The law authorized the settlement of property loss claims by people of Japanese descent who were removed from the Pacific Coast area during World War II.
The attack sank four U.S. battleships, destroyed 188 U.S. aircraft, and killed nearly 2,500 people, leading to the United States joining World War II the next day.
Once the United States entered the war and anti-Japanese sentiment began to circulate, Americans increasingly reacted with racism and hostility, viewing people of Japanese descent as enemies regardless of U.S. citizenship.
The chief concern among military and political leaders was due to the fact many of the largest populations of Japanese Americans were in close proximity to vital war assets along the Pacific Coast.
While no specific group or location was mentioned in the order, it was quickly applied to virtually the entire Japanese American population on the West Coast.
[4] In December 1944, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Ex parte Mitsuye Endo that it was beyond the power of the War Relocation Authority "to detain citizens against whom no charges of disloyalty or subversiveness have been made for a period longer than that necessary to separate the loyal from the disloyal."
"[6] An example of such involves a claim filed by Toshi Shimomaye, who was forced to sell several possessions to the highest bidder that resulted in a net loss of several hundred dollars.