Ireicho room book and sotobas

Special Display

Ireichō

Stamping Instructions

The Ireichō contains the first comprehensive listing of over 125,000 persons of Japanese ancestry who were incarcerated in US Army, Department of Justice, Wartime Civil Control Administration, and War Relocation Authority camps. 

You are invited to view and stamp the names and use a special Japanese hanko (a stamp or seal) to leave a mark for each person in the Ireichō as a way to honor those incarcerated during World War II. Community participation will “activate” it and rectify the historical record by correcting misspelled names or revealing names that may have been omitted from the record. The Ireichō will be on display until September 23, 2023.

Directions for Stamping the Ireichō

All visitors are welcome to stamp the Ireichō. You do not have to be a former incarceree, a relative, or a descendant of a former incarceree to stamp the book. We encourage you to stamp your name, your family member(s) name(s), a friend’s name, or the name of an honorary incarceree at the end of the book.

  1. Make a reservation by clicking on the button below. Reservations are available in 15 minute time slots. Each party can only stamp up to six names. 

    Camp survivors and those with special circumstances can contact the Development office at 213.830.5646 or email development@janm.org to arrange a time to stamp your name.
     
  2. When filling out the reservation, please provide the names and dates of birth for the people you are stamping so that JANM can prepare for your visit. If you do not have six specific individuals, please type “NA” in the name fields.
     
  3. Upon arrival at JANM, you will check in at the front desk and receive a sticker indicating your access to the Ireichō. You and your accompanying guests will be directed to the Ireichō display to fill out a card, locate the names, and stamp the names in the book. Please note while stamping the Ireichō is free, it does not include admission to the Museum.

RSVP NOW

 

If you have questions, please check the Frequently Asked Questions page.

Stamping Instructions

October 11, 2022 - September 24, 2023

Japanese American National Museum

100 North Central Avenue

Los Angeles, CA 90012

Reservations are required at the RSVP link above.

Stamping Instructions

Irei: National Monument for the WWII Japanese American Incarceration is a multi-faceted project to address the erasure of the identities of individuals of Japanese ancestry who experienced wartime incarceration and to expand the concept of what monument is through three distinct, interlinking elements: a sacred book of names as a monument (Ireichō), a website as a monument (Ireizō), and light sculptures as monuments (Ireihi).

The project is funded by the Mellon Foundation and led by Duncan Ryuken Williams, co-curator of Sutra and Bible: Faith and the Japanese American World War II Incarceration at JANM, professor of American Studies and Ethnicity, chair of the USC School of Religion, and director of the USC Shinso Ito Center for Japanese Religions and Culture, and Project Creative Director, Sunyoung Lee. 

The Ireichō contains the first comprehensive listing of over 125,000 persons of Japanese ancestry who were incarcerated in US Army, Department of Justice, Wartime Civil Control Administration, and War Relocation Authority camps. Embedded into the very materiality of the Ireichō are special ceramic pieces made from soil collected by the project from seventy-five former incarceration sites from Alaska to Hawai‘i, Arkansas to California, and from almost every other region of the United States.

The Ireizō lists those names online at ireizo.com. Visitors can search for the person’s name by name, birth year, or camp. 

Stamping of the Ireichō will require a reservation. All visitors are welcome to stamp the Ireichō. Each group may stamp up a total of up to six names per reservation. You do not have to be a former incarceree, a relative, or a descendant of a former incarceree to stamp the book. 

When filling out the reservation, please provide the names and dates of birth for the people you are stamping so that JANM can prepare for your visit. If you do not have six specific individuals, please type “NA” in the name fields. 

Camp survivors and those with special circumstances can contact the Development office at 213.830.5646 or email development@janm.org to arrange a time to stamp your name.

Visit the Stamping Instructions page for information on how to make a reservation to stamp the Ireicho book.

Reservations are required at the RSVP link above.

#Ireicho

Stamping Instructions

RSVP NOW

October 11, 2022 - September 24, 2023

Japanese American National Museum

100 North Central Avenue

Los Angeles, CA 90012

Reservations are required at the RSVP link above.

Stamping Instructions

Irei: National Monument for the WWII Japanese American Incarceration is a multi-faceted project to address the erasure of the identities of individuals of Japanese ancestry who experienced wartime incarceration and to expand the concept of what monument is through three distinct, interlinking elements: a sacred book of names as a monument (Ireichō), a website as a monument (Ireizō), and light sculptures as monuments (Ireihi).

The project is funded by the Mellon Foundation and led by Duncan Ryuken Williams, co-curator of Sutra and Bible: Faith and the Japanese American World War II Incarceration at JANM, professor of American Studies and Ethnicity, chair of the USC School of Religion, and director of the USC Shinso Ito Center for Japanese Religions and Culture, and Project Creative Director, Sunyoung Lee. 

The Ireichō contains the first comprehensive listing of over 125,000 persons of Japanese ancestry who were incarcerated in US Army, Department of Justice, Wartime Civil Control Administration, and War Relocation Authority camps. Embedded into the very materiality of the Ireichō are special ceramic pieces made from soil collected by the project from seventy-five former incarceration sites from Alaska to Hawai‘i, Arkansas to California, and from almost every other region of the United States.

The Ireizō lists those names online at ireizo.com. Visitors can search for the person’s name by name, birth year, or camp. 

Stamping of the Ireichō will require a reservation. All visitors are welcome to stamp the Ireichō. Each group may stamp up a total of up to six names per reservation. You do not have to be a former incarceree, a relative, or a descendant of a former incarceree to stamp the book. 

When filling out the reservation, please provide the names and dates of birth for the people you are stamping so that JANM can prepare for your visit. If you do not have six specific individuals, please type “NA” in the name fields. 

Camp survivors and those with special circumstances can contact the Development office at 213.830.5646 or email development@janm.org to arrange a time to stamp your name.

Visit the Stamping Instructions page for information on how to make a reservation to stamp the Ireicho book.

Reservations are required at the RSVP link above.

#Ireicho

Ireichō Slideshow

The Ireichō opened to a page of incarcerees names

The Ireichō opened to a page of incarcerees names

The Ireichō book and sotoba

The Ireichō book and sotoba

The Ireichō opened to a page of incarcerees’ names

The Ireichō opened to a page of incarcerees’ names

The Ireichō and sotaba from seventy-five camps

The Ireichō and sotaba from seventy-five camps

Woman hand stamping under a relative’s name in the Ireicho book

A woman stamps under a family member’s name in the Ireichō.

Photo by Mike Palma

Visitors looking at sotabas

Visitors looking at the sotaba

The Ireichō room outside walls

The Ireichō room

Signage on the exterior of the Ireichō room

Signage on the exterior of the Ireichō room

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