Hawaii Delegation Visits Washington D.C. to Support National Park Service Status for Honouliuli Internment Camp

View from Honouliuli Internment Camp (“IMG_2028” by Valentino Valdez, licensed under CC BY-ND 2.0)

Washington D.C. – On December 4-5, 2014 a delegation from Hawaii delivered petitions with over 6,000 signatures to Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell and National Park Service Director Jon Jarvis in support of National Park Service designation for the Honouliuli Internment Camp. Located approximately 20 miles northwest of Honolulu, the Honouliuli internment camp was the largest and longest used internment camp in Hawaii during World War II. In 2009, Congress authorized the National Park Service (NPS) to begin a special resource study to review Honouliuli for possible inclusion into the National Park System.

The Hawaii delegation included Honolulu JACL Chapter President Jacce Mikulanec, President and Executive Director of the Japanese Cultural Center of Hawaii (JCCH) Carole Hayashino, and JCCH volunteers Les Goto, Jane Kurahara, and John Okutani. In addition to Secretary Jewell and Director Jarvis, the delegation visited with Hawaii Senators Mazie Hirono and Brian Schatz, and Hawaii Representatives Tulsi Gabbard and Coleen Hanabusa to deliver petitions in support of including the Honouliuli Internment Camp under the National Park system.

To sign a petition supporting the inclusion of the Honouliuli Internment Camp into the National Park system, please click here.

For the full press release from the office of Hawaii Senator Brian Schatz’s , please click here.