LOS ANGELES — On June 27, the Manzanar Committee repudiated the ruling by the Supreme Court of the United States in Trump v. Hawai’i, lifting the injunction on President Donald Trump’s travel ban. “We are outraged by the decision of the Supreme Court,” said Manzanar Committee Co-Chair Bruce Embrey. “This travel ban is fundamentally unconstitutional,... Continue Reading →
Manzanar Committee’s Bruce Embrey At 46th Annual Manzanar Pilgrimage: “Remembering Is Not Passive. We Must Act On Our Memories”
The following are Manzanar Committee Co-Chair Bruce Embrey’s closing remarks at the 46th Annual Manzanar Pilgrimage, held on April 25, 2015, at the Manzanar National Historic Site. Today, we stand here, at this National Historic Site, on the very land that was once an American concentration camp. We stand here today having had Presidents apologize... Continue Reading →
Karen Korematsu To Speak At 44th Annual Manzanar Pilgrimage
PILGRIMAGE: Bus transportation from Los Angeles is still available, but seats are going fast. LOS ANGELES — Karen Korematsu, co-founder of the Fred T. Korematsu Institute for Civil Rights and Education, will be the featured speaker at the 44th Annual Manzanar Pilgrimage, sponsored by the Manzanar Committee, scheduled for noon PDT on Saturday, April 27,... Continue Reading →
National Defense Authorization Act: Nikkei Community Must Redouble Efforts To Defend Constitutional Rights
by Bruce Embrey LOS ANGELES — President Obama signed the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) on December 31, 2011, allowing indefinite detention without charge or trial to be codified into law. As a result, Americans citizens and others could be subjected to imprisonment without ever being charged or convicted of a crime. This provision of... Continue Reading →
Manzanar Committee Statement On The Passing Of Civil Rights Champion Gordon K. Hirabayashi
LOS ANGELES — The Los Angeles-based Manzanar Committee extends its deepest sympathies to the family of Gordon Kiyoshi Hirabayashi, 93, a hero in the Japanese American community, who died on January 2, 2012, in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. A native of Auburn, Washington (just northeast of Tacoma), Hirabayashi defied Executive Order 9066, the United States Government’s... Continue Reading →
Mako Nakagawa Delivers Keynote Address At 42nd Annual Manzanar Pilgrimage
The following is the text of the keynote address delivered at the 42nd Annual Manzanar Pilgrimage on April 30, 2011, by Mako Nakagawa. Good afternoon. I am very pleased to be able to join you on this wonderful occasion. We stand here today on sacred ground. If we listen, we can hear the cries of... Continue Reading →
Lessons From Japanese American Internment Can Be Taught At Any Time
The following is a letter from Karen Korematsu, Co-Founder of the Fred T. Korematsu Institute For Civil Rights and Education. It was intended to be read during the 42nd Annual Manzanar Pilgrimage, held on April 30, 2011, where her father was honored. However, the letter was not received in time. As such, we are publishing... Continue Reading →
Two Views On Frank Seishi Emi: A True American Hero
LOS ANGELES — Last April, at the Manzanar At Dusk program that follows the annual Manzanar Pilgrimage, when participants broke up into small groups to share their stories and insights about Manzanar, the Japanese American Internment experience, and how it remains relevant today, one thing struck me... For the first time in the history of... Continue Reading →