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Densho’s Plan to Protect At-Risk Records in National Archives Facilities
Since the publication of our article, Densho Opposes Plans to Close National Archives Facilities in Chicago and San Bruno, there has been significant community and legislative action taken to stop…
Densho responds to racist logic of incarcerating Chinese Americans
Densho unequivocally condemns recent statements made on the podcast Timcast IRL suggesting that Chinese Americans should be incarcerated in the event of a war between China and the U.S. On…
Densho Opposes Plans to Close National Archives Facilities in Chicago and San Bruno
— Densho opposes the National Archives and Records Administration’s (NARA’s) announced plans to close its facilities in Chicago, IL, and San Bruno, CA. The closures would threaten regional access to…
What Social Studies Standards Reveal About How and Why We Teach History
Densho Executive Director Naomi Ostwald Kawamura reflects on what it means to teach history responsibly, as debates over social studies standards—including recent proposed changes to Texas’s curriculum—reveal that how we…
Texas Students Deserve Honest History
In this conversation, Densho’s Senior Development and Communications Manager Jennifer Noji talks with Courtney Wai, Densho’s Education and Public Programs Manager, and Akeela Kongdara, Senior Programs Associate of Asian Texans…
A Minidoka Descendant Speaks Out to Say Our History Won’t Be Erased
On August 23, people across the country came together for a day of action to Protect Every Park, standing united against attempts to erase marginalized histories like Japanese American WWII…
When History Is Rewritten and Suppressed, Democracy Is at Risk
In recent weeks, the Smithsonian museums have come under political review and critique. Some of the nation’s most visible historical institutions are being pressured to change how U.S. history is…
A Poston Survivor Speaks Out To Say “Stop Repeating History!”
Last month, we joined a special gathering of the Seattle Japanese American community hosted by Tsuru for Solidarity. Around 150 people came together to reflect on the connections between the…
Densho’s Commitment to Rejecting Censorship and Preserving Truth in the Archives
At Densho, we know what it means to have your history distorted or silenced. Our organization was founded to ensure that the stories of Japanese Americans, especially those forcibly removed…
The Rise and Threats of Digital Erasure in Public Memory
Over the last week, the U.S. Army quietly removed and republished its webpage on the 442nd Regimental Combat Team (RCT), the famed all-Japanese American unit that became one of the…
Resources for Critical Conversations about the History that Brought Us Here
In light of the election results, Densho is more determined than ever to continue our historical and educational work in pursuit of equal justice for all. As we come out…
The National Archives Is Whitewashing “Ugly” Histories Like Japanese American Incarceration
The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) is probably not a household name for most Americans. This federal agency oversees billions of documents, from the Declaration of Independence to electronic…
The Alien Enemies Act Paved the Way for Japanese American Incarceration. Let’s Keep It in the Past.
At a rally in Aurora, Colorado last week, former president and 2024 Republican nominee Donald Trump made a disturbing promise to round up and deport millions of immigrants if elected….
Take Action to Stop the Fence at Tule Lake!
Tule Lake is under threat AGAIN. Despite more than a decade of strong opposition from camp survivors and descendants, the Federal Aviation Administration and Modoc County are renewing their attempts…
Memorializing a Shared History Between Native and Japanese American Communities at Fort Lincoln
In September, I had the privilege of attending the ground blessing ceremony for the Snow Country Prison Japanese American Internment Memorial on the campus of United Tribes Technical College (UTTC)…
Author Maggie Tokuda-Hall Takes a Stand Against Censorship and the “Deeply American Tradition of Racism”
Earlier this month, author Maggie Tokuda-Hall received a troubling offer from publishing giant Scholastic: they would license Love in the Library, her acclaimed children’s book based on her grandparents’ experiences…
Densho’s Public Comments on the Lava Ridge Wind Project
The proposed Lava Ridge Wind Project adjacent to the Minidoka National Historic Site would disrupt the site’s historic significance to survivors of WWII incarceration and their descendants. Densho submitted public…
The Proposed Lava Ridge Wind Farm at Minidoka Is Part of a Larger—and Ongoing—Pattern of Erasing Marginalized Histories
A proposal to build a 76,000-acre wind farm surrounding the former Minidoka concentration camp threatens to erase the site’s historic legacy. The Bureau of Land Management is accepting public comments…
Hey Muskego-Norway School Board, Your White Fragility is Showing
Julie Otsuka’s novel, When the Emperor Was Divine, has received numerous distinctions: an Alex Award from the American Library Association; a Literature Award from the Asian/Pacific American Librarians Association, and…
We Need Critical Race Theory in our Schools Now More Than Ever
Here at Densho we talk a lot about the importance of preserving the history of WWII Japanese American incarceration. But we are well aware that this one moment in history…
Tell Congress to Pass the Japanese American Confinement Education Act
Over the past fifteen years, the Japanese American Confinement Sites (JACS) federal grant program has funded 268 projects increasing public knowledge about Japanese American WWII incarceration. But that funding is…
Anti-Asian Violence Isn’t Un-American. It’s a Racist Tradition That Goes Back Over 150 Years.
In the wake of the heinous murders in Atlanta and a sharp uptick in anti-Asian hate crimes, Congress held its first hearings on discrimination against Asians in more than 30 years. Among…
Photo Essay: Day of Remembrance Caravan from Puyallup to Northwest Detention Center
This past weekend, we joined our friends at Tsuru for Solidarity for a Day of Remembrance caravan from the Puyallup Fairgrounds to Tacoma’s Northwest Detention Center. About 60 cars bearing…
Someone Tell Rep. Clay Higgins that Being Mad about the Election Results Is Not the Same Thing as Being in a Concentration Camp
Last week, Louisiana congressman Clay Higgins upped the ante on GOP claims that the recent presidential election was “stolen” by voter fraud, going so far as to compare it to…