Rafu Staff Report

SAN JOSE — A statue honoring the beloved namesake of San Jose Mineta International Airport, Norman Yoshio Mineta (1931-2022), was unveiled on Jan. 25.

The statue, located in the Terminal B Baggage Claim area, was created by San Jose State University instructor and sculptor Steve Davis and commissioned by Quest Valley Charities, a nonprofit dedicated to honoring Silicon Valley leaders.

The granite pedestal tells Mineta’s story and includes the names of donors who made the statue a reality.

The project, which began before Mineta’s death, was led by former Santa Clara County Supervisor Rod Diridon Sr. and former Santa Clara County Superintendent of Schools Colleen Wilcox, who raised $200,000 from local businesses, civic groups and individuals.

The unveiling was carried out by Mineta’s wife, Danealia “Deni” Mineta, and his sons, David and Stuart Mineta. The ceremony included a performance by San Jose Taiko and opening remarks by John Aitken, the airport’s director of aviation. 

“Thank you, Rod Diridon Sr., Colleen Wilcox, Karen Philbrick (executive director of the Mineta Transportation Institute at SJSU) and the rest of the Quest Valley Charities for this wonderful tribute to Dad,” said David Mineta. “There are no words for how grateful our family is to QVC, SJC (the airport’s code name) and the sculptor, Stephen Davis.”

As a child incarcerated with his family at the Heart Mountain camp in Wyoming, Norman Mineta could not have imagined that someday he would serve in the highest levels of government and have an airport named in his honor.

His career as a public official started in the late 1960s as a member of the City Council in San Jose, his hometown. He was later elected mayor. A Democrat, he represented the area in Congress for two decades, serving as chair and ranking member of the House Transportation Committee and supporting legislation that provided redress and a formal apology to Japanese American incarcerees.

Mineta became the first Asian American to serve at the Cabinet level as secretary of commerce for President Bill Clinton, then was appointed secretary of transportation by President George W. Bush. He is remembered for ordering all civilian air traffic in the U.S. grounded immediately after the 9/11 attacks.

Local officials who attended the unveiling included Reps. Zoe Lofgren, Anna Eshoo and Ro Khanna, former Rep. Mike Honda, State Sen. Dave Cortese, Santa Clara County Supervisors Cindy Chavez and Susan Ellenberg, San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan, and former San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo. They were joined by David Pekoske, administrator of the Department of Homeland Security’s Transportation Security Administration, whose creation was spearheaded by Mineta.

“Norman Mineta made a huge impact on the San Jose community, and this event and statue poignantly honor his contributions,” said Lofgren. “I’m proud to have called Norman a colleague and a friend.”

“I think it is one of the highest expressions of love that we look to honor others who we most want to be like,” said Chavez, a former vice mayor of San Jose. “When I think about Norm, his relationship-building, his smarts, his willingness to compromise and be the way forward … what I saw him do more than once was make sure that he found the path that served the most people even if it didn’t serve him. That, to me, is leadership.”

Diridon said that Vice President Kamala Harris had been scheduled to speak, but her itinerary changed.

The Heart Mountain Wyoming Foundation was represented by its chair, Shirley Ann Higuchi, and vice chair, Douglas Nelson. Mineta was a frequent participant in the Heart Mountain Pilgrimage, and the Heart Mountain Interpretive Center has named a new institute after him and his lifelong friend former Sen. Alan Simpson (R-Wyo.). The Mineta Simpson Institute will open in July during the next pilgrimage.

Sponsors of the statue included the California Asian American and Pacific Islander Legislative Caucus, Dallas and Masumi Hodgson, Daphne Kwok and family, Dr. Gloria S. Hom, Geraldine Watanabe, Glen S. and Sakie T. Fukushima, Heart Mounain Wyoming Foundation, Japanese American National Museum, Jeanne Nakagawa, Leslie Jin, National JACL, San Jose JACL, and Yoshihiro Uchida and family.

The following day, the Japanese American National Museum in Los Angeles dedicated Norman Y. Mineta Democracy Plaza and inaugurated the Norman Y. Mineta Distinguished Lecture.

Photos by George Toshio Johnston, Courtesy of PacificCitizen.org (except where noted)

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