The National Japanese American Citizens League is the nation’s oldest and largest Asian American Civil Rights Organization.  It was founded in 1929 to address issues of discrimination targeted specifically at persons of Japanese ancestry residing in the United States.

The TCJACL has donated a large collection of materials to ESFL dealing with Classroom Resources on World War II History and the Japanese American Experience. This includes DVD’s and  Books for Elementary and Young Adult Students; Books for Adults including Nonfiction Books, Biography/Memoir Incarceration, Concentration Camps, Redress,  Japanese American History; Japanese History and Culture; Military 442nd/100th/MIS, Poetry and Fiction and Historical Fiction.

The Twin Cities chapter was formed and instituted in 1946 and held its first Executive Meeting and regular business meeting in April of 1948.  At that time the group took the name United Citizens League (UCL). The UCL changed its name to the Twin Cities Japanese American Citizens League in 1962.

Throughout its history, the TCJACL has continued to be actively involved in the preservation and education of Japanese American human and civil rights throughout the Twin Cities.

In 2009 the organization sponsored the creation of an oral history project, which is intended to preserve Japanese Americans’ experiences during the 20^th century.

TCJACL offers a number of programs and events for members and students and educators.  They started a scholarship program for young Japanese students in 1962 which has continued since then.  Many members have donated money for scholarships in memory of loved ones.

Each year the TCJACL presents the Power of Truth Teacher Award to any educator who goes beyond the required Minnesota curriculum standards in teaching about the Japanese American experience during WWII.

The TCJACL education committee has designed and made available a curriculum guide for any educator interested in teaching about the Military Intelligence Service (MIS) training for Japanese Americans at Camp Savage and Fort Snelling, MN, during World War II.

They also have a Speakers’ Bureau made up of volunteers who visit classrooms in the Twin Cities.  Many of the speakers have firsthand knowledge about the internment camps and/or the role of the Nisei soldiers in World War II.  Younger speakers are determined to learn about the internment from their parents and grandparents. They share intergenerational knowledge about the internment with students.