The University of Hawai'i Press has released
Bayonets in Paradise: Martial Law in Hawai`i during World War II, by
Harry N. Scheiber and
Jane L. Scheiber (University of California, Berkeley). A description from the Press:
Bayonets in Paradise recounts the extraordinary story of how
the army imposed rigid and absolute control on the total population of
Hawaii during World War II. Declared immediately after the Pearl Harbor
attack, martial law was all-inclusive, bringing under army rule every
aspect of the Territory of Hawaiʻi's laws and governmental institutions.
Even the judiciary was placed under direct subservience to the military
authorities. The result was a protracted crisis in civil liberties, as
the army subjected more than 400,000 civilians—citizens and alien
residents alike—to sweeping, intrusive social and economic regulations
and to enforcement of army orders in provost courts with no semblance of
due process. In addition, the army enforced special regulations against
Hawaii's large population of Japanese ancestry; thousands of Japanese
Americans were investigated, hundreds were arrested, and some 2,000 were
incarcerated. In marked contrast to the well-known policy of the mass
removals on the West Coast, however, Hawai`i’s policy was one of
“selective,” albeit preventive, detention.
Army rule in Hawai`i
lasted until late 1944—making it the longest period in which an American
civilian population has ever been governed under martial law. The army
brass invoked the imperatives of security and “military necessity” to
perpetuate its regime of censorship, curfews, forced work assignments,
and arbitrary “justice” in the military courts. Broadly accepted at
first, these policies led in time to dramatic clashes over the wisdom
and constitutionality of martial law, involving the president, his top
Cabinet officials, and the military. The authors also provide a rich
analysis of the legal challenges to martial law that culminated in Duncan v. Kahanamoku,
a remarkable case in which the U.S. Supreme Court finally heard
argument on the martial law regime—and ruled in 1946 that provost court
justice and the military’s usurpation of the civilian government had
been illegal.
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| Harry and Jane Scheiber (credit) |
Based largely on archival sources, this comprehensive,
authoritative study places the long-neglected and largely unknown
history of martial law in Hawaiʻi in the larger context of America's
ongoing struggle between the defense of constitutional liberties and the
exercise of emergency powers.
A sampling of the very impressive set of blurbs (other reviewers include Roger Daniels, John Witte, Jr., and Bob Gordon):
"In their deeply researched and definitive account of Hawaii under
martial law in the days, months, and years following Pearl Harbor, the
Scheibers brilliantly tell a story of military arrogance and overreach,
in which a strong dash of prejudice against islanders of Japanese
descent also played a part. Bayonets in Paradise is a stunning
scholarly achievement, written with understated passion, and reminding
us that hard times are always a challenge to the rule of law and
constitutional government—a reminder that has particular resonance
today." —Lawrence M. Friedman
"Bayonets in Paradise is a labor of love
by two of the very best scholars of the recurring struggle between
military necessity and civil liberties in American history. The issue of
rights during crisis times is likely to be in front of us for the
foreseeable future. Harry and Jane Scheiber’s book is an invaluable
record of a forgotten but crucial episode in our history, illuminating
not only the past but also the dilemmas of today and tomorrow.” —John
Fabian Witt
More information is available
here.
