Raised by Nisei incarceration survivors, I experienced first hand the destructive power of silence and how the pain from the concentration camps cruelly impacted my parents psychologically and economically. As we have come to learn through the work of psychologists and sociologists, recognizing the existence of trauma is critical for our community to process, intervene in the cycle of trauma, and allow us to move forward.
Last month, the first in-person Minidoka pilgrimage since the pandemic convened. Over 200 survivors and descendants participated thanks to the Minidoka Pilgrimage Planning Committee’s efforts. Through shared learning, intergenerational talk groups, and return to the site, we experienced a weekend of commemoration and community processing.
In honor of the pilgrimage, this issue of the Irrigator highlights the many ways we acknowledge and move forward from the trauma of incarceration – whether it is through historic preservation, claiming our story, literature, visual art, education, or social action – and to strive for a better future for our community and for our nation. |
