The Ireichō National Tour Launches in Washington DC at National Archives and the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History February 18–21

JANM, The Irei Project, Japanese American Citizens League, JACL-DC Chapter, National Japanese American Memorial Foundation, National Archives Foundation, National Archives and Records Administration, and the National Museum of American History partner together for free programs commemorating the Day of Remembrance

LOS ANGELES, CA –  The Day of Remembrance (DOR) commemorates the signing of Executive Order 9066 on February 19, 1942, by President Franklin D. Roosevelt, which authorized the US military to remove persons of Japanese ancestry from the West Coast and set into motion their incarceration into America’s concentration camps during World War II. Each year on or around February 19, DOR events across the US tell stories, reflect on, and highlight the lessons of unjust incarceration to ensure that the American public not only learns from, but never forgets its past. The Japanese American National Museum (JANM) and The Irei Project will commemorate the Day of Remembrance in Washington, DC, by launching the national tour of The Ireichō at the National Archives on February 18, 2025, and at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History, February 19–21, 2025. 

The Ireichō, a book of names, is the first comprehensive listing of persons of Japanese ancestry who were incarcerated in US Army, War Relocation Authority (WRA) concentration camps and other Department of Justice (DOJ) and Wartime Civil Control Administration (WCCA) incarceration sites. The National Archives holdings were key to researching the over 125,000 names included in the book. On Tuesday, February 18, 2025, from 6:30 p.m.–7:30 p.m. EST, Archivist of the United States, Dr. Colleen Shogan, will make opening remarks followed by Dr. Anthea M. Hartig, the Elizabeth MacMillan Director of the National Museum of American History, who will moderate the panel discussion The Ireichō: Day of Remembrance, at the National Archives. Speakers will be Ann Burroughs, President and CEO of JANM; Shirley Ann Higuchi, JD of the Heart Mountain Wyoming Foundation; and Dr. Duncan Ryuken Williams, Director of The Irei Project. Guests will have the rare opportunity to view the Ireichō and Executive Order 9066 as both will be on display for public viewing. The program is presented in partnership with JANM, The Irei Project, Japanese American Citizens League, JACL-DC Chapter, National Japanese American Memorial Foundation, National Archives Foundation, National Archives and Records Administration, and the National Museum of American History. Admission to the event is free, and reservations are required. Reservations are available online at archivesfoundation.org. 

From February 19–21, The National Museum of American History will host a commemorative event featuring the Ireichō. The Ireichō aims to provide a healing experience by inviting the public to place a small mark using a Japanese “hanko” stamp under the name of someone in the book who has not yet been acknowledged. The Ireichō will be available for stamping at the National Museum of American History from 1 p.m.–4 p.m. EST, February 19–21, 2025. Registration is required to stamp a name in the book. 

During its installation at JANM in Los Angeles from October 2022–December 2024, 81,485 names in the Ireichō have been acknowledged. The twenty-month national tour will then continue to stops in Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Idaho, Texas, Utah, and Wyoming through July 2026. The tour is also part of JANM on the Go, a series of programs and exhibitions presented across California, the US, and beyond during the renovation of the Museum’s Pavilion in 2025 and 2026. At the close of the tour in August 2026, the Ireichō will be formally gifted by the Irei Project to JANM, where it will remain as part of JANM’s permanent collection and a lasting monument to the formidable strength of the Japanese American community. 

“It has been incredibly moving to witness people from around the globe making personal pilgrimages to stamp names and find meaning and healing by interacting with the book. The Ireichō is a powerful monument to ensure that this history is never repeated. JANM is honored to work with our partners to bring this powerful experience to people and communities across the nation,” said Ann Burroughs, JANM President and CEO.

The Irei Project founder Duncan Ryuken Williams noted, “For the Ireichō national tour to begin in Washington DC alongside the original copy of the EO 9066 is our way to heal America’s racial karma. For each person in the book of names to encounter and transform the injustice represented by the executive order and the very sites of incarceration is a way for us to be a monument to this difficult moment in our nation’s history.”

“It is fitting that the Ireichō will begin its national tour in our nation’s capital. The National Archives is such a vital resource to understanding our community’s sometimes dark interactions with our government, highlighted by Executive Order 9066 which will be on display with the Ireichō at the event on the 18th. We are grateful to the National Museum of American History for providing the opportunity for the public to stamp the Ireichō and fully feel the gravity of the 125,000 names of those incarcerated because of the Alien Enemies Act and Executive Order 9066,” said David Inoue, JACL Executive Director. 

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About the Japanese American National Museum (JANM)

Established in 1985, JANM 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 center for civil rights, ensuring that the hard-fought lessons of the World War II incarceration are not forgotten. A Smithsonian Affiliate and one of America’s Cultural Treasures, JANM is a hybrid institution that straddles traditional museum categories. JANM is a center for the arts as well as history. It provides a voice for Japanese Americans and a forum that enables all people to explore their own heritage and culture. Since opening to the public in 1992, JANM has presented over one hundred exhibitions onsite while traveling forty exhibits to venues such as the Smithsonian Institution and the Ellis Island Museum in the United States, and to several leading cultural museums in Japan and South America. JANM’s Pavilion is closed for renovation; programs will continue on the JANM campus, throughout Little Tokyo, Los Angeles, and Southern California, and beyond from early January 2025 through late 2026. For more information, visit janm.org/OnTheGo or follow us on social media @jamuseum.

About the Irei Project
The Irei Project is a nonprofit organization dedicated to the memory of the over 125,000 persons of Japanese ancestry incarcerated in America’s concentration and internment camps during WWII. The Irei Monument is based on the compilation of the names of those incarcerated in the wartime camps. A team of researchers led by project director Duncan Ryuken Williams is responsible for ensuring the comprehensiveness and accuracy of the names. All monuments have been conceived under the guidance of the project's creative director Sunyoung Lee, together with a team of artists and designers.