During world war 2 thousands of living near the west coast were forced to move to isolated internment camps deep inside The United

Concentration camps for Japanese in the United States accommodated some 120.000 people, mostly ethnic Japanese, more than half of whom were US and Japanese citizens from Latin America, mainly from Brazil and Peru, who were deported under pressure of the US government, in establishments designed for that purpose in the interior of the country, during 1942 and 1948.

The objective was to move them from their habitual residence, mostly on the west coast, to facilities built under extreme security measures. The fields were closed with barbed wire fences, guarded by armed guards, and located in places far from any population center. Attempts to leave the camp sometimes resulted in the dejection of the inmates.

The measure was taken as a reaction to the attack on Pearl Harbor during World War II, where the United States belatedly joined the allies fighting against the axis forces.