Former Congressman Norman Mineta Donates Papers to the Japanese American National Museum

The Japanese American National Museum announced the acquisition of former U.S. Rep. Norman Y. Mineta’s papers and other materials from his 22-year career in Congress, a significant collection from the first mainland Nikei elected to the House of Representatives.

The Mineta Collection includes papers compiled at his Washington, D.C. office and amounts to nearly 30 linear feet of materials and documents. Among the items in the collection are speeches, memorandums, meeting notes, briefings, correspondence, and videotape. Among the information researchers will be able to examine is Mineta’s efforts on behalf of Japanese American redress, a campaign that began in the 1970s and finally came to fruition with the Civil Liberties Act of 1988.

When Mineta was 11 years old, he and his family and 120,000 Americans of Japanese ancestry were unconstitutionally forced by the federal government to leave the west coast and live in U.S. concentration camps during World War II. The 1988 bill provided for an official apology and reparations for most individuals who went to camp if they were still alive when President Reagan signed the bill. Many but not all of the eligible recipients have received their official government apology through the Office of Redress Administration. Some questions of eligibility are still pending.

At a recent dinner in his honor, Mineta recalled being given the privilege of signing the House bill, HR 442, after it had passed. “There has never been a moment when I loved this country more,” he said. Redress was “the best expression of what this nation can be and the power of government to heal and make right what was wrong.”

The donation of this material will be added to previously donated items from the former congressman. The Mineta Collection is currently being readied for research use by Museum staff and will be available for public use in the Museum’s National Resource Center. The resource center will begin public access when the Museum’s Phase II Pavilion opens to the public at the end of 1997 or the beginning of 1998. Information will be available either on-site or off-site through programs and electronic applications.

Mineta recently retired from Congress last year to take the position of senior vice president at Lockheed/Martin Corporation. He was elected to Congress in 1974 after serving as mayor of San Jose, the first Japanese American to head a major city on the mainland. Besides Japanese American redress, Mineta was known for his work in transportation. In 1992, he was named chairman of the House Public Works and Transportation Committee, the first Asian American to chair a major Congressional committee. Mineta was recently named to the Museum’s Board of Trustees and is the Chairman of the Museum’s National Campaign.

The Museum maintains one of the largest collections of Japanese American materials in the world. Japanese immigrants began arriving in America over 100 years ago and continue to contribute to the United States economically and culturally in a variety of ways. Individuals like Mineta, Judge Lance Ito, gold medal skater Kristi Yamaguchi and actor George Takei demonstrate the breadth of those contributions.

The Japanese American National Museum is the only private, nonprofit national institution dedicated to preserving and presenting the story of Americans of Japanese ancestry in the context of U.S. history. Formed in 1985, the Museum opened its doors to its historic headquarters in Los Angeles’ Little Tokyo in 1992. Through exhibitions, public programs, and educational projects, the Museum fulfills its mission to a national and international audience. For more information, call 213.625.0414.