How a Dubious Olympic Bid Nearly Destroyed this Japantown

Salt Lake City’s Japantown was once a thriving community for thousands of Japanese Americans. In 1966 city officials destroyed it for a glitzy new sports arena, one justified by an Olympic bid that ended in failure. Here’s how the controversial practice of “urban renewal” nearly wiped out Japantown and how the Japanese American community is fighting to protect what remains. Is history about to repeat itself?

Hosted by Harini Bhat, Ph.D., In The Margins is a new PBS series that covers the history they didn’t teach in school, exploring obscure, yet captivating tales that offer unique insights into their time and place.

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00:00 - Intro - How a sports arena + Urban Development plan demolished Salt Lake City's thriving Japantown
01:39 - History of Salt Lake City's Japantown growth
02:31 - Owning property and Alien Land Laws
03:03 - WWI, 1942 incarceration of Japanese Americans and discrimination
03:45 - Salt Lake City Japantown boom, White Flight, and Redevelopment
05:15 - 1972 Olympic Bid, sports arena
06:12 - National push for Urban Renewal, Eminent Domain Laws
07:00 - Response to Urban Development, Demolition of Japantown
07:24 - Olympic bid and Urban Development outcome and response
08:34 - What remains of Salt Lake City's once thriving Japantown
08:52 - Community response, Revitalizing Japantown
09:06 - Current development plans - Is history repeating itself?
09:36 - Japanese American community response to devastation and current developments
10:38 - Close - how has Urban Renewal affected your community?

↓↓More info and sources below↓↓

Check out more from Harini Bhat ‪@tilscience‬ !

Learn more about Salt Lake City's Japantown:
https://storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/...
https://slcjapantown.wixsite.com/utah...
https://www.intermountainhistories.or...

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