MemberJASC_Legacy

The Japanese American Service Committee (JASC) Legacy Center Archives and Library is a community-based resource that collects and preserves historical material from the Japanese American community in the Chicago area and makes it available for research and reference purposes. It houses the JASC archives and serves as a community repository for records and information about the Japanese American community. The Legacy Center seeks to preserve and promote community heritage and common understanding of the Japanese American experience as an integral part of American history. We provide reference services for our collections, can help make connections with community members, lend selected materials, and can refer to other repositories. Our collections are available for use, by appointment, free of charge. All are welcome.

Founded in 1946, The Japanese American Service Committee (JASC) was formed to serve the needs of Japanese immigrants and their American-born children coming to Chicago after leaving the World War II internment camps. Originally called the Chicago Resettlers Committee, the organization assisted with housing, jobs and the re-forming of a community.

The JASC has served as a unique locus for the Japanese American community while playing a much larger role in providing social services to a much wider and diverse group of Chicagoans. The JASC has built the Heiwa Terrace Retirement Community, the Keiro Long Term Care Facility and instituted a number of individual services and activities for both children and adults.

The JASC also works to archive the history of the Japanese American experience in Chicago for both scholars and the community with the JASC Legacy Center Archives and Library while continuing to provide social service and cultural programs for the greater Chicago area. As our community continues to grow and change culturally, ethnically and socioeconomically, we have an ever-lasting duty to adapt and change to better serve and improve the physical, emotional and social well-being of our community.