| 1952 | |
| 1961 | |
| 1962 | |
| 1963 | |
| 1964a | (649) That this forced "relocation" was probably unnecessary was shown by the loyalty of Japanese-Americans in Hawaii during the war, and by the fine fighting record of "Nisei" (Japanese-American) troops. |
| 1964b | |
| 1964c | (616) Yet Japanese-Americans in Hawaii were left unmolested without incident throughout the war. A total of 17,600 Japanese-Americans served in the armed forces. Their units, especially in Italy, established outstanding records for bravery under fire. |
| 1964d | |
| 1964e | |
| 1965 | |
| 1966a | |
| 1966b | |
| 1966c | |
| 1966d | - |
| 1966e | (741) Despite this discrimination, many Americans of Japanese ancestry served with honor and courage in the United States armed forces. |
| 1967a | |
| 1967b | |
| 1967c | |
| 1968a | - |
| 1968b | |
| 1968c | |
| 1969a | |
| 1969b | |
| 1969c | |
| 1969d | |
| 1970 | |
| 1971a | |
| 1971b | |
| 1972 | |
| 1973 | |
| 1974 | (758) Driven from their homes into these American versions of concentration camps, these loyal Japanese Americans needlessly suffered loss of their freedom, homes, land, and dignity. This unfair treatment did not deter over 33,000 Japanese Americans from enlisting and fighting bravely for the United States. |
| 1975 | - |
| 1976 | - |
| 1978a | - |
| 1978b | |
| 1980 | |
| 1981a | |
| 1981b | (314) The record of Asian Americans' loyalty to their new nation has been outstanding. During both world wars, Chinese Americans and Japanese Americans worked and fought in their nation's defense. For example, the all-Japanese-American 442nd Regimental Combat Team became one of the most highly decorated combat units in World War II. This was despite the fact that the families of most of these soldiers were being held in relocation centers. Following World War II, Chinese Americans, Japanese Americans, Fillipino Americans, and other Americans of Asian ancestry became part of the nation's postwar boom. Today, Asian Americans have achieved success in the arts, the sciences, education, and industry. In addition, newly arriving immigrants from Asia are bringing their skills and abilities, which are helping our society to grow and prosper. [Pictures] Japanese American troops advancing in Italy during World War II ? 1943. Internment camp for Japanese Americans ? 1942. |
| 1982a | (338) Yet there had never been any real proof that these Japanese Americans had been disloyal. Indeed, nearly all of the Nisei remained loyal, patriotic American citizens despite their harsh, unfair treatment. Many of those allowed to serve in the armed forces distinguished themselves for bravery. |
| 1982b | (635) Despite this treatment, many citizens of Japanese ancestry joined the armed forces. They served with great distinction. Many gave their lives. |
| 1982c | - |
| 1982d | |
| 1982e | (620) Despite this bitter experience, almost all the Japanese in America expressed only a desire to prove their loyalty. Moreover, 8000 Nisei -- children born in the United States of Japanese parentage -- enlisted in the armed forces, such as the infantry of the much decorated 442nd Regimental Combat Team. (620) [Picture] In all, 8000 Japanese-Americans joined the armed services despite the loss of their civil liberties a home. The 442nd Combat Team posed for this photograph in 1944, while receiving citations for bravery. |
| 1983a | - |
| 1983b | (167) "Go for Broke." Even as the Japanese Americans on the West Coast were being herded into camps, others were joining the United States Army. In Hawaii alone, 16,000 Americans of Japanese descent were drafted into the Army. More than three times that many eventually served in the United States armed forces in World War II. At first the Army did not accept Nisei (American-born offspring of Japanese immigrants). When it changed its policy, thousands -- determined to prove their loyalty to the United States -- signed up. Among them were over a thousand young men who were living in the relocation centers! The most famous Nisei units during the war were the 100th Infantry Battalion and the 442nd Regimental Combat Team. These units fought in Europe, first in Italy and then in France. From September 1943 to early February 1944, the 100th was in action almost continuously. In June 1944 the 100th became a unit of the 442nd, which went into action at that time in Italy. The members of this combat team fought with a bravery and reckless heroism that was summed up in their battle cry, "Go for Broke." They took heavy casualties: more than 1,700 killed and nearly 5,000 wounded. They were also among the most decorated units in the United States Army. Commenting on the heroism of the Japanese Americans, General Joseph Stilwell, one of the outstanding generals of World War II, declared. "The Nisei bought an awfully big hunk of America with their blood." In later years many who served in the 100th and 442nd held important positions in private and public life. Both Daniel Inouye and Spark Matsunaga, United States senators from Hawaii as these words are written, proudly count themselves as "graduates" of the 442nd. (167) [Picture] In 1944, General Mark Clark and Navy Secretary James Forrestal review Nisei Troops in Italy. |
| 1983c | (443) "Go for Broke." Even as the Japanese Americans on the West Coast were being herded into camps, others were joining the United States Army. In Hawaii alone, 16,000 Americans of Japanese descent were drafted into the Army. More than three times that many eventually served in the United States armed forces in World War II. At first the Army did not accept Nisei (American-born offspring of Japanese immigrants). When it changed its policy, thousands -- determined. to prove their loyalty to the United States -- signed up. Among them were over a thousand young men who were living in the relocation centers! The most famous Nisei units during the war were the 100th Infantry Battalion and the 442nd Regimental Combat Team. These units fought in Europe, first in Italy and then in France. From September 1943 to early February 1944, the 100th was in action almost continuously. In June 1944 the 100th became a unit of the 442nd, which went into action at that time in Italy. The members of this combat team fought with a bravery and reckless heroism that was summed up in their battle cry, "Go for Broke." They took heavy casualties: more than 1,700 killed and nearly 5,000 wounded. They were also among the most decorated units in the United States Army. Commenting on the heroism of the Japanese Americans, General Joseph Stilwell, one of the outstanding generals of World War II, declared. "The Nisei bought an awfully big hunk of America with their blood." In later years many who served in the 100th and 442nd held important positions in private and public life. Both Daniel Inouye and Spark Matsunaga, United States senators from Hawaii as these words are written, proudly count themselves as "graduates" of the 442nd. (443) [Picture] In 1944, General Mark Clark and Navy Secretary James Forrestal review Nisei Troops in Italy. |
| 1983d | - |
| 1984 | |
| 1985a | (734) Yet 17,600 Japanese Americans served in the armed forces of the United States, many of them distinguishing themselves for outstanding bravery under fire. |
| 1985b | (573) In 1943 the American military finally agreed to accept Japanese Americans into service. Thousands of them enlisted, including 1200 men from detention camps. Their war record was outstanding. None of the Japanese Americans in the camps were ever found to pose a threat to the country. |
| 1985c | (250) In June, 1941, before America's official entry into World War II, Fred Korematsu tried to enlist in the Navy. Although the Navy was actively recruiting men in anticipation of entering the war, the service did not allow Korematsu, an American citizen of Japanese ancestry, to enlist. |
| 1986a | - |
| 1986b | (807) Yet there had never been any real proof that these Japanese Americans had been disloyal. Indeed, nearly all of the Nisei remained loyal, patriotic American citizens despite their harsh, unfair treatment. Many of those allowed to serve in the armed forces distinguished themselves for bravery. |
| 1986c | (634) At first, Japanese Americans were barred from serving in the military. Later, this policy was changed. More than 10,000 Japanese Americans volunteered for service. Many were cited for their bravery. One unit of Japanese Americans used the slogan "Go for broke!" It became a popular rallying cry across the nation. |
| 1986d | - |
| 1986e | - |
| 1986f | (499-500) Despite this unfair treatment, many young Japanese Americans volunteered to serve in the armed forces. They had an outstanding record, especially in the fighting against Italy. 14. World War II proved to be a turning point for most Asian Americans. During the war, many Chinese Americans found work in the nation's airplane plants and factories. Japanese Americans fought bravely in Europe. |
| 1987a | - |
| 1987b | - |
| 1988 | (619) Despite this mistreatment, the Nisei showed their loyalty to America. Thousands of Nisei were allowed to fight against the Germans. Many of them received medals for bravery. |
| 1989a | (634) At first, Japanese Americans were barred from serving in the military. Later, this policy was changed. More than 10,000 Japanese Americans volunteered for service. Many were cited for their bravery. One unit of Japanese Americans used the slogan "Go for broke!" It became a popular rallying cry across the nation. SECTION REVIEW. What Do You Think? Why do you think Japanese Americans were the only group forced to live in relocation camps? |
| 1989b | - |
| 1990a | (674) Despite this unfair and humiliating treatment, Japanese Americans remained loyal to their country. More than 1,200 internees petitioned the President to give them a chance to serve. They were allowed to form the 100th Infantry Battalion, which became one of the most highly decorated fighting units in United States military history. (674) Even so, thousands of young Japanese Americans volunteered for the United States armed forces. The mother at right, interned with her younger son in a "temporary" camp, proudly displays a picture of her son in the United States Army. |
| 1990b | (571) Despite this humiliating treatment, 1200 men volunteered from the camps to serve in the United States armed forces. In a segregated unit these soldiers in the 442nd Regimental Combat Team fought heroically in Italy. Another Japanese American battalion was recruited from Hawaii, where there was no internment because there were so many Japanese. |
| 1990c | (665) In fact, when it was finally decided to accept Japanese Americans into service in 1943, thousands of them signed up. One of their groups, the 442nd Regimental Combat Team, was the most decorated combat force in the army. Its motto, "Go for broke," accurately described the reckless bravery of its members in combat in Italy and France. (665) [Picture] General Mark Clark presents heroism awards to the Japanese American 442nd Combat Team. *Why did some Americans find this regiment's achievements surprising? |
| 1990d | (863) One 6-year-old kept asking his mother to "take him back to America." He thought his relocation center was in Japan. The evacuation of the Japanese-Americans appears in retrospect to have been unjustified. Even in Hawaii, where a much larger Japanese population existed, the government attempted no evacuation, and no sabotage and little disloyalty occurred. The government allowed Japanese-American men to volunteer for military service, and many served bravely in the European theater. The 442nd Infantry Combat Team, made up entirely of nisei, became the most decorated unit in all the military service another indication of the loyalty and patriotism of the Japanese-Americans. |
| 1990e | (647-8) In positive ways the American people proved themselves ready and willing to fight a worldwide conflict. Army and navy recruiting offices were flooded with volunteers, including the 350,000 women who served in the American armed forces. Meanwhile, on the home front, women stepped in to fill jobs left by men in arms. They also took many newly created jobs in heavy industry and war plants where they built airplanes and fighting ships. |
| 1991 | (613) Like some 33,000 other Japanese Americans, Peter Ota eventually joined the armed forces. Beginning in 1943 the American government began recruiting Japanese Americans for military service. Nisei (nee-SAY) battalions -- units made up of second-generation Japanese Americans -- served with distinction on European battlefields. |
| 1992a | - |
| 1992b | |
| 1992c | (290) Some young men won release from the camps by joining the U.S. Army. The remainder, however, were forced to stay in the camps until President Roosevelt rescinded the evacuation order and closed the camps in 1945. |
| 1992d | (677) Despite this humiliating treatment, 1200 men volunteered from the camps to serve in the United States armed forces. In a segregated unit these soldiers in the 442nd Regimental Combat Team fought heroically in Italy. Another Japanese American battalion was recruited from Hawaii, where there was no internment because there were so many Japanese. |
| 1992e | (677) Despite this humiliating treatment, 1200 men volunteered from the camps to serve in the United States armed forces. In a segregated unit these soldiers in the 442nd Regimental Combat Team fought heroically in Italy. Another Japanese American battalion was recruited from Hawaii, where there was no internment because there were so many Japanese. |
| 1992f | |
| 1992g | (674) Like some 30,000 other young Japanese Americans, Peter eventually served in the armed forces. He spent his leaves visiting his father and sister in the camps. . . . The Outcome. Even though they were treated unfairly, Japanese Americans remained loyal to their country. More than 1,200 young Japanese American men petitioned the President to give them a chance to serve. They formed the 100th Infantry Battalion. It became one of the most highly decorated fighting units in United States military history. (See "An Incident on the Italian Front" on page 792.) (792) Early in 1943, the United States Army announced that it would accept 4,000 Japanese-American volunteers to form a combat team. (It became the most decorated American military unit.) Among the first to sign up was Daniel Inouye, a young Hawaiian. During a German grenade attack, Inouye lost his right arm. Years later, he became a United States senator. In the following excerpt from his autobiography, he describes an incident during the fighting in Italy. (793-4) VOCABULARY: Before you read the selection, find the meaning of these words in a dictionary: laceration, malevolent, spasmodically. I never got used to it. Deep down, I think no one did. We pretended to be calloused and insensitive because we understood the fatal consequence of caring too much. You were no good to your men; you were through as a soldier if you cared too much. But hidden in the core of every man's being, there must have been a wound, a laceration of the spirit, and the abrasives of war rubbed against it every day and you thought that even if you lived, and the years passed, it would never stop bleeding. One morning I was leading a forward patrol along a gentle slope toward an ancient farmhouse that sat deserted and glaring in the sun. Only it wasn't deserted. We were barely thirty yards away when a machine gun spat fire from a darkened window and my lead scout was all but cut in half. The rest of us hit the ground and I hollered for the bazooka while bullets from that dark window kept seeking us out in steady; disciplined bursts of six. With a whoosh and a glowing roar, our rocket tore into the weathered frames of the house and it sagged crazily, and the machine gun was still. We ran forward in the sun, throwing grenades as we closed on that malevolent window, crashing inside before the dust of the explosion had fairly settled. Two of the Germans were dead, torn to shapeless hulks by the bazooka. The third, an ammo [ammunition] bearer, I guess, had been thrown back across the room, and he lay sprawled against the wall, nearly senseless, one leg shredded and twisted completely around. "Kamerad" [comrade], he whispered, smiling sadly "Kamerad." I think I felt sorry for him. I don't know. I was thinking about my scout, lying dead out there in the sun. Anyhow, it didn't matter. He reached into his tunic and I thought he was going for a gun -- it was war; you only had one chance to make the right decision -- and I pumped the last three shots in my rifle clip into his chest. He jerked each time, and the last time, as he toppled over, his hand sprang spasmodically out from his tunic, and he held up a snapshot, clutching it in death. There was a woman in it, a pretty woman, and two little kids, and there was a handwritten inscription: "Deine Dichliebende Frau, Heidi."* [*German for "Your loving wife, Heidi."] So I had made a widow and two orphans. I had to secure the farmhouse and get a message back for a burial detail to come get our man. I had a lot to think about. But sooner or later, you know, there comes the time when a man has to face up to whatever it is that's hanging back there on the rim of his conscience. I never remembered that German's face, only his hand clutching the picture. For days I fought the image down, but it kept returning and, at last, when they pulled us back to a rest area, I went to see the Chaplain, Hiro Higuchi. "How can I help you, Dan?" He looked as desolate as I felt. "I don't know." I shrugged. "I guess I just wanted to talk to somebody." "I know. I know how it must be." We were quiet for a while, then I said. "The thing is, it's as though there were two Dan Inouyes, Chaplain. One of me is damn proud of the kind of soldier I am. I'm a good squad leader. I'm tough. I do my job." "But?" "But I can't get used to it, killing other men. Chaplain, I was brought up in the kind of house where we had an obligation to a hungry dog or a sick cat. My parents are gentle people, they never lifted a hand to any of us kids. I believe that thou shalt not kill." "Don't ever stop believing it, Dan," he said urgently. "Listen, this is not our way. We are fighting because we have to. Our enemy does believe in killing. He has killed millions of blameless people already, and he will kill us if we do not defend ourselves and our liberty. There is no making peace with madmen. This is what you must remember. You must fight -- yes, and kill -- to protect the kind of life that helped you grow up to hate killing." I left his tent and walked in the darkness for a while. It was good to talk with someone about it. I felt better. And then as I picked my way over the stony terrain toward my own area, I remembered my father sitting next to me on that crowded bus to Nuuanu,* and the plea in his voice when he said, "Do not bring dishonor on our name." [*Nuuanu was the Hawaiian town where Inouye first reported for duty.] And if there was one thing I knew for sure, it was which side honor was on. [From the book, JOURNEY To WASHINGTON by Senator Daniel K. Inouye with Lawrence Elliott C 1967. used by permission of the publisher, Prentice Hall/A division of Simon & Schuster, Inc., Englewood Cliffs, N.J. 07632.] THINKING ABOUT THE SELECTION. 1. Why did Inouye and his fellow soldiers pretend to be calloused? 2. Why did Inouye shoot the wounded German? 3. Defending a Position Do you agree with the advice the chaplain gave Inouye? Why or why not? |
| 1993a | |
| 1993b | - |
| 1994a | (357) Despite such hysterical racial repression, many units of Nisei (Americans of Japanese descent) performed heroically in the United States armed forces. |
| 1994b | (865) One 6-year-old kept asking his mother to "take him back to America." He thought his relocation center was in Japan. The evacuation of the Japanese-Americans appears in retrospect to have been unjustified. Even in Hawaii, where a much larger Japanese population existed, the government attempted no evacuation, and no sabotage and little disloyalty occurred. The government allowed Japanese American men to volunteer for military service, and many served bravely in the European theater. The 442nd Infantry Combat Team, made up entirely of nisei, became the most decorated unit in all the military service-another indication of the loyalty and patriotism of the Japanese-Americans. |
| 1994c | (498) [Picture] Despite the bitter experience of their internment during World War II, Japanese Americans today are proud of their loyalty to the United States. (563) Despite this harsh treatment, thousands of Japanese Americans in the armed forces served loyally. |
| 1994d | (81) USING A GRAPH: THE ARMED FORCES IN WORLD WAR II. Many different groups of Americans helped our country during World War II. African Americans, Hispanic Americans, Japanese Americans, and women served in branches of the armed forces. A. INTERPRETING A BAR GRAPH. The bar graph below shows the participation of groups of Americans in the armed forces during World War II. Look at the bar graph carefully. Use your textbook and the graph to answer the following questions. 1. How many groups of Americans are shown in the bar graph? Name them. 3: African Americans, women, Japanese Americans. |
| 1995a | - |
| 1995b | (228) (11) At first, Japanese-Americans, called Nisei, were not allowed to volunteer for the armed forces. (12) When they were given that privilege in 1943, they offered their services by the thousands as soldiers, spies, and translators. (13) They were willing to fight for their country even though they had been badly treated by it. (14) As members of the armed forces, the Nisei established records that have seldom, if ever, been equaled. (15) The all-Nisei 442nd Combat Team earned more medals and citations for bravery that any other unit in World War II. (16) Bradford Smith, in his book called American from Japan, tells how useful the Nisei were as soldiers, spies, and translators. (17) For example, Smith tells of the bravery of one Japanese-American, Terry Doi. (18) Terry Doi was one of the first soldiers to land on Iwo Jima. (19) He took a flashlight with him as he went into cave after cave. (20) He tried to persuade the enemy to surrender. (21) He saved many American lives this way at the risk of his own. |
| 1995c | - |
| 1996a | (759) Some Japanese Americans protested, especially when government officials circulated a loyalty questionnaire that asked Nisei citizens if they would be willing to serve in the armed forces. "What do they take us for? Saps?" asked Dunks Oshima, a camp prisoner. "First, they change my army status to 4-C [enemy alien] because of my ancestry; run me out of town, and now they want me to volunteer for a suicide squad so I could get killed for this damn democracy." Yet thousands of Nisei did enlist, and many distinguished themselves in combat. |
| 1996b | |
| 1996c | |
| 1996d | - |
| 1996e | |
| 1997a | (305) The Japanese remained in those camps for over three years. There were strikes, petitions, mass meetings, refusal to sign loyalty oaths, riots against the camp authorities. The Japanese Michi Weglyn was a young girl when her family experienced evacuation and detention. She tells (Years of Infamy) of bungling in the evacuation, of misery, but also of resistance. It was a war waged by a government whose chief beneficiary despite volumes of reforms -- was a wealthy elite. By 1941 three-fourths of the value of military contracts were handled by fifty-six large corporations. Of $1 billion spent on scientific research in industry, $400 million went to ten large corporations. |
| 1997b | (509) Hispanics were the most decorated of American ethnic groups, while the Japanese American 442nd Regiment was the most decorated unit. Japanese American soldiers fought loyally during the war in spite of the severe discrimination suffered by their families back home. |
| 1998a | (963-4) Some Japanese within the camps protested, especially when government officials circulated a loyalty questionnaire that asked Nisei citizens if they would be willing to serve in the armed forces. "What do they take us for? Saps?" asked Dunks Oshima, a camp prisoner. "First, they change my army status to 4-C [enemy alien] because of my ancestry, run me out of town, and now they want me to volunteer for a suicide squad so I could get killed for this damn democracy. That's going some, for sheer brass!" Yet thousands of Nisei did enlist, and many distinguished themselves in combat. |
| 1998b | - |
| 1998c | (887) One 6 year-old kept asking his mother to "take him back to America." He thought his relocation center was in Japan. The evacuation of the Japanese Americans appears in retrospect to have been unjustified. Even in Hawaii, where a much larger Japanese population existed, the government attempted no evacuation, and no sabotage and little disloyalty occurred. The government allowed Japanese American men to volunteer for military service, and many served bravely in the European theater. The 442nd Infantry Combat Team, made up entirely of nisei, became the most decorated unit in all the military service -- another indication of the loyalty and patriotism of the Japanese Americans. |
| 1999a | - |
| 1999b | (764) Some Japanese Americans protested, especially when government officials circulated a loyalty questionnaire that asked Nisei citizens if they would be willing to serve in the armed forces. "What do they take us for? Saps?" asked Dunks Oshima, a camp prisoner. "First, they change my army status to 4-C [enemy alien] because of my ancestry, run me out of town, and now they want me to volunteer for a suicide squad so I could get killed for this damn democracy!" Yet thousands of Nisei did enlist, and many distinguished themselves in combat. |
| 1999c | (836) Some internees were able to leave the camps by working outside, supplying much-needed labor, especially farm work. By the fall of 1942, one-fifth of all males had left the camps to work. Others volunteered for military service, the other escape route from the camps. Japanese-American units served in both the Pacific and Europe. The most famous unit was the four-thousand-man 442nd Regimental Combat Team, which saw action in Italy, France, and Germany. The men of the 442nd were among the most decorated in the U.S. Army (see Individual Choices: Daniel Ken Inouye). |