Quiet Americans is a digital storytelling project about Japanese American history — stories of injustice, resilience, and resistance. We explore the lessons we’ve learned and the ones we failed to, from the past.
This project is inspired by the life of one Nisei (a second-generation Japanese American) who went from incarceration camps to volunteering for the U.S. Army. He served in the Pacific, worked in post-war Japan as a Military Intelligence Service officer, and later fought in the Korean War. Yet, like so many in his generation, he rarely spoke about it. He carried his story quietly. We’re here to tell these stories, so we never forget.
Latest Stories
Bonner Fellers
Born on February 6, 1896, Bonner Fellers would later help shape the American occupation of Japan. Influenced by the writings of Greek-born author Lafcadio Hearn, he argued that executing the Emperor would ignite resistance and cost countless lives.
Ikeda Mission
In 1864, the Tokugawa shōgunate sent samurai to Europe to shut down foreign trade and restore Japan’s isolation. The mission failed. But for Ikeda Nagaoki, the journey revealed a world Japan could no longer ignore, and helped set the stage for a modern nation to emerge.
Immigration Act of 1917
The Immigration Act of 1917 expanded bans on Chinese and Japanese immigrants and formalized a racial hierarchy in U.S. immigration law — one that shaped who could enter, who was excluded, and who would later be imprisoned.
Loyalty Questionnaire
In 1943, the U.S. government forced incarcerated Japanese Americans to answer a so-called loyalty questionnaire. Framed as a test of allegiance, it placed people already stripped of their rights into impossible moral and legal traps.
Kanaye Nagasawa
Kanaye Nagasawa was the first Japanese national to live permanently in the United States and became the first Wine King of California. His legacy tells a story of ambition, success, and an American dream that could not be passed on because of discriminatory laws.
Friend Herbert
During WWII, one man became a true friend to 120,000 incarcerated Japanese Americans. Herbert Nicholson safeguarded their belongings, drove tens of thousands of miles between camps, and mobilized 150,000 letters of protest to the government.
Trending Stories
Japanese Canadian Incarceration
January 14, 1942 marked the beginning of a seven-year exile for Japanese Canadians. More than 27,000 people were removed, incarcerated, and barred from returning home until 1949.
Lost Battalion
The Lost Battalion rescue remains one of the most extraordinary acts of courage in U.S. military history, carried out by soldiers whose own families were imprisoned back home.
Angel Island Immigration Station
Angel Island Immigration Station opened in 1910 to enforce anti-Asian immigration laws. Asian immigrants were detained, interrogated, and excluded by design, turning immigration enforcement into incarceration decades before WWII.