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How a Dubious Olympic Bid Nearly Destroyed Bhis Japantown | Origins

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?