Civil Liberties Public Education Fund

Organizational History

In 1980, Congress established the Commission on Wartime Relocation and Internment of Civilians (CWRIC). This committee was directed to review the facts and circumstances regarding Executive Order 9066. In 1983 the Commission issued its findings in the report Personal Justice Denied, stating that a grave injustice was done to both citizens and permanent resident aliens of Japanese ancestry by the evacuation, relocation, and internment of civilians during World War II. The CWRIC had recommended legislative remedies of redress consisting of: (1) an official U.S. Government apology; (2) redress payments of $20,000 to each of the survivors; (3) a public education fund to help ensure that this type of incarceration based on racial prejudice will not happen again.

The Civil Liberties Public Education Fund (CLPEF) was established in large part by the findings of the CWRIC. The goal of the CLPEF was to educate the public about the lessons to be learned from the forced removal and internment of civilians and permanent resident aliens of Japanese ancestry.

The CLPEF effort included holding several community meetings throughout the country to get feedback on the creation of the grant criteria and how the grants would be distributed. In total, the CLPEF issued 135 grants totaling over 3 million dollars. The projects taught lessons from the incarceration from many different cultural and institutional perspectives. The different characteristics of diversity include:

1. Projects located in 20 different states and the District of Columbia. 2. Projects covering seven subject areas including curriculum, landmarks/exhibits, art/media, community development, research, research resources, and national fellowships. These projects cover a wide diversity of projects and range in funding from $2,000 to $100,000. 3. Projects reaching different audiences: those who were never aware that the incarceration occurred, academic scholars, those viewing exhibits and monuments, law students learning the coram. nobis cases, those who are active in the Japanese American community, students in public schools and institutions of postsecondary education, and those who appreciate the arts, literature, and films, Southeast Asian and Chinese immigrant students, and African American and Latino students in low income communities. 4. Projects informing the public about the diverse experiences before, during, and after the incarceration: Nisei veterans, the role of Nisei women, Japanese Latin Peruvians, those interned at the Department of Justice camps, the effects of incarceration on Sansei and Yonsei, the experience of Hawaiians during World War II, the role of the Military Intelligence Services, those who resisted incarceration, and the redress movement. 5. Projects recipients have diverse backgrounds and make meaningful contributions by teaching the lessons learned from the incarceration. They include museums, resource libraries, state arts and humanities councils, K- 12 school teachers, universities, research institutes, community colleges, National Asian American organizations, artists and theater groups, graduate students, those who were incarcerated and other talented individuals knowledgeable about the lessons learned from the incarceration.

On August 27, 1997, over 50 curriculum grant recipients, applicants, educators, and facilitators gathered on the campus of San Francisco State University for a summit sponsored by the CLPEF.

From June 28-30, 1998, a national conference was held in San Francisco for all of the CLPEF grantees with over 200 people attending. Co-sponsored by the Asian American Studies Program of UC Berkeley, the CLPEF conference enabled grant recipients to present their projects and findings to the public.

In November 1998 the Civil Liberties Public Education Fund closed its offices. For more information on the activities of the CLPEF, see: http://www.momomedia.com/CLPEF/backgrnd.html

From the guide to the Civil Liberties Public Education Fund Grant Program records, 1997-1998, (Japanese American National Museum (Los Angeles, Calif.))