SANTA ANITA ASSEMBLY CENTER REUNION SCHEDULED FOR APRIL 15 AT JANM

The Santa Anita Assembly Center Committee, in partnership with the Japanese American National Museum, will present a reunion and public remembrance of the opening of the Assembly Center 75 years ago, beginning a dark chapter in United States history when the government denied the civil rights of Japanese Americans. On Saturday, April 15, 2017, surviving incarcerees, their families, and their descendants’ families will reunite at the Japanese American National Museum’s George and Sakaye Aratani Central Hall for lunch and program that will run from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.

On February 19, 1942, President Franklin Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066, which paved the way for the incarceration of 120,000 individuals of Japanese ancestry. Before going to remote locations in Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Idaho, Utah, and Wyoming, almost 19,000 individuals of Japanese ancestry, who had been living as far north as San Jose and as far south as San Diego, were first sent to Santa Anita Assembly Center. There on the grounds and parking lots of Santa Anita Race Track, including in the actual horse stalls, families endured indescribable conditions for five months.

The event at JANM, which is open to the public, will bring back together many of those whose lives became forever entwined as a result of their shared experiences at Santa Anita between March 27 and October 27, 1942. Seating for the event is limited. Reservations will be honored on a first come, first served basis. The cost is $30 per person. To reserve, please contact either of the following Santa Anita Assembly Center Committee members:

   June Aochi Berk: juneaochiberk@me.com 818-400-3273
   Colleen Miyano: miyanofam5@aol.com 310-908-7508

The Santa Anita Assembly Center Committee members are: June Berk, Chair; Bill Shishima, Vice-Chair; Hal Keimi, Treasurer; Colleen Kunitomi Miyano, Secretary; Bacon Sakatani, Registrar; Kats Horiuchi, Tohru Isobe, Keiichi Ikeda, Babe Karasawa, Barbara Keimi, Kanji Sahara, Phil Shigekuni, Min Tonai, and Marge Wada.

NOW ON VIEW AT JANM:

Instructions to All Persons: Reflections on Executive Order 9066
Through August 13, 2017
Instructions to All Persons: Reflections on Executive Order 9066, commemorates the 75th anniversary of President Franklin Roosevelt’s signing of Executive Order 9066, which led to the tragic and unlawful incarceration of 120,000 individuals of Japanese ancestry during World War II. Instructions to All Persons is intended to engage visitors in critical discussions of the Japanese American incarceration experience and its continuing relevance today. It aims to examine the social impact of language and encourage viewers to contemplate the lessons of the past, as well as to compare World War II experiences with current events.

Only the Oaks Remain: The Story of Tuna Canyon Detention Station
Through April 9, 2017
This special display tells the true stories of those targeted as dangerous enemy aliens and imprisoned in the Tuna Canyon Detention Station, located in the Tujunga neighborhood of Los Angeles, by the US Department of Justice during World War II. Photographs, letters, and diaries bring the experiences of imprisoned Japanese, German, and Italian immigrants and Japanese Peruvians to life. This project was organized by the Tuna Canyon Detention Station Coalition; funded, in part, by a grant from the US Department of the Interior, National Park Service, Japanese American Confinement Sites Grant Program; and sponsored by the San Fernando Valley Japanese American Community Center.

Common Ground: The Heart of Community
Ongoing
Incorporating hundreds of objects, documents and photographs collected by JANM, this exhibition chronicles 130 years of Japanese American history, from the early days of the Issei pioneers through the World War II incarceration to the present.

About the Japanese American National Museum (JANM)

Established in 1985, the Japanese American National Museum promotes understanding and appreciation of America’s ethnic and cultural diversity by sharing the Japanese American experience. Located in the historic Little Tokyo district of downtown Los Angeles, JANM is a hybrid institution that straddles traditional museum categories and strives to provide a voice for Japanese Americans as well as a forum that enables all people to explore their own heritage and culture. Since opening to the public, JANM has presented over 70 exhibitions onsite and traveled 17 of its exhibitions to locations around the world, including the Smithsonian Institution and the Ellis Island Museum in the United States, and several leading cultural museums in Japan and South America.

JANM is located at 100 N. Central Ave., Los Angeles. Museum hours are Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Thursday from noon to 8 p.m. General admission is $10 adults, $6 students and seniors, free for members and children under age five. Admission is free to everyone on Thursdays from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. and every third Thursday of the month from noon to 8 p.m. General admission prices and free admission times may not apply to specially ticketed exhibitions. Closed Monday, 4th of July, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s Day. For more information visit janm.org or call 213.625.0414.