An artifact display related to the Japanese American experience during World War II at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History Day of Remembrance event on Feb. 19. Photo courtesy of Noriko Sanefuji
A museum representative will be at July’s JACL National Convention to take a look at photos of objects that could potentially be included in the special exhibition.
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Feb. 19, 2017, marks the 75th anniversary of the signing of Executive Order 9066, a three-page document signed by President Franklin D. Roosevelt that adversely affected the lives of Americans of Japanese ancestry forever.
To commemorate this important historical event, the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History will feature a special exhibition that will open on the Day of Remembrance in February 2017 and remain accessible until November 2017. It is projected to reach more than 3 million visitors in the museum and millions more online.
The Smithsonian will show how this document shaped the lives of Japanese Americans during World War II and continues to resonate throughout the community today. The display will feature images and objects from the museum’s actively growing Japanese American history collection.
Curators are looking forward to working with the Japanese American community in the search for new collection acquisitions to contribute to the museum’s longstanding effort to document their history.
In doing so, it is seeking artifacts and documents that capture the Japanese American camp experience — objects made and used in camp, documents and photos. Please help the Smithsonian tell this story by sharing your stories and voices behind the camp walls.
A Smithsonian representative will be attending the JACL National Convention in Las Vegas in July. Attendees are encouraged to voice their stories and bring a photo of an object that might be donated to the museum.
Together, we can ensure that Japanese American history and perspectives are documented, shared and appreciated as part of the American Experience.
For more information, please contact americanhistoryapacollections@si.edu.
