On October
11, 2009 Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signed into law AB 37.
The bill requires the Trustees of the California State University
and the Board of Governors of the California Community Colleges,
and requests the Regents of the University of California, to work
with their respective colleges and universities to confer an
honorary degree upon each person, living or deceased, who was
forced to leave his or her postsecondary studies as a result of
federal Executive Order 9066 which caused the incarceration of
individuals of Japanese ancestry during World War II.
When President
Franklin D. Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066 in February
1942, more than 120,000 Americans of Japanese ancestry were
forcibly removed from their homes and communities, sent to remote
internment camps, and denied all constitutional rights. Sixty-two
percent of these men, women and children were American-born
citizens who were Nisei (second generation Japanese Americans) or
Sansei (third generation Japanese Americans). In 1941, 2,567
Japanese American students were enrolled in California’s higher
education institutions, both public and private.
Los Angeles City
College has identified more than 200 Nisei students. At the
commencement ceremony on June 8th, LACC will bestow
honorary degrees to each student, living or deceased who was
forced to leave his or her studies at Los Angeles City College as
a result of the issuance of federal Executive Order 9066. Half a
dozen Nisei students are expected to attend and receive their
honorary degree in person.
For more
information, please contact William A. Marmolejo, Dean of
Enrollment (323) 953-4000 extension 2104 or
marmolwa@lacitycollege.edu.
