State Rep. John Winter calls Heart Mountain Interpretive Center ‘Jap camp.’
By P.C. Staff
Following an apology from a member of Wyoming’s state legislature for using “Jap camp” to describe what was formerly known as the Heart Mountain War Relocation Authority Center, the JACL issued a statement June 13 that acknowledged the apology but also expressed its “deep concern and disappointment” for the use of the phrase that included the three-letter slur for persons of Japanese heritage.
On June 10, prior to a visit by legislators to the site now known as the Heart Mountain Interpretive Center, state Rep. John Winter, a Republican for House District 28, was quoted telling his fellow politicians: “If you’re gonna go to the Jap camp, that’s what I call it, we need to leave here by about 12:30.” He was reported to have accompanied his reminder with a chuckle.
After being informed that “Jap” was considered offensive and had fallen into disuse as an abbreviation, Winters issued an apology.
In its statement, the JACL said: “For over 120 years, this slur has been used to demean Japanese Americans. We hope that elected officials, the local community, the public, and those who desire to learn visit places like the Japanese American National Museum, utilize resources such as Densho, and travel to Tule Lake, Topaz, Rohwer, Poston, Minidoka, Manzanar, Jerome, Gila River, Heart Mountain, Amache, or the many other WWII sites of incarceration. This incident serves as a testament to the need to continue educating the public about the power of words, the harm this slur has caused, and the wounds that it can reopen today.”
During World War II, the Heart Mountain site served as one of 10 concentration camps that the federal government’s War Relocation Authority used to incarcerate most of more than 125,000 ethnic Japanese, most of whom were U.S. citizens, who had been forcibly removed from the West Coast. Heart Mountain held 10,767 people.
In 1988, however, after a decade-long effort led by the JACL to redress the grievances of Japanese Americans whose rights had been violated during WWII, the federal government apologized for its actions and paid token monetary reparations to still-living individuals who had been incarcerated. The redress drive was documented in a 1991 documentary produced by JACL, titled “Redress: JACL Campaign for Justice,” which can be viewed here.
In its statement, JACL also said “ … we trust that Representative Winter has gained a clearer understanding of why the continued use of that rhetoric is outdated, inappropriate, and unacceptable.” The organization’s entire statement can be read here.
