Testimonials: Nathaniel Hayes
Nathaniel is currently a masters student in the history department at the University of Victoria.
What inspired you to take this course?
I was inspired to take this course because I’m working on my masters' thesis on Canadian-Japanese history and overall I think this topic a very important part of Canadian History. I think all Canadians should be aware of Japanese Canadian internment and dispossession.
What made the biggest impact on you during this course?
In my opinion, what had the biggest impact on me after taking this course was being able to engage with the Japanese Canadian community and people who experienced this history. The stories that they had from the internment and impacts from dispossession were really powerful.
What would you tell a future student considering taking this course?
In my thoughts, I would tell them to take this course! You’ll get a lot out of it, you get to experience history first hand you’ll get to see where Japanese Canadians experienced the impacts of internment and dispossession and you’ll be conflicted with the emotions of feeling impacted by the beauty of these places but also the tragedy of the history that occurred there.
"I’d have to say it was being able to talk to actual former internees and also people who are in the redress movement, like Art Miki. Just being able to hear their stories one on one... was extremely valuable."
