Lesson IV: Japanese American Redress

Objective: To identify and analyze the key events and strategy used to achieve passage of the Civil Liberties Act of 1988 and its funding.

Materials: The article "Japanese American Redress: The Impossible Dream Becomes Reality." by Mitch Maki included in the “Historical Overview” tab

Task: After a discussion of the article ask the students to select one or all of the following tasks.

• Create a time line of the important events in the Japanese American Redress movement. There are approximately twenty. After creating the time line, select five of these events and explain their significance to the Redress movement.

• Historian, Mitchell Maki, concludes that the passage of the Civil Liberties Act of 1988 and its funding was achieved by "the manner in which the issue of redress was framed, the creation and maintenance of a broad coalition of supportive groups, the mobilization of the Japanese American community, political access and power, perserverance, good fortune." Explain what he meant by these five elements.

• In his final conclusion, historian Maki stated, "The exclusion and incarceration of Japanese Americans, as well as, the formal apology and monetary redress granted to them are full of important lessons." What are three "important lessons" you would select that America learned. Explain your answer.