Words have power. They have the power to shape perceptions of the past and their relationships to today. Was the dislocation of Japanese Americans from their homes and farms "evacuation" or "forced removal?" Was Manzanar a "detention center" or an "internment camp" or an "American concentration camp?"
After many years of debate, the national JACL recently ratified a "Power of Words" Handbook that breaks down the different meanings behind these many terms and makes a case for language that exposes the gravity of the Japanese American experience during World War II.
Click below to download the entire report. Further coverage is available at the Rafu Shimpo.
After many years of debate, the national JACL recently ratified a "Power of Words" Handbook that breaks down the different meanings behind these many terms and makes a case for language that exposes the gravity of the Japanese American experience during World War II.
Click below to download the entire report. Further coverage is available at the Rafu Shimpo.
power_of_words_handbook_2012.pdf |