STATEMENT BY ANN BURROUGHS, JANM PRESIDENT AND CEO, REGARDING KOREMATSU-TAKAI CIVIL LIBERTIES PROTECTION ACT OF 2019

Los Angeles, CA—The Japanese American National Museum applauds the legislation recently introduced by US Senators Tammy Duckworth and Mazie Hirono and US Representative Mark Takano that would bar individuals in the United States from being unlawfully detained based solely on a protected characteristic such as race, ethnicity, national origin, or religion. The Korematsu-Takai Civil Liberties Protection Act of 2019 explicitly seeks to prevent what happened to people of Japanese ancestry in the United States during World War II from ever happening again, acknowledging that the forced removal and incarceration of 120,000 men, women, and children was unconstitutional. Teaching the lessons of this dark chapter of American history is at the very core of JANM’s existence and we are grateful to those elected officials who see the frightening parallels of the 1940s reflected in events today and are acting to protect this nation’s democracy by rejecting racism and intolerance of diversity. We hope that support for this legislation is strong throughout Congress and that the Act is made the law of the land.

Ann Burroughs, President and CEO
Japanese American National Museum

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 80 exhibitions onsite and traveled 20 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 $12 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.

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