not only contrasts with the natural beauty of the landscape but also calls into question the definition of what it means to be an American. Through her investigation, Vanessa challenges us to correctly define the true nature of what happened there.

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