allegiance educatorguide v1 1

7/23/2019 ALLEGIANCE EducatorGuide v1 1

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/allegiance-educatorguide-v1-1 1/10

E D U C A T O Rr e s o u r c e

G U I D E

p o w e r e d b y

V E RS I ON 1. 1



Dear Allegiance Teachers,

Thank you for bringing Allegiance into your classroom, enriching your students’ experience,and sharing the story of this unique time in American history.

THIS GUIDE CONSISTS OF PRE- AND POST-SHOW ACTIVITIES

AND QUESTIONS TO RAISE ON YOUR WAY TO THE SHOW,

AT INTERMISSION, AND ON THE WAY BACK TO SCHOOL .

Each activity includes step-by-step instructions with highlighted and italicized questions and infor-

mation that you can read directly to your students to support their understanding of the activities.

We hope, with the assistance of this Guide, Allegiancewill be an impactful and inspiring event for

your students. We welcome your feedback: please contact us if you have ideas or would like assis-tance with modifications based on the needs of your students.

With gratitude,

Initially launched with the Broadway musicalMemphis in 2009, Inspire Change is an innovative

arts program that partners with commercial theater

productions to provide schools and communities

across the tri-state area with subsidized tickets and

high-impact educational experiences.

Inspire Change’s programming is developed in

tandem with productions, drawing on and contribut-

ing to their research and artistry, in order to create

the most effective tools to educate communities,

foster dialogue, and inspire change.

Matthew J. Schneider,

Director of Education, [email protected]

Matt Freeman,

Director of Education, Inspire [email protected]

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a l e t t e r f o r e d u c a t o r s . . .

I N S P I R E C H A N G E b i o g r a p h y



Sam Kimura receives a mysterious envelope that leads him 60 years into his past to 1941 in the

farming village of Salinas, CA, where he was born and raised along with his sister Kei. Over the

radio, the Kimuras hear President Roosevelt’s announcement of the bombing of Pearl Harbor,

a “date which will live in infamy.”

The Kimuras are forcibly relocated to Heart Mountain Camp in rural Wyoming where Sam and

his sister struggle to agree on a response to this unconstitutional imprisonment. In an attempt

to prove the “loyalty” of his people, Sam enlists in the army and fights for the U.S.A. in Europe;

meanwhile, Kei leads a movement of resistance against the injustice of the incarceration.

ALLEGIANCE FOLLOWS ONE AMERICAN FAMILY’S EXPERIENCE OF

WORLD WAR II; THE ACTIONS THEY TAKE AND THE CONSEQUENCES

THAT FOLLOW WILL HAUNT THEM FOR DECADES.

A L L E G I A N C E S Y N O P S I SB E FOR E

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After the war, they attempt to reconcile their political actions and hurtful words, but their divided loyal-

ties — to their loved ones, politics, legacies, and family — keep them apart for decades to follow. In the

present day, through the contents of the mysterious envelope, Sam has a chance to reconcile his past

and share in the love and compassion of his family.

LEFT TO RIGHT: LEA SALONGA AS KEI KIMURA,TELLY LEUNG AS SAMMY KIMURA,GEORGE TAKEI ASOJII-CHAN AND CHRISTÓPHEREN NOMURAKA ASTATSUO KIMURA. PHOTO CREDIT: MATTHEW MURPHY

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A PICTURE OF A MOCKUP OF T HE FAT MANNUCLEAR DEVICE DROPPED ON NAGA SAKI, JAPAN.COURTESY OF CREATIVE COMMON S (CC-BY-2.0).

BAGGAGE IS ASSEMBLED AND TAKEN BY TRUCK TOTHE SALINAS DETENTION CE NTER. MARCH 21, 1942.COURTESY OF THE NATIONAL ARCHIVES AND

RECORDS ADMINISTRATION AND DENSHO.

THE "LOYALTYQUESTIONNAIRE".

1943. COURTESYOF DENSHO AND

THE IKEDA FAMILYCOLLECTION.

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First Japanese immigrants settle in California.

December 7th: the Empire of Japan attacks Pe

Harbor. All U.S.A residents of Japanese descenincluding citizens, are classified as “enemy alie

December 8th: U.S.A. declares war on Japan,officially entering World War II.

WRA creates the “Loyalty Questionnaire” to

determine whether the imprisoned Japanese

Americans are “loyal” to Japan or the U.S.A.

The U.S. Supreme Court determines the evacuation

from the West Coast was constitutional, but the

incarceration of Japanese Americans was not.

Japanese Americans begin to leave the prison

camps; they are given $25 and a bus or train ticket.

The Civil Liberties Act offers a public apology

and $20,000 in monetary reparations to those

whose Constitutional rights had been violated

a result of the wartime exclusion.

Immigration Act of 1924 (The Johnson-ReedAct) ostensibly stops all immigration from

Japan; Japanese immigrants were "ineligible"

for naturalized citizenship after 1870.

February 19th: Executive Order 9066, creates

military exclusion zones “from which any or all

persons may be excluded” for “protection

against espionage and against sabotage.”

“Military exclusion zones” enforced. The U.S.Army forcibly removes 110,000 Japanese

Americans from California and parts of Washin

ton, Arizona, and Oregon to 10 permanent

camps in 7 states.

September 2nd:Japan formally surrenders;

World War II ends.

August 6th: U.S.A. drops an atomic bomb on

Hiroshima, Japan. August 9th: U.S.A. drops asecond atomic bomb on Nagasaki, Japan.

A federal commission concludes that the incar-

ceration was the result of "race prejudice, war

hysteria, and a failure of political leadership."

1869

1924

1941

D E C E M B E R

1942

F E B R U A R Y

S P R I N G

1943

F E B R U A R Y

D E C E M B E R

1944

J A N U A R Y

1945

A U G U S T

S E P T E M B E R

1983

F E B R U A R Y

1988

A U G U S T

H I S T O R Y o f j a p a n e s e

a m e r i c a n s 1 8 6 9 - 1 9 8 8



H I S T O R I C A L C O N T E X TB E FOR E

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1924:

For Japanese immigrants already living in Ameri

ca, how do you think they felt when their adopt-

ed country stopped allowing other people from

Japan from entering the country?

DECEMBER 1941:

What comes to your mind when I say World War

II? What are some of the circumstances that led

to World War II? What other countries were

involved? What do you think “enemy alien”

means? What images does that term evoke?

CIVILIAN EXCLUSION ORDERS:

(Like the one to the left) named “all persons of

Japanese ancestry” as those affected by 9066’s

“exclusion zones.” Hearing about these govern-

ment-issued orders for “exclusion,” a targeted

separation of people, what does this remind you

of- perhaps from another time in American

history?

MARCH 1942:

What are some reasons people immigrate to America? How might an immigrant to America

respond after hearing they are being “relocated

because they are originally from a different

country? How might these responses differ for

someone who was born in America but is also

being “relocated” because of their ancestry?

THE TIMELINE ON PAGE 3 LOOKS AT THE RELATED HISTORICAL

EXPERIENCE OF JAPANESE AMERICANS FROM THE LATE 19TH CENTURYTO THE LATE 20TH CENTURY.

FOCUS YOUR STUDENTS’ UNDERSTANDING OF THESE EVENTS BY CON-

CENTRATING ON THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS IN PREPARATION FOR

SEEING ALLEGIANCE AND FOR MANY OF THE ACTIVITIES IN THIS GUIDE.

"INSTRUCTIONS TO ALL PERSONS OFJAPANESE ANCESTRY ", APR. 24, 1942, POSTEDIN SEATTLE, WASHINGTON. COURTESY OFDENSHO, THE YAMADA COLLECTION.



The 442nd Infantry Regiment, almost entirely Japanese

American, was the most decorated unit for its size and

length of service in the history of American warfare.

If an imprisoned individual did not swear allegiance to the

U.S.A. on the “Loyalty Questionnaire”, they were sent to a

high-security prison camp called Tule Lake.

In Japanese, the phrase shikataganai means “It’s beyond

my control, so it cannot be helped”, or “nothing can be done”.

In Allegiance, this is translated into the song

"Do Not Fight the Storm".

A Japanese term of Zen Buddhist origin that means“

endure with patience and dignity”.

A prison camp* in Northwest Wyoming, built in 1942,

that held a total of 13,997 prisoners over three years.

Draft Resistance in the camps was strongest at Heart Moun-

tain; 92 people were sentenced and imprisoned for Selec-

tive Service Act violations.

Japanese American Citizens League (JACL) is the largestand oldest civil rights organization for Japanese Americans.

In July 1942, all residents of Japanese descent (includingcitizens) were categorized as “4-C: enemy aliens.”

The “Loyalty Questionnaire”, distributed by the WRA, attempt-

ed to determine which Japanese Americans were "loyals"

and which were "disloyals," with the hopes that some would

serve in the military.

The Purple Heart is an American military decoration awarded

for wounds received in action, and for meritorious perfor-

mance of duty.

“Wishes on the Wind” celebrates Tanabata, a summer

festival in which the Japanese celebrate a celestial myth by

tying wishes to a tree.

442ND BATTALION,

OR “THE 442”

“DISLOYAL”

DO NOT FIGHT THE STORM

GAMAN

HEART MOUNTAIN CAMP

HEART MOUNTAIN CAMP

RESISTANCE

JACL

“FOUR-C” ENEMY ALIENS

“LOYALTY QUESTIONNAIRE”

PURPLE HEART

“WISHES ON THE WIND”

S E L E C T G L O S S A R Y B E F

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*WHILE HISTORICALLY REFERRED TO AS “INT ERNMENT CAMPS”, WE HAVE CHOSEN TO USE THERECOMMENDED TERMINOLOGY SUGGESTED BY DENSHO, INSPIRE CHANGE AND ALLEGIANCE .



Ask your students to think about the groups to which they belong. How does it feel to be

part of a group or community? Generate a list on the board of those responses.

Tell your students that for the purposes of this activity the traits on their list will now serve as

the basis of how they feel to be part of a newly formed, class-wide community.

Have your class spread out so each student is located in their own small area of the room.

Keeping their list of community qualities in mind, at your signal the students should move

from their spots and attempt to individually greet each of their classmates.

After giving a couple of minutes for the greetings, pause your class. How did it feel to greet

and be greeted by your classmates? What words on the list could you most connect with

during the activity? Are there any new words you’d like to add?

Before returning to their original place in the room for Round 2, have each student draw the

name of a classmate from a hat or bucket. Tell them to keep their selected name a secret and

to pick again if they draw their own name.

In the second round, give your students these directions:

Something has happened - we don’t yet know what - and the community we built in Round

1 is no more. The student whose name you chose now represents your only ally in the class.

For unknown reasons, all other students have recently become suspicious of you.

Please silently move around the space in an attempt to find your ally, while staying as faraway as possible from your suspicious classmates.

Let the students move around until things become somewhat chaotic and then have every-

one pause. How did the circumstances shift in this round? Who felt successful in finding

their ally? What were some of the challenges? Who could tell which classmates had picked

their name as an ally? What were your feelings towards that person? Did any pair pick each

other as allies? How is that different for “mismatched” pairs? How did the movement of the

room change between Round 1 and Round 2? How did your feelings towards your

classmates change in Round 2? The responses to the last question should become a second

column on the board.

Following your discussion, ask students to return to their seats and watch President Franklin

Delano Roosevelt’s speech declaring war on Japan.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YhtuMrMVJDk

After watching, begin a class discussion: What are the main points of the speech?

FDR is declaring war on Japan, but what do you think that meant for Japanese Americans?

What do you think is the relationship between the speech and the activity we just did?

Which pairings of words on the board do you think reflect how Japanese Americans may

have felt before and after hearing FDR’s speech?

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MATERIALS

CLASSROOM BOARD, A PRINTED

LIST OF YOUR STUDENTS’ NAMES

CUT INTO SLIPS OF PAPER AND PUT

IN A HAT OR BUCKE T.

PREPARATION

CLEAR DESKS AND CHAIRS

OUT OF THE WAY FOR AN OPEN

SPACE, COMPUTER ACCESS SET-UP

TO PLAY FDR’S “DECLARATION OF

WAR ON JAPAN” (LINKED BELOW).

STANDARDS

NYC DOE BLUEPRINT FOR

TEACHING AND LEARNING IN

THEATER:

THEATER MAKING BENCHMARKS:

ACTING: IMAGINATION, ANALYSIS,

AND PROCESS SKILLS (GRADES 8

AND 12)

MAKING CONNECTIONS THROUGH

THEATER BENCHMARKS (GRADES 8AND 12)

COMMON CORE:

HISTORY/SOCIAL STUDIES:

(6-8.2, 11-12.2)

READING: INFORMATIONAL TEXT:

(8.1, 8.7, 11-12.1, 11-12.7

B E C O M I N G T H E O T H E R

THROUGH A THEATER ACTIVIT Y DRAWN FROM AUGUSTO BOAL’S THEATRE OF THE OPPRESSED,

BECOMING THE OTHER GIVES STUDE NTS A CHANCE TO EMBODY THE IDEA OF WHAT IT’S LIKE TO

GO FROM A CIVILIAN TO A SUSPECT.

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ON YOUR WAY TO THE SHOW: QUESTIONS FOR THE BUS

• Raise your hand if “Allegiance” will be your first time seeing a musical. Keep them raised if

“Allegiance” will be your first time seeing a Broadway show.

• What do you think of when you hear “Broadway”?

• What do you expect to see on stage based on the history and themes we explored in class?

• What questions are you bringing with you into the theater after completing the pre-show activities?

BEFORE ARRIVING: RE VIEW EXPECTATIONS AND THEATER ETIQUETTE

• Review the process of what will happen when you get to the theater. If chaperones are assigned

to specific students, remind students to be on the lookout for the appropriate adult.• Phones and devices should be turned completely OFF (not muted, not on vibrate).• No photography, eating, drinking, texting, or talking during the show!

• There is a 15 minute break (the “Intermission”) in the middle of the show.At that time you can use the restroom and purchase food, drinks, and merchandise.

• Discuss how dismissal will work when the show ends.

AT IN TE RM IS SI ON : QUE STIO NS AT TH E BR EA K

In the first act of “Allegiance,” the audience is introduced to many characters.

• Which character are you currently most drawn to and why?

• What questions were you left with at the end of Act 1 that you most want to see answered in Act 2?

• Did you come in with any questions from the pre-show activities that were or were not answered?

• What surprised/excited you the most?

CURTAIN CLOSERS: QUESTIONS ON YOUR WAY BACK TO SCHOOL

The show is over, but it’s the ideal time to capture and synthesize the experience. Use these questions tframe a discussion on the bus back to school.

• How was it to see a Broadway show? What did/didn’t you expect? If you’ve seen a Broadway show

before, what was the same and what was different about this experience?

• What’s the first thing that comes to mind when you think about the musical “Allegiance”?

• What themes does the play explore? What examples from the performance can you use to

justify your argument?

• What looked or sounded different from your expectations for ”Allegiance”?

• What questions remain for you? How do you think we can find the answers?

S E E I N G A L L E G I A N C E

USE THESE QUESTIONS TO STRUCTURE CONVERSATIONS ON YOUR WAY TO SEE

ALLEGIANCE , AT INTERMISSION, AND ON THE WAY BACK TO SCHOOL.

STANDARDS


TEACHING AND LEARNING

IN THEATER:

DEVELOPING THEATER

LITERACY BENCHMARKS:

RESPONDING TO THEATER

PERFORMANCE (GRADES 8

AND 12)

LEA SALONGA AS KEI KIMURA.



In the play, different perspectives on “loyalty” are expressed and the multiple interpreta

tions of patriotism are crucial to understanding the primary questions of Allegiance.

CLASS QUESTIONNAIRE

Divide the class into five equal groups, each named after an Allegiance character:

GROUP 1: The Sammys, the decorated soldiers of the 442nd Infantry Regiment.

GROUP 2: The Frankies, the organizers of the draft resistance at Heart Mountain.

GROUP 3: The Keis, the underground revolutionaries who created a newspapercampaign to alert the press to the injustices in the prison camps.

GROUP 4: The Tatsuos, the Japanese immigrants who answered “no, no” on

the “Loyalty Questionnaire”.

GROUP 5: The Mike Masaokas, National Secretaries of the Japanese American

Citizens League.

Ask each group to to review the decisions made by its assigned character throughout

Allegiance. For each decision, ask the group to make a Pro and Con list. Remind

students to draw on the historical information they know, their experience seeing

Allegiance, and to carefully consider the unique background of their character (i.e., a

woman in the 1940s, a Japanese immigrant, American citizens of Japanese descent).

Once the lists are finished, each group should present theirs to the other groups beforeposting the list in a different area of the room.

After all groups present and post their lists, have your students move to the area of the

room now represented by the character whose choices they most closely identify with.

Students are free to stand between two areas to represent their support of more than

one character’s choice.

When your students are settled into their places, ask if anyone wants to share why they

chose to stand in that spot of the room and how it reflects their feelings towards the Allegiance characters.

After your discussion, have your students form a circle. Ask one of your students

to shake hands with the person next to him or her. That handshake should then be

“passed” around the circle, from one person to the next. The handshake is a symbolic

acceptance of the different opinions expressed in the activity, and the many other

opinions expressed by Japanese Americans faced with these challenging

circumstances.

H I S T O R I C A L C O N T E X T

ALLEGIANCE GRAPPLES WITH CHALLENGING QUESTIONS OF PATRIOTISM.

AS DR AMATIZED IN THE PLAY, IN 1943 A QUESTIONNAIRE WAS CREATED TO

EVALUATE THE LOYALTY OF JAPANESE AMERICANS TO THE UNITED STATES.

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PREPARATION

CLEAR DESKS AND CHAIRS

OUT OF THE WAY FOR AN

OPEN SPACE.

STANDARDS


TEACHING AND LEARNING

IN THEATER:

MAKING CONNECTIONS

THROUGH THEATER

BENCHMARKS (GRADES 8

AND 12)

COMMON CORE:

HISTORY/SOCIAL STUDIES:

6-8.7, 11-12.3, 11-12.6, 11-12.7

READING: LITERATURE:

8.3, 11-12.2

TELLY LEUNG AS SAMMY KIMURA,



B E Y O N D A L L E G I A N C E

O T H E R R E S O U R C E S

A F TE R

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A F T

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A F TE R

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ESSAYS

http://encyclopedia.densho.org/Return_to_West_Coast/

http://depts.washington.edu/civilr/after_internment.htm

VIDEOS

http://www.densho.org/righting-a-wrong/

WEBSITES

Densho

www.densho.org

Heart Mountain Interpretive Center

www.heartmountain.org

National Japanese American Memorial Foundation

www.njamf.com

BOOKS

No-No Boy

a novel by John Okada

Farewell to Manzanar

by Jeanne Houston and James D. Houston

Last Witnesses: Reflections on the Wartime Internment of Japanese Americans

edited by Erica Harth

AT THE START OF THE SHOW, SAM KIMUR A SAYS HE HASN’T SPOKEN TO

HIS SISTER KEI IN OVER 50 YEARS. EXPLORE THESE RESOURCES WITH YOUR

STUDENTS TO FIND OUT WHAT LIFE WAS LIKE FOR JAPANESE AMERICANS

AF TER WORLD WAR II AND AF TER LEAVING THE PRISON CAMPS.

allegiance educatorguide v1 1

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