LOS ANGELES — More than seven decades after Executive Order 9066 was issued by President Franklin D. Roosevelt on Feb 19, 1942, the infamous action continues to affect generations of Japanese Americans. As an acknowledgement of this impact, the theme of the 2014 Los Angeles Day of Remembrance is “Generations Speak Out: Impacts of E.O. 9066.”
The Los Angeles DOR commemoration is set to take place on Saturday, Feb. 15, at the Japanese American National Museum from 2-4 p.m., followed by a reception catered by Carrie Morita’s Community Caterers.
Central to this year’s program will be performances by individuals representing their respective generation.
Tribute will be paid to the Issei generation with a reading by Akemi Kikumura Yano. Based on extensive interviews of her mother, Yano created this tribute for the DOR program.
Hiroshi Kashiwagi, a Nisei author from the Bay Area, will share his testimony presented to the 1981 Commission on the Wartime Relocation and Internment of Civilians about the impact of the wartime incarceration on his life. Velina Houston, a Shin-Nisei playwright, will also present her original poetry about her incarceration experience.
Representatives of the Sansei and Yonsei generations will share their connections to the camp experience and the impact on their lives by way of their parents’ and grandparents’ influence and stories. Performance artists Jude Narita and Sean Miura will present their original pieces.
“The Day of Remembrance committee is grateful to the artists who have generously created works for this year’s DOR program,” said Suzy Katsuda, NCRR representative. “We encourage the community to come out to support the artists and this very important annual commemoration.”
The DOR program is sponsored by JANM, the Japanese American Citizens League’s Pacific Southwest District, the Manzanar Committee and Nikkei for Civl Rights & Redress.
The event is co-sponsored by community organizations including the Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance, Korean Immigrant Workers Advocates, Little Tokyo Service Center, Muslim Public Affairs Council, Pilipino Workers Center and the Shura Council of Southern California.
For more information, contact the NCRR at (213) 284-0336 or JACL PSW at (213) 626-4471.
Originally published on February 7, 2014
