We Had to Walk from the Train to the Camp

DESCRIPTION: "We had to walk from the train to the camp. My shoes got dusty. The white dust came up and settled on my shoes. I looked down at them and began to cry. Never before had my shoes been dusty. It was the first time I cried."
AUTHOR: unknown
EARLIEST DATE: 1958 (Burt-AmericanMurderBallads)
KEYWORDS: clothes exile war
HISTORICAL REFERENCES:
Jan 14, 1942 - President Roosevelt issues his Alien Registration proclamation, calling for the registration of foreigners. From there, it was only a short step to the detention of aliens. Roosevelt authorized sending Japanese immigrants to concentration camps on February 20
FOUND IN: US
REFERENCES (1 citation):
Burt-AmericanMurderBallads, p. 155, (no title) (1 short text)
NOTES [43 words]: Burt-AmericanMurderBallads reports this to be a verse by a nisei boy upon being sent to one of the American detention camps for the Japanese. It's not very good, and it surely was not perpetuated -- but, in context, it surely qualifies as a Folk piece! - RBW
File: Burt155

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