Gov. Cox signs S.B. 58 to implement Day of Remembrance for Japanese Americans incarcerated in WWII

FILE – In this Dec. 7, 2019, file photo, a U.S. Marine stands in front of the USS Missouri during a ceremony to mark the 78th anniversary of the Japanese attack, in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. Some veterans and government officials will gather on the Missouri on Wednesday, Sept. 2, 2020, in Hawaii to mark the 75th anniversary of the surrender. (AP Photo/Caleb Jones, File)

by: Danielle MacKimm

Posted: Feb 18, 2022 / 12:39 PM MST

Updated: Feb 18, 2022 / 12:39 PM MST

UTAH (ABC4) – Governor Spencer Cox signed S.B. 58, “Day of Remembrance Observing the Incarceration of Japanese Americans During World War II.”

The bill was sponsored by Senator Jani Iwamoto who received ample support from the House and Senate.

The document nominates Feb. 19 as the annual day of remembrance observing the incarceration of Japanese Americans during World War II.

Feb. 19, 2022 will mark 80 years since President Franklin Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066 authorizing the incarceration of more than 120,000 people of Japanese ancestry, two-thirds of whom were U.S. citizens.

“Day of Remembrance allows us to vow to remember and recommit to safeguarding the civil rights of ALL Americans,” said Utah Senator Jani Iwamoto. “What happened to Japanese Americans is relevant today—especially today—and must never, ever, be forgotten.”