FIRST & CENTRAL: The JANM Blog

JANM Supports the Smithsonian and the National Museum of American History and Rejects White House Domestic Council Report

Guest Blogger — Thu, 09 Jul 2026 19:20:19 +0000

Museums must be places of truth, not propaganda.

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Summer Opportunity for Educators!

Lynn Yamasaki — Thu, 05 Feb 2026 17:30:55 +0000

JANM invites K–12 educators to apply to its summer workshop, Little Tokyo: How History Shapes a Community Across Generations.

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Day of Remembrance Across the US

Helen Yoshida — Tue, 03 Feb 2026 21:11:55 +0000

Mark your calendars for these upcoming events commemorating that day in 1942 when President Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066.

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Take Discover Nikkei’s Survey and Make Your Voice Heard

Helen Yoshida — Fri, 16 Jan 2026 21:21:52 +0000

In 2025, JANM’s Discover Nikkei project celebrated twenty years of sharing stories about the Nikkei, people of Japanese descent who have migrated and settled throughout the world. Highlights from Discover Nikkei’s twentieth anniversary included Discover Nikkei Fest and Nikkei Family 2: Remembering Roots, Leaving Legacies. Discover Nikkei also traveled to the Nikkei National Museum and […]

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A Very Exciting Announcement from JANM!

Ann Burroughs — Wed, 10 Dec 2025 22:31:48 +0000

JANM is honored to announce that it has received a $20 million gift from philanthropist MacKenzie Scott. This transformative gift is the largest single gift in JANM’s history and, like her donation of $10 million in 2021, is unrestricted, allowing the Museum to determine the best use of the funds at a pivotal moment for […]

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Actors Christopher Sean and Tamlyn Tomita Talk About Community, Connection, and Identity in the Latest Nima Voices Episode

Helen Yoshida — Mon, 24 Nov 2025 20:40:53 +0000

Discover Nikkei’s Nima Voices series uplifts its community members through brief and insightful conversations. Every interview highlights unique perspectives from Nima living all over the world and their stories are found in Discover Nikkei’s rich archive. In the series’ latest episode, actors Christopher Sean and Tamlyn Tomita talk about community, connection, and identity. Known for […]

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“Cruising J-Town” Now Extended Through December 14, 2025

Helen Yoshida — Wed, 08 Oct 2025 16:18:23 +0000

JANM’s exhibition, Cruising J-Town: Behind the Wheel of the Nikkei Community is now extended through Sunday, December 14, 2025! If you love all things related to cars and Southern California car culture, then this is for you. Cruising J-Town is part of JANM on the Go, JANM’s lively schedule of events and programs that are […]

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Renovating JANM’s Public Galleries

Helen Yoshida — Mon, 22 Sep 2025 16:35:23 +0000

During the summer, JANM launched the start of a new chapter with its Pavilion groundbreaking ceremony that featured renovation plans for the Museum’s public galleries and self-guided tours of the new core exhibition, In the Future We Call Now: Realities of Racism, Dreams of Democracy, education space, and the Manabi and Sumi Hirasaki National Resource […]

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Start Your Engines for Our New Exhibition, “Cruising J-Town”

Helen Yoshida — Wed, 30 Jul 2025 22:45:48 +0000

Roll with us to Pasadena for JANM’s new exhibition, Cruising J-Town: Behind the Wheel of the Nikkei Community (free admission, reservations recommended)! Curated by writer and scholar, Dr. Oliver Wang, this exhibition dives into the people, places, and stories of Japanese American car scenes throughout Los Angeles. At the center of the exhibition are five […]

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Staying True to Mission: Why JANM Spoke Out

Ann Burroughs — Fri, 30 May 2025 19:11:40 +0000

This blog post was originally published on the American Alliance of Museums’ Center for the Future of Museums Blog on May 27, 2025. As my colleagues and I catalogue the damage being done to our sector, we take heart from a small but growing cadre of museums taking principled positions in the face of attacks […]

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