THE TRAIN TO CRYSTAL CITY
Nonfiction Dreaming of home THE TRAIN TO CRYSTAL CITY: FDR's Secret Prisoner Exchange Program and America's
Only Family Internment Camp During World War II By Jan Jarboe Russell 393 pp. Scribner Reviewed by Madison Bush Life may be like a box of chocolates, but to some American political figures, immigration is like a bowl of skittles; if three of the skittles in the bowl are poisonous, rather than risk taking a handful, we should throw the whole bowl away. Or deport them. Or detain them. The Train to Crystal City is a non-fiction account of the last time the United States’ policy followed that mindset. During World War II, the U.S. government approved the arrest, incarceration, and internment of Japanese, German, and Italian “enemy aliens,” and their families. This book is a timely read, a reminder that fear and ignorance, even during wartime, should not excuse denying people equal protection under the law. Not everyone will have heard of Crystal City, ...