Judge Raymond Uno poses in front of a photograph from the Kasai Japanese American Archive.

The Raymond S. Uno Celebration, a benefit for the University of Utah’s J. Willard Marriott Library, paid tribute to Judge Uno’s lifetime efforts as an advocate for human and civil rights and social justice for all persons regardless of racial, cultural, gender identity and religious difference. Funds will go to the library’s Special Collections Department to create the Raymond S. Uno Legacy Archive chronicling the stories of the ethnic communities and immigrants in Utah.

In 1942 he was sent to Heart Mountain Wyoming internment camp, a Japanese American camp, where he spent three years, during which he lost his father. As a child, Uno attended segregated schools. During his high school years, he worked in restaurants and on farms and railroad tracks to support his family and to save for college. Prior to entering the U, Uno served in the United States Military Army Intelligence.

While at the U Uno earned numerous degrees: a bachelor’s in political science in 1955; a bachelor’s of laws in ’58 and a master’s of social work. He will receive an honorary doctorate degree, the highest honor given by the University, at the 2018 commencement ceremony.

Uno enjoyed a long and successful legal career; he was Utah’s first ethnic minority judge. For nearly a quarter of a century, Uno served as a judge to the Salt Lake City Court, 5th Circuit Court, Third District Court and as a senior Third District Court judge. He was a referee of the juvenile court, deputy Salt Lake County attorney and assistant attorney general of Utah.

Photo credit: Center for Documentary Expression and Art, Kent Miles & George Janecek

Associate Dean for Special Collections Gregory Thompson comments, “We have a good start on collecting the stories of the diverse peoples and communities of Utah, but we need to grow these collections. Judge Uno is the person to help us lead this effort. His personal and professional life experiences reflect his commitment to civil rights and social justice, which is reflected in his involvement with the ethnic, immigrant and Utah’s communities at-large.”

The Raymond S. Uno Celebration featured a presentation by Dale Minami, who has been involved in the civil rights litigation of Asian Pacific Americans including the seminal civil rights case “Korematsu v. United States” that overturned a 40-year old conviction for refusal to obey exclusion orders aimed at Japanese Americans during WWII. Special achievement awards were presented to longtime civil rights leader Robert “Archie” Archuleta,  professor and civic leader Boyer Jarvis and community leader Margaret Yee.