Takako Wada Papers
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Abstract
Takako "Taxi" Wada (née Kusunoki) was a writer, editor, and activist whose career reflected her commitment to ensuring Asian American civil rights in the United States. In 1981 she closely followed the public hearings held by the Commission for Wartime Relocation and Internment Civilians all across the country. Materials in this collection include correspondence, testimonies, newsletters, event ephemera, newspapers and newspaper clippings, and other research materials, much of which focuses on the incarceration of Japanese Americans in the United States during World War II and the movement to obtain redress. Files include correspondence (much between Wado and William Hohri, lead plantiff in the National Council for Japanese American Redress lawsuit seeking reparations for incarceration), personal statements and testimonies submitted to Wada for the public hearing held in New York City on November 23, 1981, as well as transcripts of the hearing. In addition to materials concerning incarceration and redress, the collection includes materials documenting Wada's journalism career, her work with JASSI (Japanese American Social Services), newsletters and other materials for Asian American civil rights activism, and ephemera for Asian American cultural and community events.
Biographical Note
Takako "Taxi" Wada (née Kusunoki) (1921-2016) was a writer, editor, and activist whose career reflected her commitment to ensuring Asian American civil rights in the United States. Born in Colusa, California, Takako was incarcerated with her mother and two sisters at the Granada War Relocation Center ("Camp Amache") in Colorado in 1942. As a young adult she spent two years in the Women's Army Corps, worked as a journalist and, studied painting in the studio of Fernand Ledger in Paris on the G.I. Bill of Rights. She was an active supporter of the redress for Japanese Americans who were incarcerated during World War II. In 1981 she closely followed the public hearings held by the Commission for Wartime Relocation and Internment of Civilians all across the country. During this time Takako collected testimonies, conducted research, and edited personal statements all pertaining to the hearings, with particular attention paid to those held in Washington D.C., New York, and California. Serving as the English editor for the Japanese American newspaper New York Nicibei, Takako nurtured and supported topics concerning Asian American rights, women's rights, community service, and arts movements.
Arrangement
This collection has not been arranged by an archivist. The materials are arranged in the order in which they were received from the donor.
Scope and Contents
The Takako Wada Papers (dated 1945-2004) consist of materials created and collected by Wado documenting her journalism and activism for Japanese Americans and the broader Asian American civil rights movement. Materials in this collection include correspondence, testimonies, newsletters, event ephemera, newspapers and newspaper clippings, and other research materials. Many of the materials in the collection pertain to the incarceration of Japanese Americans in the United States during World War II, with specific emphasis on the movement to obtain redress and the Commission on Wartime Relocation and Internment of Civilians public hearings. Files include correspondence (much between Wado and William Hohri, lead plantiff in the National Council for Japanese American Redress lawsuit seeking reparations for incarceration), personal statements and testimonies submitted to Wada in her capacity as English editor of New York Nichibei, a newspaper published by the Japanese American News Corporation, for the public hearing held in New York City on November 23, 1981 as well as transcripts of the hearing. Additional legal transcripts that make up the collection pertain to other hearings held in Washington, D.C. on July 14 and 16, 1981; Cambridge, Massachusetts on December 9, 1981; Los Angeles, California August 4-6, 1981; and Alaska on September 15, 17, and 19, 1981. The witnesses include people who were incarcerated, government officials who ran and supported the mass forced removal and incarceration program, and organizations such as the Japanese American Citizens League and American Friends Service Committee. In addition to materials concerning incarceration and redress, the collection includes materials documenting Wada's journalism career, her work with JASSI (Japanese American Social Services), newsletters and other materials for Asian American civil rights activism, ephemera for Asian American cultural and community events, and issues of Japanese American newspapers or magazines, including Asahi Evening News, Bandwagon, Gidra, Getting Together, and New York Nichibei.
Subjects
Donors
Conditions Governing Access
Materials are open without restrictions.
Conditions Governing Use
Any rights (including copyright and related rights to publicity and privacy) held by Takako Wada, the creator of this collection, were relinquished and transferred to the public domain in January 2017 by Stephanie Wada. These materials are governed by a Creative Commons CC0 license, which permits publication and reproduction of materials accompanied by full attribution. See, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/
Preferred Citation
Identification of item, date; Takako Wada Papers; TAM 723; box number; folder number; Tamiment Library/Robert F. Wagner Labor Archives, New York University.
Location of Materials
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Materials were donated by Stephanie Wada in 2017 and 2018. The accession numbers associated with these gift are 2018.076 and 2019.085.
Audiovisual Access Policies and Procedures
Audiovisual materials have not been preserved and may not be available to researchers. Materials not yet digitized will need to have access copies made before they can be used. To request an access copy, or if you are unsure if an item has been digitized, please contact special.collections@nyu.edu with the collection name, collection number, and a description of the item(s) requested. A staff member will respond to you with further information.
About this Guide
Processing Information
At the time of accessioning, collection-level finding aid with a brief box list was created to describe this collection. Untitled folders were rehoused into archival housing and given titles based on the general theme of the documents within the folder. Letters were not removed from their original envelopes and were grouped with no specific order in mind. This collection has not been arranged by an archivist; materials were kept in the order they arrived.
In 2021, narrative description was edited to more accurately describe the forced removal and incarceration of Japanese Americans during World War II. Titles containing harmfully euphemistic language regarding the forced removal and incarceration of Japanese Americans during World War II were identified and replaced with titles using community-approved language created by the processing archivist.
Researchers can access previous versions of the finding aid in our GitHub repository at https://github.com/NYULibraries/findingaids_eads/commits/master/tamwag/tam_723.xml.
