Special Exhibition – EXCLUSION
Learn about this chapter in American history and its relevance today.
The Presidio Heritage Exhibition at the Presidio Officers’ Club [link to the Presidio Officers’ Club place page] features temporary special exhibitions that explore Presidio history and invite fresh perspectives.
The latest is EXCLUSION, which examines the role the Presidio, then a U.S. Army post, played in the incarceration of Japanese Americans during World War II.
EXCLUSION will close at the end of July and is free to visit Fridays through Sundays from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Before it closes, visitors are encouraged to also experience I Am An American: The Nisei Soldier Experience, a complementary national traveling exhibition open from February 23 to July 31 at the Military Intelligence Service Historic Learning Center.
Explore the EXCLUSION Exhibition
About the EXCLUSION Exhibition
During World War II, the Presidio of San Francisco—the Army’s Western Defense Command—played a pivotal role in the unjust incarceration of 120,000 Japanese Americans, purportedly in the name of national security. This special exhibition was launched in 2017, 75 years after Lieutenant General John L. DeWitt issued Civilian Exclusion Orders from the Presidio, and examines the post’s little understood part in these events.
The exhibition invites visitors to investigate the choices—both personal and political—that led to this dark chapter in American history. How did leaders arrive at this decision? How did Japanese Americans respond to the violation of their civil liberties? And what, as a nation, have we learned that can help us address the present-day issues of immigration, racism, and mass incarceration?
EXCLUSION was awarded the 2018 Charles Redd Award for Exhibition Excellence by the Western Museums Association.
With Gratitude to Our Partners
In developing EXCLUSION, the Presidio Trust collaborated with the Fred T. Korematsu Institute and the National Japanese American Historical Society, which operates the Military Intelligence Service Historic Learning Center in the Presidio.
VIDEO: About the Exclusion Orders
This video dives deeper into the context surrounding the exclusion orders issued from the Presidio that led to the incarceration of 120,000 Japanese Americans on the West Coast, and the experiences of those who were unjustly imprisoned.
EXCLUSION Resources for Educators
We invite teachers to bring school groups to tour the EXCLUSION exhibition and offer the following resources to support your visit.EXCLUSION Reading and Resources
Resources for K-12 Learners
Timeline
Vocabulary List
Lesson Plans
Experience the Presidio
The Presidio is San Francisco’s national park site, with endless trails, fun events, and unforgettable vistas of the Golden Gate Bridge.
