Every year, St. Peter’s commemorates the signing of Executive Order 9066, which authorized the forced removal and mass incarceration of Japanese Americans on the West Coast in February 1942. St. Peter’s closed for the duration of the internment as its members were incarcerated in desolate camps miles from home, along with 120,000 other Japanese Americans.
This year, St. Peter’s and the Circles of Color invite the diocese and larger community into a weekend of listening, reflection, and conversation dedicated to the throughline of this particular history, the realities of our sociopolitical present, and what faithful resistance and solidarity may look like in our shared future.
February 8 | Washington State Fairgrounds, Puyallup
Join St. Peter’s and the Circles of Color for the annual Day of Remembrance event hosted by local Japanese American community groups, plus lunch and conversation after.
February 9, 10:30 am | St. Peter’s, Seattle
Join St. Peter’s for its annual Executive Order 9066 commemoration service, Japanese lunch and community conversation, plus a parish history tour facilitated by members of St. Peter’s historic families.
This is the introduction to an interview series with St. Peter’s parishioners, done in 2018. You can listen to the rest of these interviews on St. Peter’s website.
Other Resources
- Guilty By Reason of Race: 1972 CBS Documentary
- The Sunday Before: 1945 book of sermons given along the West Coast in 1942. See Ch. 7, pg 44-49 for Fr. John Yamazaki’s sermon at St. Mary’s Episcopal Church in Los Angeles. Research is ongoing regarding the sermon given by Bishop Reifsnider at St. Peter’s.
Other Community Events
February 19, 6:00 – 9:00 p.m. at the Bellevue Library
KCLS Bellevue Library and City of Bellevue will hold an opening reception for “Emerging Radiance,” the farmhouse and AR installation that brings to life Nikkei farmer stories.
The event will include an artists’ talk, and recognition of elders and descendants of Bellevue Nikkei farmers.
