Shirley Ann Higuchi, the chair of the Heart Mountain Wyoming Foundation, was honored as a leader in the Japanese American legal community by the Asian American Legal Defense Education Fund.
She was joined by former Heart Mountain incarceree Judge Raymond Uno, current White House Asian American liaison Erika Moritsugu, and former Equal Employment Opportunities Commissioner Stuart Ishimaru in a ceremony honoring Japanese American Legacy Lawyers at 10 a.m., Thursday, Nov. 2, at the Japanese Information & Culture Center in Washington.
“I’m thrilled to be honored alongside these giants,” Higuchi said. “Judge Raymond Uno was incarcerated with my parents at Heart Mountain, and I’ve admired him my whole life. I also admire the work Erika and Stuart have done throughout their careers to advance our community and the legal profession.”
The Heart Mountain Wyoming Foundation preserves the site where some 14,000 Japanese Americans were unjustly incarcerated in Wyoming from 1942 through 1945. Their stories are told within the foundation’s museum, Heart Mountain Interpretive Center, located between Cody and Powell.