Statement by the JANM Board of Trustees on the Defense of History, Democracy, and Civil Rights

The Japanese American National Museum (JANM) was founded by the Japanese American community as a beacon for civil rights and democracy, ensuring that the injustices faced by Japanese Americans during World War II are never repeated against any other group. Our Museum stands as a place of memory, truth, and justice, where history is not only preserved but actively used to confront contemporary threats to democracy and human dignity. We are deeply troubled by the erosion of civil rights as evidenced in the attacks on birthright citizenship, the rescission of workplace protections for marginalized communities, the rollbacks on protections for immigrants including mass incarceration and deportations, the resurgence of actions under the Alien Enemies Act, and the systematic dismantling of diversity and other initiatives. We cannot remain silent while these policies attempt to strip people of their humanity and dignity and reverse course on our nation’s journey towards a more just and equitable future.

Honoring Our History, Families, and Mission

JANM was built to honor our families, our ancestors, and the hard-fought lessons of history—lessons that are now being dangerously ignored. The very forces that led to the mass incarceration of Japanese Americans during World War II—racism, xenophobia, and authoritarianism—are resurfacing under the guise of national security, immigration enforcement, and the rejection of diversity, equity, and inclusion. We are deeply committed to our mission of preserving this history, building bridges across communities and divides, and ensuring that America remains a nation where all people can thrive.

As an institution that tells the stories of untold histories, we celebrate diverse voices and perspectives because they matter. Despite the Administration’s attempt at erasure, we will continue to celebrate Day of Remembrance, Black History Month, Hispanic Heritage Month, Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage Month, Holocaust Remembrance Day, Pride Month, and other critical commemorations that recognize the contributions and struggles of communities across America and the hard-won protections for women, historically marginalized communities, LGBTQ+ individuals, and people with disabilities.

We also recognize that the Japanese American community is not monolithic—we are multiracial, multiethnic, multicultural and multigenerational, with diverse identities across gender, sexuality, religion, and ability. We will continue to stand against discrimination in all its forms. JANM remains committed to being a place of refuge, a safe space where all people are welcome to be themselves.

Rejecting Mass Incarceration and Deportations

JANM strongly denounces the January 29, 2025, presidential memorandum directing the construction of a migrant concentration camp at Guantánamo Bay, with the capacity to detain 30,000 immigrants. The use of national security rhetoric to justify mass detention echoes the same logic that led to the forced removal and incarceration of over 125,000 Japanese Americans—our parents, grandparents and extended families—under Executive Order 9066. We know too well the devastating consequences of such action—families torn apart, livelihoods destroyed, and multigenerational trauma inflicted on a community for decades.

We question the policy to invoke the Alien Enemies Act of 1798 to carry out mass deportations without due process, a policy historically used to target marginalized communities. Originally enacted for wartime enemy deportations, this law was used in 1941 by President Roosevelt to arrest and detain Japanese, German, and Italian citizens without due process. It later paved the way for Executive Order 9066, which led to the mass incarceration of over 125,000 individuals of Japanese heritage—more than two-thirds of whom were American-born citizens. This dangerous new direction echoes past injustices, including the Chinese Exclusion Act, Alien Land Laws, and World War II incarceration policies, emphasizing that the lessons of history must not be ignored.

Defending Birthright Citizenship

JANM rejects the unconstitutional executive order to end birthright citizenship, a fundamental
right guaranteed by the 14th Amendment of the US Constitution. Japanese Americans understand what is at stake—many of our ancestors were denied citizenship under racist exclusion laws, while our Nisei (second generation) were born into a country that stripped their parents of legal rights and seized their property. Despite this injustice, many Nisei courageously served in the US military, fighting for our freedom abroad, even as their families were incarcerated behind barbed wire in America’s concentration camps. This attempt to redefine legal status today is as fragile and dangerous as it was in 1942. We stand with all immigrant families and communities at risk and will continue to fight for the rights of all people to be recognized as full members of society.

Protecting Democracy and Rule of Law

JANM joins nonprofit organizations across the country in opposing attempts by the Administration to freeze federal funds in violation of Congressional authority and the Impoundment Acts. We recognize that many pressing issues affect our community that extend beyond JANM’s mission, and that is why we have the Daniel K. Inouye National Center for the Preservation of Democracy (Democracy Center). The Democracy Center is a space for civic dialogue, where people of all backgrounds and perspectives can discuss and defend American democratic principles—checks and balances, the Constitution, and the rule of law.

Our Commitment to Action

At JANM, we do more than preserve history—we carry its lessons forward. We will remain vigilant and continue to speak out against policies that erode civil rights, deny people their humanity, and attempt to undo decades of progress toward justice, equity, and inclusion.

We reaffirm our founding purpose: to tell our stories, to stand up for the truth about history, to serve as a bridge across communities and divides, to stand against discrimination and hate, and to ensure that no community is ever again subjected to the injustices that Japanese Americans faced. In doing so, we honor our past and fulfill our responsibility today and into the future.

JANM Board of Trustees
February 2025