The House of Representatives passed two resolutions on Monday recognizing the injustice of the Japanese American internment and supporting a memorial at Pinedale Assembly Center.

Rep. Jim Costa (D-Fresno) authored House Resolution 109 which recognizes the significance of the Pinedale As­sembly Center where 4,823 Japanese Americans were sent assembled prior to being sent to camps.

Costa introduced individual stories to depict the faces and names that are often lost in the large number of 120,000 internees. In sharing the story of the late Rep. Bob Matsui, who went to Pinedale Center at age two, Costa stated Matsui “fought against the odds and rose to be a great leader in this nation.”

A groundbreaking for the Pinedale Center Memorial Project will be held at the Pinedale site on Monday, Feb. 19 at 10 a.m. at the Mehmet Noyan Co., 685 W. Alluvial Ave. in Fresno (corner of West and North Remington, under the Palm Bluffs Water Tower).

The House also passed a resolution supporting the goals of the Japanese American, German and Ital­ian American communities in recogniz­ing a National Day of Remembrance to increase public awareness of the events surrounding the restriction, exclusion, and internment of individuals and fami­lies during World War II. Monday is the 65th anniversary of the day President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066, authorizing the internment of 110,000 Japanese Americans.

Rep. Mike Honda (D-San Jose), chair of the Congressional Asian Pa­cific American Caucus (CAPAC), and other members of congress introduced the resolution, with the support of col­leagues from both sides of the aisle.

“The resolution is a reminder that each of us has a responsibility to ensure that something like Executive Order 9066 never happens again. In a time of war, thousands of innocent American citizens were rounded up, forcibly re­moved from their homes, and shipped to internment camps,” said Rep. Doris Matsui (D-Sacramento).

Rep. David Wu (D-Oregon) noted the recent passage of H.R. 161, which will expand the Minidoka Internment Na­tional Monument to include the Nidoto Nai Yoni memorial that commemorates the Japanese Americans of Bainbridge Island, Wash., who were interned during World War II.

“The U.S. House now has approved three bills this year recognizing this grave mistake, all of which demonstrate our commitment to protecting the rights and freedom of all Americans,” said Wu.