Mako Nakagawa (February 1937 – April 4, 2021) was a Japanese American educator, director of the Japanese American Cultural Heritage Program and the Rainbow Program, and influential member of the Japanese American Citizen's League.
Nakagawa started her own educational consulting business, Mako & Associates, which specialized in assisting clients interested in projects related to diversity training and Japanese American experiences in World War 2.[7]
Nakagawa was also heavily involved in many Japanese American advocacy organizations. She was an active member of the Japanese American Citizen's League, serving as Seattle chapter president in 1983 and working with the national board.[1][9] Nakagawa spearheaded JACL's campaign to eliminate the euphemistic wording that is commonly used when describing Japanese American experiences during World War II.[9] She presented this campaign at JACL conferences in 2010 and 2011.[9] On July 7, 2012, the completed handbook of outdated terms was unanimously implemented.[9]
In 2019, Nakagawa published Child Prisoner in American Concentration Camps, a memoir of her incarceration.[10]
Personal life
Nakagawa had three children, Daren, Bradly Kenji and DeeAn.[1]
Power of Words, Nakagawa's initiative to change the wording around Japanese American experiences during World War II has grown since the resolution's passing.[11] The JACL has published multiple handbooks, implementation plans, and educational curriculum about these terminologies.[12]