Day of Remembrance, or DOR, is a time to reflect upon the events that transpired after President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066 on February 19, 1942, which forced over 120,000 people from their homes and into internment camps¹.

Japanese Americans eventually achieved redress in the form of an official apology, indivdual payments, and a public education fund when President Reagan signed the Civil Liberties Act of 1988, but this was a hard-won consolation.

Despite precedent, Arab/Muslim Americans are experiencing the same predjudice that lead to such a huge government mistake.

Japanese Latin Americans are also fighting for redress. People of Japanese descent living in Latin America where forced into internment camps, but after all was said and done, received no redress.

For USC Nikkei, this is the time to educate, critique, and remember these major events in Japanese American history and their after-effects. This is also a time to highlight other movements similar to the battle Japanese Americans were able to win.

References
1. www.dayofremembrance.org

Week of Remembrance Events

2009

February 12-22

Thursday, February 12th: Guided Tour of the Japanese American National Museum and Dinner in Little Tokyo. Meet at 5:00pm at EVK.
Monday, February 16th: UCLA Nikkei Student Union Culture Night and Dinner in Westwood. Meet at 5:00pm at EVK.
Thursday, February 19th: Guest Speaker Series Featuring George Takei!* 7:00-8:00pm, Location: SGM 123. Free food!
Friday, February 20th - Sunday, February 22nd: Trip to the Manzanar National Historic Site. Join us for a tour, service project, and a workshop at the former site of a World War II internment camp.

*George Takei's appearance is subject to professional commitments.

2008

February 16-23

Saturday: Nikkei for Civil Right and Redress (NCRR) DOR program at the Japanese American National Museum (JANM) in Little Tokyo
Monday: UCLA Nikkei Student Union Culture Night- "This Movement of Ours"
Tuesday: "Voice Moves: Building Community in Creative Expression" workshop led by Traci Kato-Kiriyama
Thursday: Film screening of Tadashi Nakamura's "Pilgrimage"
Saturday: Trip to JANM

For a detailed account of the events, download the January-March issue of the newsletter here.

Melissa Machida headed the DOR programming for this year.

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