Plan of Attack:
(Students sign up throughout the day - Pin-up as well)
- 5-7 students share weekend findings
- Watch Ken Burns' Intro to WWII (5 Provocative Aspects)
- Read Iwo Jima Letter as a Class (10 Minutes)
- 16:30 Video (The Big Idea of our WWII Project)
- Assign 5 Short Letters - Group Assignment.
- Discuss Iwo Jima Letter and Military Censorship
-HW: Read chapter 27 section 1 page 774. Watch the Iwo Jima Clip & Post One Comment on what you felt was PROVOCATIVE about the clip. Also get your permission slips signed for the trip to BOCES Friday afternoon.
Introduction to Clarklisto WWII Project: (16:30)
Introduction to WWII:
Ken Burns 5:35
Myron Fox is a past vice president of the Military Postal History Society, a group that studies the mail that is sent to and from soldiers. He is an expert on United States military and civilian censorship in World War I and World War II. In this interview, conducted in 2000, he describes how wartime letters were censored.
When were the first soldiers' letters censored in the United States?
The first heavy censorship of U.S. soldiers took place during World War I.
The first heavy censorship of U.S. soldiers took place during World War I.
What were the censors looking for?
The censors were looking out for two things in World War I and World War II. They didn't want the soldier to say anything that would be of value to the enemy, such as where they were. They always wanted to camouflage how strong the troops were. "Loose lips sink ships" was the phrase that was very prevalent in WW II and that was the theory in WW I as well.
The censors were looking out for two things in World War I and World War II. They didn't want the soldier to say anything that would be of value to the enemy, such as where they were. They always wanted to camouflage how strong the troops were. "Loose lips sink ships" was the phrase that was very prevalent in WW II and that was the theory in WW I as well.
Did censoring influence the quality of the letters written?
In WW II, it's common for a soldier to write, 'I can't say much or the censors will cut it out.' Early in World War II, the soldiers couldn't say where they were. People back home didn't know if they were in the Pacific or the Atlantic. You'll see letters where the soldier will say where he is -- it's cut out -- and how many people are in the building -- and that's cut out too.
In WW II, it's common for a soldier to write, 'I can't say much or the censors will cut it out.' Early in World War II, the soldiers couldn't say where they were. People back home didn't know if they were in the Pacific or the Atlantic. You'll see letters where the soldier will say where he is -- it's cut out -- and how many people are in the building -- and that's cut out too.
The censors returned very few soldiers' letters. They confiscated them; they didn't send them back. They didn't necessarily give the word back to the soldier that his or her letter was withheld. It depended where it was stopped and how fast the troops were moving.
From the soldier's perspective, you often didn't know if it was going to get through. The soldiers were all given guidance on what they could say, so you would think they would know how to avoid getting their mail intercepted, but not all did.
What happened to you if your letter was censored?
You might be talked to, because it's important. I don't know of any soldiers who were severely punished for what they wrote in a letter. It wasn't considered an overt act of sabotage; it was considered carelessness.
You might be talked to, because it's important. I don't know of any soldiers who were severely punished for what they wrote in a letter. It wasn't considered an overt act of sabotage; it was considered carelessness.
Why did censorship end after World War II?
It took a lot of time and effort to censor mail and the military probably just figured that it just wasn't worth it.
It took a lot of time and effort to censor mail and the military probably just figured that it just wasn't worth it.
What I found provocative was that, despite 6,000 pounds of explosives being dropped on Iwo Jima, there was still Japanese military on the island to fight the United States military.
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