Seattle Area Day of Remembrance Events 2025
Bellevue College – To Repair 修理
Tuesday, January 31, 2:30 – 3:30 pm
Room D106, Bellevue College, Bellevue
Artist Erin Shigaki discusses her work including To Repair 修理 where she and her friend Chris Rabb explore their respective Japanese American and African American histories, finding common ground and building solidarity. Shigaki’s work was recently displayed at the Wing Luke Museum as part of “Resisters: Legacy of Movement from Japanese American Incarceration” and her “Never Again is Now” persists in the Bellevue College courtyard on the THIRD anniversary of the defacement.
Refreshments will be served. Attend in-person OR via Zoom. Contact Sunny for more information or Zoom link: apistudents-ac@bellevuecollege.edu
Puyallup Valley JACL – Day of Remembrance at the Remembrance Gallery
Saturday, February 8, 10:00am – Doors open; 10:30am – Program starts, 11:00am -12:00pm – Remembrance Gallery open (20 visitors at a time)
Expo Hall, Washington State Fairgrounds, Puyallup
Commemorate the 83rd anniversary of the signing of EO 9066 that authorized the US Army to remove all persons of Japanese descent from the West Coast in 1942 without charge or trial. Visit the newly opened Remembrance Gallery documenting the nearly 8,000 people detained in horse stalls, livestock exhibition halls, and tarpaper barracks on the Puyallup Fairgrounds in 1942. Learn how history may be repeating today. The Puyallup Valley JACL Day Of Remembrance event will include speakers, a procession to the Remembrance Gallery, viewing of the Silent Fair video, and more. Co-Co-Sponsored by: Densho, Minidoka Pilgrimage Planning Committee, Puyallup Valley JACL, Seattle JACL, Tsuru for Solidarity. For details, please visit https://puyallupvalleyjacl.org/gallery/gallery-events/
Minidoka Pilgrimage Planning Committee – Japanese American Day of Remembrance: Film Screening and Fundraiser
Sunday, February 16, 1:00pm – 4:00pm
Pigott Auditorium, Seattle University
Featuring a screening of “The Tengu Club”, a story of the oldest fishing club in North America and a performance by Seattle University’s Hidaka Taiko. A benefit for the 2025 Minidoka Pilgrimage. Free Admission – All are welcome! Contact MPPC for more Information: information@minidokapilgrimage.org
Shoreline Community College – Never Again Is Now: Remembering Japanese American Incarceration
Tuesday, February 18, 11am – 2pm
Main Dining Room (MDR), Room 9215, Shoreline Community College
Please join in commemorating the Japanese American Day of Remembrance with local artist and community activist Erin Shigaki. Shigaki will deliver a presentation titled, Never Again Is Now: Remembering Japanese American Incarceration and lead a mural-making workshop. Sushi and Japanese snacks will be provided!
Shigaki helps run an annual pilgrimage to Minidoka, the American WWII concentration camp where her family was incarcerated, and she is also a part of Tsuru for Solidarity, working to end detention and incarceration for all. In 2020, Shigaki’s mural, “Never Again is Now” installed at Bellevue College in honor of the Day of Remembrance, was defaced.
*Sponsored by WAVES [Worthy of Achievement, Validation, Empowerment, and Success, part of the AANAPISI program at Shoreline Community College]
University of Puget Sound – Day of Remembrance Film Showing: Removed by Force
Tuesday, February 18, 6:30-8:00pm
Wheelock Student Center, Rasmussen Rotunda, 1500 N Warner St, Tacoma
Join UPS, Puyallup Valley JACL, and Olympia JACL for a screening of the film “Removed by Force”, a documentary on the unlawful evictions of Japanese Americans in Hawai`i during World War II. This film was written by Puget Sound Alumnus William Kaneko, and he and director Ryan Kawamoto will host a Q&A session after the screening. The event is in commemoration of Japanese American Day of Remembrance. A specially curated menu of appetizers will be served. Info: https://www.pugetsound.edu/events/japanese-american-day-remembrance-2025
Tsuru for Solidarity – Stop Repeating History: Days of Remembrance and Resistance
Wednesday, February 19, 10:00am – 11:00am
Pike Place Market, First Ave & Pike St Entrance, Seattle
2025 marks the 83rd year since the signing of Executive Order 9066 that authorized the military to forcibly remove and indefinitely detain the entire Japanese American population on the West Coast without charge, hearing, or trial. 2025 is also the 80th anniversary of the closing of most of the WRA and DOJ Camps where JAs were held behind barbed wire during WWII. Today, the treatment of Japanese Americans during WWII is being promoted as a precedent and a model for the removal, detention, and deportation of millions of immigrants under new executive orders. Tsuru for Solidarity will highlight the links between our history and current day government actions and propose ways we can resist injustice, particularly around the mass detention and ongoing deportation happening at the Northwest Detention Center in Tacoma. All are welcome to join Tsuru in saying: Stop Repeating History! For more information, contact Tsuru at: sktaiko1@mac.com Learn more at: https://tsuruforsolidarity.org/ and https://laresistencianw.org/
Bainbridge Island Japanese American Exclusion Memorial — Day of Remembrance: Community Work Party
Wednesday, February 19, 10am – 12pm
Bainbridge Island JA Exclusion Memorial, 4192 Eagle Harbor Drive NE
Bainbridge Island
Join community volunteers as they trim, weed, mulch, and clear the outdoor features of the Memorial. All ages welcome, tools provided for this Day of Remembrance Stewardship Event. More info: https://bijaema.org/event/2025-day-of-remembrance-community-work-party/
Washington State Legislature – Day of Remembrance Resolution
Wednesday, February 19, 10:00am
House Chambers, Washington State Capitol, Olympia
Representative Sharon Tomiko Santos and Senator Bob Hasegawa sponsor an annual resolution in the Washington State Legislature to remember the impact and effect of EO 9066 on Japanese Americans and others in our state during WWII. Seating is limited. All guests are asked to RSVP to Sarah Ellerbrock (Sarah.Ellerbrock@leg.wa.gov) in Senator Hasegawa’s office.
Seattle JACL, Puyallup Valley JACL, Olympia JACL, Blaine Memorial UMC – Day of Remembrance Film Premier: Removed by Force
Wednesday, February 19, 6:30pm – 8:00pm
Blaine Memorial United Methodist Church Sanctuary, 3001 24th Ave S, Seattle
83 years after the signing of Executive Order 9066, we are still learning more about the forced removal of Japanese Americans during WWII. Removed by Force: The Eviction of Hawaiʻi’s Japanese Americans During World II is a film that sheds light on the relatively unknown experiences of the 1,500 Americans of Japanese ancestry from 23 geographic areas in Hawai‘i who were evicted, but not interned, during World War II. After the film showing, stay for a live discussion with filmmaker Ryan Kawamoto and co-producer/writer William Kaneko.
Film Previews: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z-FTbDR2GGk
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ncid24RsGWU
More information at: info@seattlejacl.org
City of Bellevue & King County Library System – Emerging Radiance: DOR Opening Reception
Wednesday, February 19, 6pm – 9pm
King County Library System, 15600 NE 8th St, Bellevue
The City of Bellevue, in partnership with the King County Library System, is proud to present Emerging Radiance: Farmhouse, an augmented reality interactive artwork honoring the stories of Japanese American farmers who lived in Bellevue between 1920 and World War II. This powerful installation will be on display at the Bellevue Library through February 2027. Join the opening reception coinciding with the Day of Remembrance. This special evening will feature remarks from artists Michelle Kumata and Tani Ikeda, and other distinguished speakers. Guests will have the opportunity to explore the interactive artwork, attend a 7:30pm breakout session with the artists, and view the Emerging Radiance documentary. This event highlights the resilience and contributions of Japanese American families, connecting their legacy to our present through innovative storytelling. Exhibit info: https://www.emergingradiance.org/
Nikkei Student Union (NSU) – Day of Remembrance: Learning from the Past, Fighting for the Future
Saturday, February 22, 3pm – 5pm
Intellectual House, University of Washington, Seattle
NSU is a UW student organization whose mission is to foster a sense of community and unity among Nikkei students and honor our shared history. The Nikkei Student Union at UW commemorates Day of Remembrance with a program featuring speakers and a taiko performance. The public is invited to attend! For information, visit the NSU at UW Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/nsuuw
Tsuru for Solidarity – Stop Repeating History: Days of Remembrance and Resistance
Sunday, February 23, 1:00pm – 3:00pm
Northwest Detention Center (NWDC), 1623 East J Street, Tacoma
Join Tsuru for Solidarity and La Resistencia outside the Northwest Detention Center where ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) holds over 800 people in indefinite detention, separated from their families, as they await a decision on their asylum or deportation case. Among other anti-immigrant policies, the Trump administration has threatened to invoke the Alien Enemies Act of 1798 (last used during WWII to arrest and detain Issei), and end birthright citizenship for children of immigrants (a similar tactic was used against Nisei during WWII). As survivors and descendants of those incarcerated during World War II, Tsuru believes Japanese Americans have the moral authority and the obligation to speak out against these actions. Tsuru aims to be the allies the JA community did not have in 1942 and will not stand idly by while immigrants are once again targeted for increased surveillance, harassment, detention, and deportation. Join Tsuru in this Day of Remembrance and Resistance and bring your friends and family. Stop Repeating History! Learn more at:
https://tsuruforsolidarity.org/ and https://laresistencianw.org/