PERFIDY

I share with Victoria Fisher (Calendar Letters, Aug. 11) a reverent admiration for the Japanese-Americans of the World War II era, most of whom repaid the perfidy of our government and the bigotry of their fellow citizens with unwavering devotion to America, often to the last full measure on distant battle fields.

But that their courage should be remembered, as she suggests, “ . . . by every American with pride,” is to claim for every American an undeserved privilege.

There are still those among us who seek to defend “relocation” through utterly irrelevant reference to atrocities committed by the Japanese Imperial Army; who argue a “military necessity” which strangely compelled violating the Constitution on the Pacific Coast, but not in the Hawaiian war zone; who belittle the anguish of that unjust imprisonment by rating it against the travail of combat.

Perhaps when the voice of the nit-wit is no longer heard in the land and we have made what amends we can to Japanese-Americans for the wrongs done them, we shall then be free to recall their courage and fidelity with something akin to pride.

DAVID ZOELLNER

Long Beach