1988: U.S. pays restitution; apologizes to Unangan (Aleut) for WWII Internment
After years of debate, Congress orders restitution to 450 Unangan (Aleut) individuals for personal losses associated with their forced relocation during World War II and their internment in southeast Alaska. Under the terms of the Civil Liberties Act of 1988, each of the survivors receives $12,000, and a $6.4 million trust fund is created for their communities.
- Theme
- Federal-Tribal Relations
- Region
- Arctic
Luke Shelikoff, in his army uniform, poses with a relative, Mike Shelikoff, in 1946. Luke was an Unangan evacuee who left the Ward Lake Refugee Camp in southeast Alaska for miltary service during World War II.
Courtesy Alaska State Library, Aleutian /Pribilof Project Photograph Collection
Unangan Evacuees Cornelias Kudrin (right) and George Borenen (left) from Kaskega village, Unalaska Island, 1940s
Courtesy Alaska State Library, H.D. Carton Photograph Collection
Aleut (Unangan) children at a relocation camp in southeast Alaska, 1942
Courtesy Alaska State Library, Butler/Dale Photograph Collection