JANM Sets the Record Straight About Comparisons Between the Treatment Received by January 6 Rioters and World War II Japanese American Incarcerees

LOS ANGELES, CA – The Japanese American National Museum (JANM) decries the former President’s comparison of the treatment received by Japanese American incarcerees during World War II to those involved in the January 6 assault on the US Capitol. The comparison was meant to support the former President’s claim that they were unfairly treated by the federal justice system.

“We must set the record straight: This is an egregiously inaccurate and flawed historical analogy. There is no comparison between the treatment received by the January 6 rioters and Japanese Americans who were denied due process when they were forcibly removed from their homes, systematically dispossessed and incarcerated for the duration of the war. Now more than ever, the lessons from the Japanese American incarceration must never be forgotten, ignored, minimized, or erased. As long as diversity, individual dignity, and social justice continue to be undermined, they will continue to be urgent and relevant today,” said Ann Burroughs, JANM President and CEO.

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