JANM Statement on the 2026 Day of Remembrance

Editors please note: JANM’s Pavilion is closed for renovation; programs will continue on the JANM campus and at other locations at janm.org/OnTheGo. 

LOS ANGELES, CA – Today the Japanese American National Museum (JANM) commemorates the Day of Remembrance—a day that celebrates the activism and resilience of the Japanese American community and connects the racial injustices of 1942 to today with the hope that what happened to our community back then never happens to another community again. 

In 1942, over 125,000 Japanese Americans were unjustly incarcerated in America’s concentration camps during World War II. Japanese immigrants and US citizens alike were deprived of their civil rights and due process. When the war ended, they returned to their old neighborhoods or established themselves in new communities, but they continued to fight their own personal wars against intergenerational trauma, segregation, discrimination, and racism. Sadly, there is an absolute parallel between what happened then and what’s happening today to immigrant communities throughout the nation, and what was once hope has now transformed into reality because of the current threats to democracy, social justice, dignity, and civil rights.

This Day of Remembrance brings those stories to the forefront of the American public’s consciousness through programs and events across the country. On this Day of Remembrance, JANM will not be silent while the rights of other individuals are violated. We proudly support all immigrant communities because we are children of immigrants. We will use the echoes of history to confront contemporary threats to democracy and human dignity, and continue to be a voice for social justice, civil rights, and democracy.

William T Fujioka

Chair, JANM Board of Trustees

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