Jay Hirabayashi (left) with King County Council Vice Chair Rod Dembowski standing next to the plaque of Jay’s Father, Gordon Hirabayashi. (Photo provided by the King County Council)
Members of the Metropolitan King County Council unveiled a plaque of Gordon Hirabayashi for refusing to comply with Executive Order 9066.
On May 15, County Council Vice Chair Rod Dembowski unveiled a plaque honoring Hirabayashi in the County Council’s lobby, just steps away from where Hirabayashi was imprisoned for refusing to comply with the order, which ordered the forced removal of Japanese Americans.
Hirabayashi’s son Jay said it is “really significant for our family to have my dad’s sojourn recognized as a significant stand for the rights of all Americans.”
Also in attendance at the ceremony were members of Hirabayashi’s legal team, who successfully fought to overturn his conviction in the 1980s.