Day of Remembrance (Japanese Americans)

1 April orders, based on legislation signed on 19 February 1942

The Day of Remembrance (DOR) is a day commemorating the Japanese American internment during World War II.^[1] Events in numerous U.S. states are held on or near February 19, the day in 1942 that Executive Order 9066 was signed, requiring internment of all Americans of Japanese ancestry.^[2]

Washington

The first Day of Remembrance commemorating the Japanese American internment was in the state of Washington on November 25, 1978, organized by the Evacuation Redress Committee. Co-sponsors included thirty churches, veterans' groups, and other social organizations, as well as the national Japanese American Citizens League (JACL). The event took place mainly at the Puyallup fairgrounds, which had served in 1942 as the assembly center named Camp Harmony. Although initially resistant, the board of the Western Washington Fair ultimately voted unanimously to allow the event to use the fairgrounds free of charge. The National Guard provided several large trucks similar to those used in 1942 to lead a caravan from Sicks' Stadium in Seattle to Puyallup, replicating the route taken by some of the internees.^[3] One of the key organizers of the first day of remembrance was Chinese-American writer, Frank Chin.

Jay Hirabayashi performs a butoh dance piece in memory of his parents, Gordon and Esther Hirabayashi, at a Day of Remembrance event in Seattle, Washington, February 22, 2014.

The University of Washington Department of American Ethnic Studies held its first Day of Remembrance program in 1997, and has held such a program all but three of the years since. At the 2008 ceremony, called The Long Journey Home, the university granted honorary baccalaureate degrees to all 449 of their former Japanese American students who had been affected by Executive Order 9066.^[4]

The state of Washington has officially recognized the DOR since 2003.^[5]

Oregon

The first Day of Remembrance event in Oregon occurred February 17, 1979, less than three months after the initial Washington event. Like the Washington event, it was held at a detention site: the former site of the Pacific International Livestock Exposition, which, in 1942, had been the site of the Portland Assembly Center.^[6]

California

In 2013, a ceremony was to be held in San Francisco's Japantown district.^[7][8][9] Los Angeles County has officially recognized the day.^[10]

References

1. CAPAC Members, Congressional Leaders Recognize Day of Remembrance for Japanese Internment, Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus, February 19, 2013.
2. The Day of Remembrance is observed officially or unofficially in numerous U.S. states, including:
   • Alaska: Japanese-American Day of Remembrance, 2010 event announcement in Anchorage, Alaska, zvents.com. Accessed online 2014-03-25.
   • Colorado: Kate Gibbons, Japanese internment camp prisoners remembered, Denver Post, 2014-02-17. Accessed online 2014-03-25.
   • Hawaii: Day of Remembrance 2013, Japanese Cultural Center of Hawaii, event announcement. Accessed online 2014-03-25.
   • Idaho: Katherine Jones, Japanese Americans observe Day of Remembrance at Idaho Capitol, Idaho Statesman, 2014-02-18. Accessed online 2014-03-25.
   • Illinois: Chicago Day of Remembrance this Sunday, CAIR-Chicago, 2014-02-13. Accessed online 2014-03-25.
   • New York: Susan Miyagi Hamaker, NYC Day of Remembrance: A Moving, Informative Look at Japanese Americans in WWII, japanculture-nyc.com, 2013-03-26. Accessed online 2014-03-25.
3. Jennifer Ott, First Day of Remembrance (of World War II incarceration of Japanese Americans) is held at the Puyallup Fairgrounds on November 25, 1978, HistoryLink article 9464, August 23, 2010.
4. "Day of Remembrance Commemorations", Courage in Action: the Life and Legacy of Gordon K. Hirabayashi, program for a symposium of the same name that took place at Kane Hall, University of Washington, February 22, 2014. This lists the program for each year; there is no listing for 1999, 2001, or 2005.
5. RCW 1.16.090 Legislative declaration for civil liberties day of remembrance, listing of statutes on the site of the Washington State Legislature. Accessed online 2014-02-27.
6. Mitzi Loftus, Day of Remembrance, The Oregon Encyclopedia (Portland State University). Accessed online 2014-02-27.
7. "San Francisco: Japanese Americans commemorate internment camps | abc7news.com". Abclocal.go.com. 2013-02-17. Retrieved 2013-03-23.
8. "Gil Asakawa: Not Enough People Know About Japanese Americans' Day of Remembrance". Huffingtonpost.com. 2011-02-17. Retrieved 2013-03-23.
9. Tell Me More (2008-02-19). "'Remembrance' Marks Japanese-American Plight". NPR. Retrieved 2013-03-23.
10. "Long Beach Post - Day of Remembrance for Japanese-Americans Interned During WWII". Lbpost.com. Retrieved 2013-03-23.