Category: In memoriam
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Remembering Roger Daniels
Roger Daniels passed away on December 9th, shortly after celebrating his 95th birthday. Daniels was regarded by many to be the pre-eminent historian of his generation on the Japanese American…
Remembering Norm Mineta
We mourn the passing of Secretary Norm Mineta. Densho Director Tom Ikeda remembers him for his impressive political career, as an important member of the Japanese American community, and as…
A Tribute to Fred Shiosaki’s Remarkable Legacy
Fred Shiosaki was a remarkable man who led a remarkable life. We are deeply saddened to learn that he recently passed away — but incredibly grateful for the legacy he…
In Memoriam: A Tribute to Lane Ryo Hirabayashi
Lane Ryo Hirabayashi was an innovator in the field of Asian American Studies, a historian and storyteller who dedicated his life to deepening public knowledge of Japanese American WWII incarceration,…
What #YuriTaughtMe: Lessons from Yuri Kochiyama on Her 98th Birthday
To celebrate what would have been Yuri Kochiyama‘s 98th birthday, we asked next-gen Nikkei artists and activists to share what they’ve learned from Yuri’s revolutionary life — and how they…
Minoru Yasui: Celebrating a Legacy of Civil Rights Activism
Minoru “Min” Yasui was one of four Japanese Americans who fought the legality of exclusion and/or detention during World War II all the way to the Supreme Court. While he…
Notable Niseis and Allies Who Would’ve Celebrated Their 100th Birthdays in 2016
By Brian Niiya, Densho Content Director I had intended to contribute to this blog a lot more, and one of the types of pieces I hoped to do were essays on…
Remembering Uncle Bob and Charlie
This weekend, Seattle lost two pioneering figures in the city’s civil rights history, Robert Santos and Charles Z. Smith. Densho Executive Director Tom Ikeda pays tribute to them both. What…
Dispatch from the Minidoka Pilgrimage: Honoring the Legacy of Hunt High School Principal Jerome T. Light
In this special report from the annual pilgrimage to the site of the Minidoka concentration camp, Dr. Eugene H. Freund writes about a presentation on Hunt High School principal Jerome T. Light….
On Yuri Kochiyama’s 95th Birthday, 5 Enduring Quotes to Celebrate With
Happy birthday, Yuri! Yuri Kochiyama, who passed away in 2014, would have celebrated her 95th birthday today. (I’d like to imagine the K-Bears are throwing her a party somewhere, but…
Remembering Don Nakanishi
By Brian Niiya, Densho Content Director We’ve lost one of the pioneering figures in Asian American studies with the passing of Don Nakanishi yesterday at age 66.
Memories of Toshiko Takaezu
Toshiko Takaezu (1922-2011) was one of America’s foremost ceramic artists and a highly regarded teacher of ceramics. She was credited with being one of the key figures in the mid-century…
Jim Hirabayashi (1926-2012)
Jim Hirabayashi, who passed away peacefully last week at age 85, lived a remarkable life filled with accomplishment and governed by principle, a word everyone who knew him seemed to…