Elizabeth & Catherine Humbargar:
A Sense of the Possible
Summary
Follow Elizabeth and Catherine Humbargar’s story of educational activism in support of their Japanese American students. The Humbargar sisters experienced oppression themselves as German Catholics during the first Word War. Unable to find teaching jobs in Kansas, they moved to Stockton, California, and devoted
their careers to supporting Japanese American students
at Stockton High School with Elizabeth Humbargar served
as faculty advisor to he 400-member Japanese American
Student Club.
The sisters' support went beyond the classroom, often
staying after school to teach language, speech, and instill
leadership skills in their Japanese students; they even
opened up their home to students who lived in rural areas,
so they could continue past grammar school in Stockton.
In 1942, local Japanese Americans were wrongfully
imprisoned at the San Joaquin County Fairgrounds,
which had been transformed into a makeshift "Assembly
Center." The Humbargars quickly organized a makeshift
school. They persuaded school district officials to loan surplus
text books, created a library from donated books, and enlisted
former students to teach high school courses at the temporary
center. Due to the collective efforts of these students,
Humbargar sisters, the school district and fellow teachers,
ninety-two percent of the interned students received academic
credit for the semester despite being incarcerated.
Discussion Questions
-
How did the Humbargar sisters’ intersecting identities (religion, immigration status, race, ethnicity, past experiences etc) influence their desire and ability to support Japanese Americans? / How did they use their privilege to support Japanese Americans?
-
In what ways did the Humbargar sisters work to promote educational equality?
-
In what ways is providing access to education an example of resistance to oppression?
-
Why do you think it was important for the Humbargar sisters to instill leadership and communication skills in their Japanese students?
-
Think of a teacher that has been influential in your life. How have they supported you?
What might have been different if you had not received their support?
Key Concepts:
-
Right to education
-
Free speech
-
Unlawful internment/incarceration – right to due process