“Frank was among the first Trustees for JANM before our public opening in 1992 and served as a Governor twice. Frank believed in our mission to preserve and share the Japanese American story with each new generation. Worried that the Japanese American World War II experience would be forgotten, Frank generously donated $1 million to JANM to purchase video equipment and to create an endowed fund that established the Frank H. Watase Media Arts Center in 1999.”

“Judge Okamoto’s personal story is remarkable. The 10th child and sixth son born in an American concentration camp during World War II, he grew up in a family in which all six of his older brothers served in the military. His two eldest brothers were members of the famed 442nd Regimental Combat Team during World War II.”

The Japanese American National Museum (JANM) extends its heartfelt congratulations to its Trustee, Chair Emeritus, and founding member, George Takei, whose graphic novel, They Called Us Enemy, has been recognized with a 2020 American Book Award by the Before Columbus Foundation.

An expanded version is now available at the JANM Store.

The JANM Education Unit is excited to announce the launch of virtual visits! In the spirit of JANM’s popular on-site tours and field-trips, virtual visits animate the museum’s mission to promote understanding and appreciation of America’s ethnic and cultural diversity by sharing the Japanese American experience.

Virtual visits use video conferencing technology to engage visitors in deep discussions surrounding JANM’s collection. With options for student groups in grades 1-12, these innovative virtual visits will enhance any distance learning curriculum through interaction and student-driven exploration. Virtual visits are also available for college and adult groups.

Wakako Yamauchi, Momo Nagano, and Mary Nomura were three teenaged girls—American citizens living in Los Angeles in 1942—when they were sent to concentration camps in remote parts of the country. Behind guard towers and barbed wire, their creative spirits remained undaunted—their lives fortified by art, music, and literature. Words, Weavings & Songs (2002) explores Yamauchi, Nagano, and Nomura’s bold lives and artistic legacies.

Catch up on this Q&A with the grandchildren of Wakako Yamauchi, Momo Nagano, and Mary Nomura, the subjects of Words, Weavings & Songs (2002). Alyctra Matsushita, Hana van der Steur, and Erin Nomura Marquez, who were all included in the documentary, talked about their grandmothers and their impacts on the Japanese American community and beyond. They were also joined by Mary Kageyama Nomura, the Songbird of Manzanar herself, in a special appearance on the eve of her 95th birthday.

Watch JANM staff, film producers, and members of the University of Pennsylvania’s program in Asian American Studies discuss and explore the past, present, and future of anti-Asian bias in America and how we can stand together for racial justice and equality for all.

9066 to 9/11 is available on DVD at the JANM Store.

The winners of the 7th Annual Imagine Little Tokyo Short Story Contest were presented in a virtual celebration and dramatic readings of the winning stories by actors Derek Mio, Tamlyn Tomita, and Eijiro Ozaki on July 23, 2020. Brian Niiya (Adult category), Kelsey Iino (Youth), and Makiko Nakasone (Japanese language) represented their respective judges panels to present remarks and introduce the winners—James Fujita, Onassa Sun, and Junzo Arai. The event was emceed by Marilyn Tokuda and included remarks by Little Tokyo Historical Society President Michael Okamura and a short video about Little Tokyo by Steve Nagano.

Atomic Cafe’s life and legacy is highlighted in a new film Atomic Cafe: The Noisiest Corner in J-Town by Tadashi Nakamura and Akira Boch that explores its many sides—from the 1940s opening to its last days on First Street. Nancy Sekizawa aka “Atomic Nancy,” her daughter and artist Zen Sekizawa, and Remy De La Peza joined Nakamura and Boch for a conversation in celebration of the Atomic Café on September 27, 2020.

Learn about Stan Yogi and his story of being Japanese American and gay as he struggles with the intersection between those two identities leaving him never feeling completely at home in either space.

There are 14 Nikkei sports stories published so far in the More Than a Game: Nikkei Sports special series, ranging from fishing to baseball, horse racing to basketball, and more. Read the stories, then help us determine the Nima-kai community favorite.

Share your Nikkei sports story! Write about yourself; your favorite Nikkei athlete, team, or coach; or your experience as a fan rooting for Nikkei and Japanese athletes. Submissions deadline: Saturday, October 31, 6 p.m. (PDT)

Kagoshima 9066 Westridge, cowritten by Frank Sata and Naomi Hirahara, traces the life of Sata’s father, J.T. Sata, through his photographs, sketches, paintings, and sculptures. A man committed to a life of art—not necessarily as a profession, J.T. emigrated to America from Kagoshima in 1918. In Los Angeles, he was active with the Issei photo community while working odd jobs. During World War II, J.T., his wife, Yoshie, and Frank were incarcerated at Santa Anita Assembly Center and the concentration camps in Jerome, Arkansas, and Gila River, Arizona. The book will be available at janmstore.com soon.

In March 1946, an important moment in jazz history took place when Miles Davis and Charlie Parker, two all-time jazz greats, performed together at the Finale Club in Bronzeville/Little Tokyo. During WWII, forced removal of Japanese Americans into concentration camps left Little Tokyo largely empty. African Americans coming West for defense jobs moved into Little Tokyo—one of the only neighborhoods without restricting housing covenants. Bronzeville was born.

Gather with us in the comfort of your own home to share tea and conversation! We will be writing letters of solidarity to Little Tokyo seniors or special elders in our lives and spending some time in personal reflection. Prompts will be provided by special guests and traci kato-kiriyama, former Little Tokyo +LAB Artist-in-Residence at JANM. Make yourself a cup of tea, get comfortable, and join us online for this interactive program! All ages are welcome to participate.

Go on a journey through Little Tokyo’s haunted past and present with a special, virtual guided tour of historical buildings, ghostly tales, and paranormal experiences in this over 100-year-old historic and cultural neighborhood. Join Little Tokyo Historical Society ghost reporter, Bill Watanabe, as he walks us through four unique spots with reported paranormal activity in the neighborhood and is joined by eyewitnesses of these eerie events.

This program is presented in partnership with Little Tokyo Historical Society, Little Tokyo Community Council, and Visual Communications, as part of Haunted Little Tokyo 2020.

Discover Nikkei is JANM’s community-based web project sharing stories and the experiences of Nikkei around the world. “Nima” are members of the Discover Nikkei online community. Hailing from all around the world, they each bring unique experiences and perspectives to the site’s rich archive of stories.

We are thrilled to be launching “Nima Voices,” a series where we uplift our Nima through brief, but enlightening, interviews! In this inaugural episode, hear from Discover Nikkei contributor Chuck Tasaka—who writes about Japanese Canadian experiences before, during, and after WWII—as he is interviewed by guest host—actor and comedian Kyle Mizono.

Written by Shirley Ann Higuchi. Foreword by Irene Hirano Inouye. Afterword by Tom Brokaw.

As children, Shirley Ann Higuchi and her brothers knew Heart Mountain only as the place their parents met, imagining it as a great Stardust Ballroom in rural Wyoming. As they grew older, they would come to recognize the name as a source of great sadness and shame for their older family members, part of the generation of Japanese Americans forced into the hastily built concentration camp in the aftermath of Executive Order 9066.

Not a current member? Join or renew today!

The JANM Store’s new catalog is full of unique, cultural gifts—including many new JANM exclusives, Year of the Ox items, books and DVDs, jewelry, clothing, past favorites, and more.

Start your holiday shopping (or give a gift to yourself) while also supporting JANM!

Not a current member? Join or renew today!

Please join the Japanese American Confinement Sites Consortium (JACSC) for the first virtual JACSC education conference.

Founded on the idea that we are stronger together than on our own, JACSC aims to bring together practitioners in preservation, education, and advocacy related to the Japanese American experience. This free opportunity includes educational sessions and inspiring conversations with our national community of thought leaders and experts, empowering attendees to stay connected in these challenging times, transform their fields, and be agents for social change. Join us for one session, or all weekend!

We’ve partnered with The 2020 Project on a mission to register 100,000 Asian American and Pacific Islanders to vote. We are doing this by raising awareness, providing education, and giving a space for civic engagement on the local, regional, and national scale. Voter participation for Asian Americans is especially low for age range 18-34. The 2020 Project hopes to close that gap and have more representation reflected in policy change and implementation!