About

Densho is a Japanese term meaning “to pass on to the next generation,” or to leave a legacy. Our mission is to preserve and share stories of Japanese American WWII incarceration to promote equity and justice today. Since 1996, Densho has used digital technology to document the testimonies of Japanese Americans who were unjustly incarcerated during World War II, before their memories are extinguished. We offer these irreplaceable firsthand accounts, coupled with historical images and educational resources, to preserve our history, explore principles of democracy, and promote equal justice for all. Our online resources -- including over 950 oral history interviews and 80,000 images and documents, a comprehensive encyclopedia of Japanese American history, and teacher training courses -- are available free of charge to anyone anywhere in the world. But we are also activating this history through art and storytelling that connects the Japanese American WWII experience to similar injustices today, and empowers future generations to say "Never Again."