Japanese American

Reparative Description Preferred Term

Preferred Terms: Japanese American (pl. Japanese Americans)

Non-Preferred Term: Evacuee (pl. evacuees), Non-alien (pl. Non-aliens), Japanese (when referring to an American citizen of Japanese descent imprisoned by the U.S. government during WWII), Japanese-American (pl. Japanese Americans) (hyphenated as a noun)

Related Terms that May Continue to be Used: n/a

Guidance:

Any NARA-supplied metadata containing Evacuee(s), Non-aliens, or Japanese (when referring to an American citizen of Japanese descent imprisoned by the U.S. government during WWII) should be changed to the preferred term, Japanese American. However, each instance should still be reviewed for context.

A describer or reviewer will review each instance of a non-preferred term to determine if the term requires changing or should be retained because it is an exception such as when used in the proper name of a place or the name of an organization. Exceptions that require no revisions will be clearly indicated in the General Note of the Description.

Examples:

Example:
Scope and Content Note - Under the authority of Executive Order 9066, issued by President Franklin D. Roosevelt on February 19, 1942, approximately 110,000 Japanese Americans were interned in 10 relocation centers for the duration of World War II.

Professional photographers, including Dorothea Lange, were commissioned by the WRA to document the daily life and treatment of Japanese Americans during World War II. These photographs show Japanese Americans at home and at work immediately prior to forced removal; Japanese Americans at temporary detention centers where they were processed before being assigned to relocation centers; agricultural, vocational, educational, recreational, religious and internal political activities at each of the 10 relocation centers, supervisory personnel and local officials; Nisei resettled in their former homes or at work after releases from a relocation centers; Nisei servicemen and women at awards ceremonies or on leave; the arrival and departure of forcibly removed Japanese Americans who were transferred from one of the relocation centers to the Tule Lake Segregation Center in September 1943, including a few photographs of repatriated Japanese Americans embarking for Japan; property formerly owned by Japanese Americans, but vandalized, deserted, or taken over by Chinese Americans and others. Prints and negatives are fully captioned.

General Note - This archival description was reviewed and revised as part of the NARA reparative description initiative on [mm/dd/yyyy]. The terms “Japanese-Americans” and “evacuees” were replaced by the term “Japanese Americans,” in the Scope and Content Note. Original archival records have not been altered.

Example:
Title - Temporary Detention Center Newsletters

Scope and Content Note - This series consists of Temporary Detention Center records, and contains primarily official reports, press clippings, and temporary detention center newspapers relating to reactions of the Japanese and Japanese American community regarding forced removal, public attitudes toward the people of Japanese ancestry in the areas of forced removal, and conditions at temporary detention centers, which are referred to in the records as “assembly centers.”

General Note - This archival description was reviewed and revised as part of the NARA reparative description initiative on [mm/dd/yyyy]. The term “assembly center” was replaced with “temporary detention center” in the Title and Scope and Content Note. The term “Japanese” was replaced with the terms “Japanese American” and “people of Japanese ancestry” in the Scope and Content Note. The terms “evacuated” and “evacuation” were replaced with “forced removal” in the Scope and Content Note. Original records have not been altered.

Example:
Scope and Content Note - Personal property forms (WCCA Form FRB-2), inventory lists, and notices of receipt for property stored for people of Japanese descent who were forcibly removed in the Los Angeles Branch zone to temporary detention centers and reception centers. Generally sorted by temporary detention center then family number, not inclusive. Some family numbers may be associated with more than one location. Includes location names Colorado River War Relocation Project, Manzanar Reception Center, Parker Reception Center, Pomona Assembly Center, Poston Reception Center, Santa Anita Assembly Center, and Turlock Assembly Center.

General Note - This archival description was reviewed and revised as part of the NARA reparative description initiative on [mm/dd/yyyy]. The word “evacuee” was replaced with the phrase “people of Japanese descent who were forcibly removed” in the Scope and Content Note. The proper, official names of centers were not changed in the Scope and Content Note. Original archival records have not been altered.

Where does this apply?

This applies to changes in descriptions and authority records. See the Appendix: Reparative Description Preferred Terms for guiding principles and general guidance.

Rationale:

During World War II, U.S. government officials deliberately referred to U.S. citizens of Japanese ancestry as “Non-aliens” or “Japanese” rather than Japanese Americans to associate them with Japan who was at war with the United States.

The preferred term Japanese Americans (or Japanese American citizens and U.S. citizens of Japanese ancestry) rightfully identifies those U.S. citizens of Japanese ancestry who were forcibly removed from their homes during World War II. The term Japanese will continue to be used when describing records referring to Japanese people in the United States or elsewhere who were detained by the U.S. government.

Resources:

Use of Preferred Terms at Peer Institutions:

Library of Congress, Japanese Americans–Forced removal and internment, 1942-1945
United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, Holocaust Encyclopedia: Japanese American Relocation acknowledges the use of forced removal rather than “evacuation.”
Densho, Terminology list
Japanese American Museum of Oregon, Terminology

Additional Resources:

Date added: August 5, 2024

Date updated: August 5, 2024