Congressman Dennis Cardoza
18th Congressional District of California

WASHINGTON, DC – Congressman Cardoza will join with the community this month to unveil a long-awaited monument honoring Japanese-Americans who passed through the Merced Assembly Center during World War II. The unveiling and dedication is scheduled for 3 p.m. on February 20, 2010.

Located at the Merced County Fairgrounds, the Assembly Center served as the reporting site for 4,669 Japanese-Americans who were relocated to internment camps during the war. Since spring of 2008, Congressman Cardoza has been closely working with the Japanese American Citizens League and the Merced Assembly Center Commemorative Committee to bring a memorial to the fairgrounds.

In February of 2009, Congressman Cardoza introduced legislation in the House of Representatives calling for federal recognition of the Assembly Center’s location as a memorial site. In addition to the Congressional recognition, House Resolution 129, also paved the way for a $25,000 National Park Service grant to help fund the memorial.

The grant will help pay for five interpretive storyboards at the Merced County Fairgrounds and a documentary film to be shared with teachers and schools. Additionally, the memorial will include a wall listing the names of those who passed through the center, and a sculpture consisting of suitcases stacked on top of each other with a forlorn-looking girl sitting on top.

“We think that this will be a tremendous education al tool for the community, as well as honoring those who are present for the dedication,” said Bob Taniguchi, a member of the Merced Assembly Center Commemorative Committee. “This has been a community effort with widespread support and we’re very thankful for that. Everyone has rallied around the cause and we’re very happy with the response.”