Japanese Canadian Family Memories in the “Landscapes of Injustice” digital archive

Abstract

This paper examines the impact of digital archives on the remembrance of Japanese Canadians through the analysis of the "Landscapes of Injustice (LoI)" archive, which focuses on Japanese Canadian dispossession. The LoI archive has three aspects: academic materials, the collective memory of Japanese Canadian, and survivors' familial memory. An analysis of articles written by Japanese Canadian users showed that materials on LoI archive are important to them as family histories. Japanese Canadian users emphasize the injustice of bureaucracy and their family's past and integrate them into their family memories by associating the documents to their emotions. This understanding suggests the possibility that digital archives can present larger groups' stories and personal memories without conflict.