→ midnight
-37 pointsIndividual Rights
Forced removal and incarceration inflicted a sweeping deprivation of liberty based on ancestry.
Historical review · Sources available
1942 review
Japanese-American Internment
The federal government forcibly removed and confined people of Japanese ancestry during World War II, including U.S. citizens.
Constitutional health54/100
Clock reading8:45 PM
StatusElevated Constitutional Stress
What 8:45 PM means: Wartime incarceration drives the clock later by showing how quickly liberty and equal law can collapse under emergency claims.
What moved the clock
What changed from the previous review?
Compared with 1937 (New Deal Conflict), the weighted score moved 10 points less healthy.
→ midnight
-17 pointsRule of Law
Citizens and residents were denied ordinary individualized due process.
→ midnight
-8 pointsLimits on Government Power
Executive military authority operated with broad legislative support.
← earlier
+6 pointsChecks and Balances
Judicial review failed to provide an effective contemporaneous check.
Eight measures
How the score breaks down
The same weights are used for every period. You can question any measure on its own.
0115% of total
Limits on Government Power
Executive military authority operated with broad legislative support.
50/ 100
↓ 8 since the previous reviewAdds 7.5 points to the total · ↓ 8 since the previous review
Why this score?
Why it was scored this way. Executive military authority operated with broad legislative support.
Confidence. Historical facts: High; numerical score: Moderate–high. See the full review and sources below.
0212.5% of total
Checks and Balances
Judicial review failed to provide an effective contemporaneous check.
58/ 100
↑ 6 since the previous reviewAdds 7.25 points to the total · ↑ 6 since the previous review
Why this score?
Why it was scored this way. Judicial review failed to provide an effective contemporaneous check.
Confidence. Historical facts: High; numerical score: Moderate–high. See the full review and sources below.
0315% of total
Elections and Transfers of Power
Could voters change who holds power through fair elections and peaceful transfers?
68/ 100
↓ 4 since the previous reviewAdds 10.2 points to the total · ↓ 4 since the previous review
Why this score?
Why it was scored this way. Could voters change who holds power through fair elections and peaceful transfers?
Confidence. Historical facts: High; numerical score: Moderate–high. See the full review and sources below.
0415% of total
Rule of Law
Citizens and residents were denied ordinary individualized due process.
48/ 100
↓ 17 since the previous reviewAdds 7.2 points to the total · ↓ 17 since the previous review
Why this score?
Why it was scored this way. Citizens and residents were denied ordinary individualized due process.
Confidence. Historical facts: High; numerical score: Moderate–high. See the full review and sources below.
0515% of total
Individual Rights
Forced removal and incarceration inflicted a sweeping deprivation of liberty based on ancestry.
25/ 100
↓ 37 since the previous reviewAdds 3.75 points to the total · ↓ 37 since the previous review
Why this score?
Why it was scored this way. Forced removal and incarceration inflicted a sweeping deprivation of liberty based on ancestry.
Confidence. Historical facts: High; numerical score: Moderate–high. See the full review and sources below.
0610% of total
Federal and State Balance
Did federal and state governments keep meaningful authority within their roles?
65/ 100
↓ 3 since the previous reviewAdds 6.5 points to the total · ↓ 3 since the previous review
Why this score?
Why it was scored this way. Did federal and state governments keep meaningful authority within their roles?
Confidence. Historical facts: High; numerical score: Moderate–high. See the full review and sources below.
077.5% of total
Trust in Institutions
Did enough people accept lawful institutions as a way to settle disputes?
55/ 100
↓ 5 since the previous reviewAdds 4.13 points to the total · ↓ 5 since the previous review
Why this score?
Why it was scored this way. Did enough people accept lawful institutions as a way to settle disputes?
Confidence. Historical facts: High; numerical score: Moderate–high. See the full review and sources below.
0810% of total
Peaceful Politics
Did political competition remain mostly peaceful?
75/ 100
↓ 3 since the previous reviewAdds 7.5 points to the total · ↓ 3 since the previous review
Why this score?
Why it was scored this way. Did political competition remain mostly peaceful?
Confidence. Historical facts: High; numerical score: Moderate–high. See the full review and sources below.
Different questions
The clock does not predict major change or civil conflict
A different question
Major change to the system
Could the country's basic governing rules change? This is different from armed conflict.
This needs its own scoring guide. The clock score cannot answer it.
A different question
Organized political violence
Could political violence become organized and sustained? The clock is not a prediction of civil war.
This needs its own scoring guide. The clock score cannot answer it.
Why this matters
Why this moment matters
The episode is central to study of emergency power, racial discrimination, due process, and judicial review.
Similar moments in history
Evidence review
Executive Order 9066, removal, and incarceration · 1942–1945
- Evidence confidence
- High
- Score confidence
- Moderate–high
Orders, exclusion records, court cases, and the congressionally authorized commission report provide unusually strong documentation.
Findings
- Executive Order 9066 enabled military exclusion that led to mass removal and incarceration of people of Japanese ancestry, including U.S. citizens.
- The policy imposed sweeping deprivations without individualized findings of disloyalty or ordinary due process.
- Contemporary judicial review failed to stop the central program; a later federal commission found the policy was not justified by military necessity.
Evidence pointing the other way
National elections and most civil institutions continued, so the severe failure was concentrated but constitutionally profound.
Check the sources
Sources
These links support the facts used here. Their publishers did not create or approve the score.