For nearly forty years, Terminal Island was home to a robust fishing community, comprised of thousands of Issei fathers, mothers, and their American-born children. On February 19th, 1942, the people of Fish Harbor were given 48 hours’ notice to leave their homes: a foreboding preview of their subsequent removal to the prison camps they would call home for the duration of the United States’ involvement in the Second World War. Within days of their departure, the United States government razed Terminal Island to the ground, the history and memories of the Japanese Americans that had built their lives on the island bulldozed along with it. 

Part-biography, part-fiction, Tide Goes Out recounts one family’s journey from their early years on the shores of Terminal Island, through their removal and detention in Manzanar, and their eventual return to the place they once called home.

Molly Murakami (she/her) is a cartoonist, illustrator, and writer from Minneapolis, Minnesota. Molly is one of Densho’s 2021 Artists-in-Residence. Learn more about her work at mollymurakami.com. 

In order to help you bring Tide Goes Out to your classroom or community group, we’ve crafted some thought-provoking questions and learning activities. Check out the Tide Goes Out Lesson Plan.

Molly Murakami

Molly Murakami (she/her) is a cartoonist, illustrator, and writer from Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Artist-in-Residence Program

Densho artist-in-residence Mari Shibuya leaning over and painting

Densho’s Artist-in-Residence program supports emerging artists to create artwork about WWII Japanese American incarceration history.

Tide Goes Out Lesson Plan

Illustration showing a large Japanese American family on the shores of Terminal Island.

In order to help you bring Tide Goes Out to your classroom or community group, we’ve crafted some thought-provoking questions and learning activities.