New mural on internment of Japanese-Americans in WWII has echoes for today

"Day of Remembrance: Neighbors not enemies" event happens on Wednesday, Feb. 19, from 4 pm to 7 pm, at Analy High School

Former Analy student Owen Foley, now a student at UC Berkeley, with the mural he painted about the internment of the Japanese in World War II. (Photo courtesy Owen Foley)

On Wednesday, Feb. 19, former Analy high school student Owen Foley will be revealing the new mural he painted on the Analy campus, based on the experience of Japanese Americans in Sebastopol during the Japanese internment during World War II.

The unveiling of the mural is part of a larger event, “Day of Remembrance: Neighbors Not Enemies,” which runs from 4 pm to 7 pm. Bruce Shimizu of the Sonoma County Japanese American Citizens League will give a talk on the life of war hero Pete Masuoka, who grew up in Sebastopol and graduated from Analy in the 1940s. Masuoka was interned in Camp Amache in Colorado, where he eventually joined the 442nd Regimental Combat Team. There will also be a showing of “Leap of Faith,” a short film by Lina Hoshino, about the Sebastopol high school students who protected the Enmanji Buddhist Temple during WWII.

“In history class, we watched “Leap of Faith,” and it compelled me to create this mural project, especially since I had already been involved with Japanese and American culture, being a student ambassador on an exchange program with Sebastopol World Friends,” said Foley

Foley, now 19, graduated from Analy in 2024. He is currently pursuing a mechanical engineering degree at UC Berkeley, but said, “I’ll always consider myself an artist. I’m not going to give up my art.”

Foley started working on the mural project in his junior year at Analy, researching, planning, and reaching out to local community organizations for input and historical accuracy. As part of his research, Foley even looked for the best color choices to limit fading from the sun on the mural. He began painting the mural toward the end of his senior year.

“Three things—being an artist and wanting to build a huge project, being the student ambassador, and as well as watching “Leap of Faith” in history class—moved me to create a project to commemorate and honor the Japanese Americans who were incarcerated during World War II, even those from my very own high school,” Foley said.

While at Analy, Foley started the Zen Remembrance Club, to gain approval for the mural and raise funds for the project. The club is now run by his younger brother, who is still a student at Analy.

“[The mural] symbolizes the moment of a forced departure,” said Foley, noting that he put a lot of time and detail into the sky.

“I wanted the sky to evoke… a time where the sun was setting on freedoms and the rights of American citizens,” he said.

“When the Japanese Americans were forced to leave, the Sebastopol residents took care of their properties—whereas most everywhere else, they just ended up losing all their properties. Sebastopol was sort of like a beacon of hope,” he said.

Ron Tajii, 66, vice president of community and culture at the Sonoma County Japanese American Citizens League, said Foley’s mural—and the experience of Japanese Americans during WWII—holds a message for today.

“Hate…can turn your neighbors into your enemies, and it feels like this is occurring again,” he said “That’s what we want to show through this program.”

“For the most part, the Japanese American community…we’re pretty much assimilated,” he said. “What we found is a bigger role—as allies to other groups that are marginalized.”

Tajii said the event’s name was inspired by the Neighbors not Enemies Act in Congress. The act, introduced by Congresswoman Ilhan Ohmar, would repeal the Alien Enemies Act of 1798, which gave the President more power and authority when detaining and deporting any ‘alien’ who is considered a threat.

“The use of this act to single out a particular racial group or a particular religious group is the same as used to single out Japanese Americans. Through the use of ignorance, fear, and hysteria, you create enemies out of people that you grew up with,” said Tajii.

“That’s why we continue to speak up about our experience because we want to say, ‘Look, we’ve seen this before.’”

The event on Wednesday is being co-hosted by the Sonoma County Japanese American Citizens League, Sebastopol World Friends, the Analy High School Ethnic Studies Class and Globally Proficient Scholars and the Zen Remembrance Club.

Detail from the mural by Owen Foley. (Photo courtesy Owen Foley)