In recent weeks, the Smithsonian museums have come under political review and critique. Some of the nation’s most visible historical institutions are being pressured to change how U.S. history is... The post When History Is Rewritten and Suppressed, Democracy Is at Risk appeared first on Densho: Japanese American Incarceration and Japanese Internment.| Densho: Japanese American Incarceration and Japanese Internment
This month, we commemorate the Civil Liberties Act of 1988, marking a pivotal moment in U.S. history in which the government offered redress and reparations for the forced displacement and...| Densho: Japanese American Incarceration and Japanese Internment
Last month Densho, in partnership with Internet Archive, launched the Digital Library of Japanese American Incarceration Films—an unprecedented online collection of more than 100 films, spanning 80 years of footage,... The post Introducing the Digital Library of Japanese American Incarceration Films appeared first on Densho: Japanese American Incarceration and Japanese Internment.| Densho: Japanese American Incarceration and Japanese Internment
Densho Development & Communications Manager Jennifer Noji joined nearly 250 fellow pilgrims in returning to the Minidoka incarceration site to commemorate the past and critically interrogate the present. Jen shares... The post Returning to Minidoka: Reckoning with the Past and Reflecting on the Present appeared first on Densho: Japanese American Incarceration and Japanese Internment.| Densho: Japanese American Incarceration and Japanese Internment
School may not be in session, but there are plenty of lessons to learn and stories to share outside of the classroom! Densho Education & Public Programs Manager Courtney Wai...| Densho: Japanese American Incarceration and Japanese Internment
At Densho, it is common to come across scrapbooks that document the variety of memories that make up someone’s life, capturing friendships, personal growth, family milestones, and other moments of...| Densho: Japanese American Incarceration and Japanese Internment
Together in Manzanar explores the lives of mixed-marriage families and multi-racial Japanese Americans in America’s WWII concentration camps.| Densho: Japanese American Incarceration and Japanese Internment
Manzanar is perhaps the most well-known of the ten War Relocation Authority concentration camps where Japanese Americans were incarcerated during WWII, thanks to popular media portrayals from Farewell to Manzanar...| Densho: Japanese American Incarceration and Japanese Internment
Located in California just below the Oregon border, Tule Lake began as one of ten War Relocation Authority concentration camps that held Japanese Americans forcibly removed from the West Coast. But following the WRA’s ill-conceived “loyalty questionnaire” of 1943, it became the notorious “segregation center” for inmates who refused to give unqualified “yes” responses and were unjustly labeled as “disloyal.”| Densho: Japanese American Incarceration and Japanese Internment
In 1943, the US government administered a disastrous "loyalty questionnaire" to Japanese Americans being held in WWII concentration camps.| Densho: Japanese American Incarceration and Japanese Internment
Preserving Japanese American stories of the past for the generations of tomorrow.| Densho: Japanese American Incarceration and Japanese Internment
Last month, we joined a special gathering of the Seattle Japanese American community hosted by Tsuru for Solidarity. Around 150 people came together to reflect on the connections between the... The post A Poston Survivor Speaks Out To Say “Stop Repeating History!” appeared first on Densho: Japanese American Incarceration and Japanese Internment.| Densho: Japanese American Incarceration and Japanese Internment
In March 2001, while at a Medal of Honor Ceremony to recognize Private First Class William K. Nakamura and Technician Fifth Grade James K. Okubo, Seattle Mayor Paul Schell reflected... The post The Legacy of the Military Intelligence Service Northwest Association appeared first on Densho: Japanese American Incarceration and Japanese Internment.| Densho: Japanese American Incarceration and Japanese Internment
As educators, we have a moral responsibility to teach the full and honest history of our country — especially the stories that disrupt dominant narratives of freedom, justice, and democracy.... The post Why Educators Should Teach the History of Japanese American WWII Incarceration — Now More Than Ever appeared first on Densho: Japanese American Incarceration and Japanese Internment.| Densho: Japanese American Incarceration and Japanese Internment
This May Day—also known as International Workers’ Day—we take a look back at the intersection of labor history and Japanese American incarceration during World War II. Japanese Americans were expected... The post The Labor History of Japanese American Incarceration during WWII appeared first on Densho: Japanese American Incarceration and Japanese Internment.| Densho: Japanese American Incarceration and Japanese Internment
At Densho, we know what it means to have your history distorted or silenced. Our organization was founded to ensure that the stories of Japanese Americans, especially those forcibly removed... The post Densho’s Commitment to Rejecting Censorship and Preserving Truth in the Archives appeared first on Densho: Japanese American Incarceration and Japanese Internment.| Densho: Japanese American Incarceration and Japanese Internment
Kathy Nishimoto Masaoka, a child of WWII incarceration survivors, was born and raised in multicultural Boyle Heights, California. She served as a high school teacher for three decades and is...| Densho: Japanese American Incarceration and Japanese Internment
Dr. Kyle Kinoshita is the current co-president of the Seattle Japanese American Citizens League and a lifelong K-12 and University of Washington educator, serving as a teacher and school principal...| Densho: Japanese American Incarceration and Japanese Internment
Donald Trump’s recent attempt to invoke the Alien Enemies Act has sparked much interest in the roundup and internment of Issei during World War II, the most recent use of... The post This Is What Detention Under the Alien Enemies Act Looked Like in World War II appeared first on Densho: Japanese American Incarceration and Japanese Internment.| Densho: Japanese American Incarceration and Japanese Internment
This past weekend, the Densho team was honored to join the Bainbridge Island Japanese American Exclusion Memorial Association for the Commemoration of the 83rd Anniversary of the Day of Forced... The post Photo Essay: Commemorating Bainbridge Island’s Japanese American History appeared first on Densho: Japanese American Incarceration and Japanese Internment.| Densho: Japanese American Incarceration and Japanese Internment
The U.S. Army quietly removed and republished its webpage on the 442nd Regimental Combat Team, erasing the racial context of the all-Japanese military unit.| Densho: Japanese American Incarceration and Japanese Internment
Civic education isn’t just about the past — it’s about understanding how history shapes our present and future.| Densho: Japanese American Incarceration and Japanese Internment
Earlier this month, we joined the Puyallup Valley JACL for a Day of Remembrance at the site of the former Puyallup Assembly Center on the Washington State Fairgrounds. This event... The post Photo Essay: Activating Our History on the Day of Remembrance appeared first on Densho: Japanese American Incarceration and Japanese Internment.| Densho: Japanese American Incarceration and Japanese Internment
We reflect today on the signing of Executive Order 9066 in 1942, which led to the forced removal and incarceration of over 125,000 Japanese Americans. As we honor the memory...| Densho: Japanese American Incarceration and Japanese Internment
Educator Courtney Wai shares how social justice education can equip students with the tools to build a more just, inclusive future.| Densho: Japanese American Incarceration and Japanese Internment
Densho mourns the loss of Jeanne Wakatsuki Houston, a key figure in sharing the story of the wartime incarceration in the 1970s. Farewell to Manzanar, her camp memoir co-written with... The post Remembering Jeanne Wakatsuki Houston appeared first on Densho: Japanese American Incarceration and Japanese Internment.| Densho: Japanese American Incarceration and Japanese Internment
Meet the notable Nisei who would have turned one hundred years old in 2025—plus two soon-to-be centenarians who remain active today.| Densho: Japanese American Incarceration and Japanese Internment
Naomi Ostwald Kawamura reflects on the lessons of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and our responsibility as inheritors of this historical memory.| Densho: Japanese American Incarceration and Japanese Internment
Trump's threat to deport millions of immigrants if elected is based on the Alien Enemies Act, the same law behind Japanese American WWII incarceration.| Densho: Japanese American Incarceration and Japanese Internment
At Densho, we field a lot of questions about where to find various resources related to the Japanese American incarceration online. While some things can be found via your favorite...| Densho: Japanese American Incarceration and Japanese Internment
Preventing damage to historical photos and documents when disaster strikes, and how to replicate some of these techniques in your own home.| Densho: Japanese American Incarceration and Japanese Internment
Kassandra Hishida reflects on their first pilgrimage and how it inspired them to dig deeper into their family’s connections to Tule Lake.| Densho: Japanese American Incarceration and Japanese Internment
Oliver Wang, curator of the Japanese American National Museum’s summer 2025 exhibit, Cruising J-Town: Behind the Wheel of the Nikkei Community, which looks at how car and truck culture have...| Densho: Japanese American Incarceration and Japanese Internment
Actress and performer Mary Mon Toy is best known for her breakout role as Minnie Ho in the original Broadway production of The World of Suzie Wong — which led...| Densho: Japanese American Incarceration and Japanese Internment
In this guest post, Frank Abe introduces a selection from the new anthology, The Literature of Japanese American Incarceration, which he co-edited with Floyd Cheung. The book was published this...| Densho: Japanese American Incarceration and Japanese Internment
A look back at the history of the Amache concentration camp as seen through the lens of photographer George Ochikubo.| Densho: Japanese American Incarceration and Japanese Internment
Kathryn Perry Bolin is a graduate student at the University of Washington pursuing a Master’s in Information and Library Science (MLIS), and recently completed an internship with Densho’s archives team....| Densho: Japanese American Incarceration and Japanese Internment
Naomi Ostwald Kawamura reflects on her time in Japan as part of the 2024 Japanese American Leadership Delegation.| Densho: Japanese American Incarceration and Japanese Internment
Densho Project Archivist Will Allen has been helping to create Densho’s Legacy Archive, an archive of Densho’s organizational records since its founding in 1996. Will shares some highlights from this...| Densho: Japanese American Incarceration and Japanese Internment
In late 1943, three Japanese American sisters helped two German prisoners of war escape from a southern Colorado POW camp. The men were soon caught and sensationalized stories of “Japanazi...| Densho: Japanese American Incarceration and Japanese Internment
Tell the FAA the only way to mitigate damage to the concentration camp site is by NOT building the fence at Tule Lake!| Densho: Japanese American Incarceration and Japanese Internment
In Seattle from the Margins: Exclusion, Erasure, and the Making of a Pacific Coast City historian Megan Asaka examines the erased histories of the communities who built Seattle. In this...| Densho: Japanese American Incarceration and Japanese Internment
The Pacific Bonsai Museum in Federal Way, Washington connects people to nature through the living art of bonsai. The Densho communications team recently had the chance to visit the museum...| Densho: Japanese American Incarceration and Japanese Internment
