The Hawaii Herald

Editor’s note: These congratulatory messages ran in our recent Congressional Gold Medal of Honor issue, which recognizes the 100th Infantry Battalion, the 442nd Regimental Combat Team and the Military Intelligence Service. Due to popular demand, we will be featuring several articles from that commemorative edition of the Herald online.

Editor’s note: This story ran in our recent Congressional Gold Medal of Honor issue, which recognizes the 100th Infantry Battalion, the 442nd Regimental Combat Team and the Military Intelligence Service. Due to popular demand, we will be featuring several articles from that commemorative edition of the Herald online.

RESOURCES ON NISEI SOLDIERS
LEARN MORE ABOUT AMERICA’S NEWEST HEROES

There is much more to the story of America’s newest Congressional Gold Medal heroes than men simply going off to war in a foreign land. In order to truly understand and appreciate the significance of the awarding of the Congressional Gold Medal — the nation’s highest civilian award — to the Japanese American soldiers of the 100th Infantry Battalion, 442nd Regimental Combat Team and the Military Intelligence Servies, one has to understand the adversities the men and their families faced in their own country. Towards that goal, The Hawai‘i Herald has compiled a list of books, films and websites that can help you put World War II and the Nisei soldiers’ accomplishments in a historical perspective, including a few titles for younger readers. Most of these titles can be found in local libraries.

FILMS
“442: Live With Honor, Die With Dignity,” (2010) directed by Junichi Suzuki. Suzuki, a Japanese national, shares his unique perspective on the Japanese American 442nd Regimental Combat Team.

“Citizen Tanouye,” (2005) directed by Robert Horsting and Craig Yahata. History comes alive for students at Torrance High School in California while researching the life and times of school alumnus and Medal of Honor recipient Ted Tanouye, who was killed in action while serving with the 442nd RCT.

“Conscience and the Constitution,” (2001) directed by
Frank Abe. A documentary on the so-called “No-No Boys,” young Japanese American men who refused to be drafted unless they and their families were released from internment camps.

“Go For Broke!” (1951) directed by Robert Pirosh. Van Johnson stars in the first movie version of the story of the 442nd, from training to their battles in Europe.

“Honor Bound: A Personal Journey” (1995). Television journalist Wendy Hanamura’s award-winning documentary on her father’s 442nd unit — L Company, First Platoon.

“Only the Brave” (2006). An independent feature film about the 100th/442nd — written, directed and starring Sansei Lane Nishikawa.

BOOKS
“Ambassadors in Arms,” by Thomas D. Murphy; 1954, University of Hawai‘i Press. Murphy profiles the 100th Battalion from pre-birth to their performance in the European theater.

“Americans: The Story of the 442nd Combat Team,”
by Orville C. Shirey; 1946, Washington Infantry Journal Press. Shirey follows the 442nd Regimental Combat Team through the battlefields of Europe.

“And Then There Were Eight: The Men of I Company, 442nd Regimental Combat Team,” published in 2003 by Item Chapter of the 442nd Veterans Club. The veterans of I Company recall the events that took place between Oct. 15, 1944, and Nov. 8, 1944, when the 442nd battled German soldiers in the Vosges Mountains of France.

“Boyhood to War: History and Anecdotes of the 442nd Regimental Combat Team,” by Dorothy Matsuo; 1992, Mutual Publishing Company. Through oral histories, Matsuo tells the story of the 442nd soldiers.

“Bridge of Love,” by John Tsukano, a 100th/442nd veteran; 1985, Hawaii Hosts. A comprehensive look at the AJA soldiers, the forces that shaped them and how they were viewed within the military community

“Combat Chaplain: The Personal Story of the World War II Chaplain of the Japanese American 100th Battalion,” by Israel A.S. Yost; 2006, University of Hawai‘i Press. The memoirs of the 100th’s beloved wartime chaplain.

“Go For Broke: A Pictorial History of the Japanese American 100th Infantry Battalion and the 442nd Regimental Combat Team,” by 442nd RCT member Chester Tanaka; 1982, Go For Broke, Inc. An historical overview on the prewar conditions for Japanese Americans, followed by descriptions of the major campaigns and battles waged by the 100th/442nd RCT.

“Honor by Fire: Japanese Americans at War in Europe and the Pacific,” by Lyn Crost; 1994, Presidio Press. This comprehensive book by Crost, who covered the 100th/442nd in Europe as a war correspondent for the Honolulu Star-Bulletin, weaves together the history and exploits of the three Congressional Gold Medal military units.

“I Can Never Forget: Men of the 100th/442nd,” by Thelma Chang; 1991, Sigi Productions. A story of the Nisei soldiers — their upbringing, values and impressive record in World War II.

“In Freedom’s Cause: A Record of the Men of Hawaii Who Died in the Second World War,” by the Hawaii War Records Committee; 1949, University of Hawai‘i Press. Biographical sketches and photos of the Hawai‘i soldiers who were killed in World War II; also includes information on the medals and decorations they received.

“Japanese Eyes . . . American Hearts: Personal Reflections of Hawaii’s World II Nisei Soldiers,” compiled by the Hawaii Nikkei History Editorial Board; 1998, Tendai Educational Foundation. In their own words, veterans of the 100th, 442nd and MIS reflect on their World War II experiences.

“Just Americans: How Japanese Americans Won a War at Home and Abroad,” by Robert Asahina; 2006, Gotham Books. An extensive look at the 100th Battalion and the 442nd RCT, complete with interviews with veterans, maps and photographs.

“Nisei Linguists: Japanese Americans in the Military Intelligence Service During World War II,” by James C. McNaughton; 2006, Department of the Army. A comprehensive history of the MIS soldiers’ work in the Asia Pacific theater.

“No Sword to Bury: Japanese Americans in Hawai‘i During World War II,” by Franklin Odo; 2004, Temple University Press. One of the few books on AJA involvement in World War II that includes an extended section on the Varsity Victory Volunteers, the volunteer labor battalion whose patriotism contributed greatly to the formation of the 442nd.

“Remembrances: 100th Infantry Battalion 50th Anniversary Celebration, 1942-1992,” edited by 100th veteran Ben Tamashiro; 1992, 100th Infantry Battalion Publication Committee. 100th Battalion veterans share their memories of their war years.

“Secret Valor,” compiled and published by the MIS Veterans Club; 1993. Hawai‘i MIS veterans recall the various campaigns in which they were involved.

“The Japanese in Hawaii: A Century of Struggle,” by Roland Kotani; 1985, Hawaii Hochi, Ltd. This detailed history on the Japanese in Hawai‘i includes personal accounts of how World War II affected the lives of Japanese Americans and Hawaiian society.

“Unlikely Liberators: The Men of the 100th and 442nd,” by Masayo Umezawa Duus; 1987, University of Hawai‘i Press. Initially published in Japan in serialized form, “Unlikely Liberators” follows the AJA soldiers through the battlefields of Europe. The book is based on extensive research in War Department archives and interviews with the 100th and 442nd veterans.

FOR YOUNGER READERS
“Fighting For Honor: Japanese Americans and World War II,” by Michael L. Cooper; 2000, Clarion Books. A young adult-level book on the heroism of Japanese Americans during World War II.

“Nisei Regiment,” by R. Conrad Stein; 1985, Chicago Children’s Press. This book is a primer for schoolchildren on the role the Nisei soldiers played in World War II.

“Under the Blood-Red Sun,” (1994) and “Eyes of the Emperor,” (2005) by Graham Salibury. Published by Wendy Lamb Books, a division of Random House, Inc. These historical novels relating to the World War II Japanese American experience that have been recognized by the American Library Association.

WEBSITES
442nd Veterans Club (Hawai‘i): www.442.us.com

Go For Broke National Education Center:
 www.goforbroke.org

Japanese American National Museum: www.janm.org

Japanese American Veterans Association:
 www.javadc.org

National Japanese American Historical Society:
 www.njahs.org

Nisei Veterans Memorial Center: www.nvmc.org

100th Infantry Battalion Veterans Club: www.100thbattalion.org

Sons and Daughters of the 442 RCT: www.442sd.org

The Hawai‘i Nisei Story: Americans of Japanese Ancestry During World War II: 
www.nisei.hawaii.edu/page/stories

Editor’s note: This story ran in our recent Congressional Gold Medal of Honor issue, which recognizes the 100th Infantry Battalion, the 442nd Regimental Combat Team and the Military Intelligence Service. Due to popular demand, we will be featuring several articles from that commemorative edition of the Herald online.

LT. GEN. FRANCIS WIERCINSKI: “THANK YOU, NISEI VETERANS”
Those Who Survived Helped Secure Freedom For All, Says U.S. Army Pacific Top General

In the peaceful setting of the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific at Punchbowl, Lt. Gen. Francis J. Wiercinski, commander of the U.S. Army Pacific at Fort Shafter, delivered a stirring speech to veterans of the 100th Infantry Battalion, 442nd Regimental Combat Team, Military Intelligence Serve and the 1399th Engineer Construction Battalion. The occasion was the sixth annual Joint Memorial Service, sponsored by the Oahu AJA Veterans Council and hosted this year by the 442nd Veterans Club.

Lt. Gen. Wiercinski assumed command of the U.S. Army Pacific at Fort Shafter in March of this year. In that capacity, he leads over 62,000 active duty and reserve soldiers, including 6,700 who are currently deployed overseas. Wiercinski served as commanding general for the U.S. Army-Japan and “I” Corps Forward at Camp Zama from 2008-2010. He also served in Iraq and Afghanistan. Among the numerous decorations he has received are the Distinguished Service Medal, Bronze Star with “V” and the Order of the Rising Sun – Gold and Silver Star from the government of Japan.

The Herald is pleased to share Lt. Gen. Wiercinski’s message with you.

Aloha, and good morning to all of our distinguished guests . . . . and most especially to all of our fellow veterans, your families and your friends here both physically and in spirit . . . .”

“It’s always humbling and a distinct honor to address any gathering of our greatest generation. But this occasion, it’s even more special, as today we set aside a day to recognize some of our greatest heroes in our history — the veterans of Americans of Japanese ancestry. I cannot even begin to hope to add to the volumes already written of Japanese American valor at places like Salerno (Italy), Cassino (Italy), Anzio (Italy), Foret Dominial du Champ (France) — better known to most of us as the rescue of the “Lost Battalion.” But I do hope to capture some of that essence because that’s what resonates for our newest generation — those who are still defending us on battlefields in foreign lands, far away in places like Baghdad (Iraq), Mosul (Iraq), Kandahar (Afghanistan), Mazar-e Sharif (Afghanistan).

Valor is a universal, unchanging language that is passed between soldiers. It’s very difficult to explain. It’s very difficult to define. But as a soldier, as many of you who have been deployed in harm’s way and served in the company of heroes, you know it when you see it.

My father-in-law, Sgt. William A. Mussari (of the 85th Infantry Division who served in North Africa, Sicily and Italy with the 100th/442nd), served in Italy. He was fond of talking about the members of the 100th Battalion and the 442nd Regimental Combat Team. When they were on his side, he knew he had seen valor.

Although the Japanese American soldiers of World War II, Korea, Vietnam and the Middle East fought vastly different battles in extremely diverse environments, they were highlighted by a common thread: They were far from home and family and they were there to serve their nation. The personal courage and commitment of every generation of Japanese American soldier — it bridges the divide; it links each man and woman together in this community, a community of sacrifice and of service. The 100th Battalion veteran of Italy may not have served in Iraq, but he immediately has an unseen bond and uniquely appreciates the sacrifices of his fellow 100th Battalion veterans today.

Those that have followed 60 years later in their footsteps — the modern veteran and all of us still serving in uniform today — owe a vast debt of gratitude to you who have set the standard high long before us. You served our nation so valiantly in its darkest hour and while under intense pressure and strain back here at home. Ladies and gentlemen, please join me in a round of applause for these magnificent veterans.

As I sat down and started to think about what I would say to a gathering like this, a couple of things come to mind. Today is the 68th anniversary of the first Japanese American soldier’s death in World War II. I was struck by that fact this very morning, because as any visitor to Fort Shafter knows, one of the first things you see when you come out of the guard shack and you go down and up that long hill is a huge sign commemorating our stadium — the Joe Takata Field. I think that’s an important analogy here today. We may not realize it, but so much of our everyday lives here in Hawai‘i, and nationally, are touched by your accomplishments, both on and off the field of battle. Although we come here to remember the fallen, we cannot lose sight of the fact that the living — those who survived this war — did just as much after it to secure freedom as those who perished defending it.

The fruits of freedom enjoyed today by all Americans here at home were, in great part, bought and paid for by your time in uniform. As much as anyone, the service and sacrifice of the 100th Battalion, the 442nd Regimental Combat Team, the 1399th Engineer Construction Battalion and the American Japanese members of the Military Intelligence Service paved the way for President Harry Truman’s 1948 executive order integrating the United States military and ultimately led to the freedom and equality for all Americans. It’s no exaggeration to say that those of you here today saved our nation, not once, but twice.

After the war, AJA veterans of the greatest generation went on to serve as senators, government leaders, local officials, businessmen, educators, advocates and authors, building the modern United States. Most importantly, they became fathers, raising families imbued with the twin values of service and sacrifice. Your legacies — your children — are among your greatest feats.

I’d like to take the opportunity to say a few words to the often-overlooked pillars of your success — your families. As you battled tyranny in far off places, wives, girlfriends, children anxiously awaited news of your well-being. In an age before instant communication — the Internet, e-mail, mobile phones — all those waited back here, torturously, for word of your well-being. And, like today, relief only truly arrived when you came home. On behalf of a truly thankful nation and a grateful nation, thank you to all the families for your support from the home front; and even more importantly, thank you for all of your love and support since those days. Our veterans’ success and the modern world they created could not have happened without you.

A Congressional Gold Medal ceremony honoring Japanese American troops for their bravery in World War II will be held on Nov. 2 this year in Washington, D.C. As he watched President Obama sign the bill of authorization in the Oval Office, [U.S.] Senator Inouye, Medal of Honor recipient, severely wounded combat veteran and another of the many heroes of the 100th/442nd Regimental Combat Team, he noted that this gold medal will be shared with the families, loved ones and our friends. Just last week I had the honor to sit with Senator Inouye in the Capitol of his Washington, D.C., office. You can’t help but be drawn to the medal of honor pin that he wears very proudly on his coat jacket every day. And I can’t help but realize that he wears that also to remind us all of the great sacrifice borne of 13,000 Nisei soldiers and their families. In his words, “We knew that the recognition we were receiving was the result of lost lives and bloodshed. We remembered our brothers who did not come home from the war. I am grateful to this nation for remembering us.”

I’d like to close by saying that each of you gathered here today, either physically or in spirit, provide an example — an inspiration, an inspiration to those of us who have chosen to voluntarily, also at war, wear this uniform and take up your work of defending liberty, of defending our home. It’s impossible not to be humbled reading the citations of 21 Medal of Honor winners from the 100th Battalion and 442nd Regimental Combat Team. It’s also humbling to talk to each and every one of you — a decorated living veteran of an AJA unit. I can personally attest that the soldier serving today in the Pacific, the Hawai‘i Army National Guard and Reserves and especially the 9th Mission Support Command in our unit — we value your interest, your support and all that you do for our armed forces.

May you continue to live in peace, freedom and security that you fought to maintain and may you live in happiness and honor all the days ahead. You have certainly earned it, and the greatest gift that you can ever receive is not a medal or a citation — it is the freedom that you provide, the freedom that you gave your sons and daughters, and as an American son who grew up free, thank you, Nisei veterans.

Thank you allowing my wife Jeannine and I to be a part of this this morning — one team, Army strong, Go for Broke.

Editor’s note: This story ran in our recent Congressional Gold Medal of Honor issue, which recognizes the 100th Infantry Battalion, the 442nd Regimental Combat Team and the Military Intelligence Service. Due to popular demand, we will be featuring several articles from that commemorative edition of the Herald online.

HAWAI‘I CGM CELEBRATION
Hawai‘i Congressional Gold Medal Celebration Set For Dec. 17 and 18

The public will have an opportunity to congratulate America’s newest Congressional Gold Medal heroes during the “Hawai‘i Salute to the Congressional Gold Medal Veterans” celebration set for Saturday and Sunday, Dec. 17 and 18, in Honolulu. The national presentation was held Nov. 2 in the Emancipation Hall of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C.

The “Hawai‘i Salute to the Congressional Gold Medal Veterans” will be highlighted by a Saturday “Victory Parade” through Waikïkï, followed by a banquet at the Hawai‘i Convention Center, where veterans of the 100th Infantry Battalion, 442nd Regimental Combat Team and the Military Intelligence Service, along with their Nisei “brothers” who served on the homefront, the 1399th Engineer Construction Battalion, will be feted. The Hawai‘i celebration will conclude on Sunday with a memorial service at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific at Punchbowl.

The “Victory Parade” will begin at 10 a.m. at Fort DeRussy. The procession will travel down Kaläkaua Avenue, ending at Kapiolani Park — no activities are planned at the park. The procession will stop briefly in front of the Royal Hawaiian Shopping Center, where Honolulu Mayor Peter Carlisle will issue a proclamation.

Veterans from throughout the state who served in either of the four units are invited to participate in the parade, accompanied by an attendant or two, if necessary. The participants will be picked up in trolleys at the Hawai‘i Convention Center at 9:30 a.m. After the parade, they will be transported back to the convention center in time for the banquet.

U.S. Secretary of Veterans Affairs and retired U.S. Army Chief of Staff Gen. Eric Shinseki, a Kaua‘i native, will be the keynote speaker at the banquet. Veterans of the three Congressional Gold Medal units (100th, 442nd, MIS) in attendance at the banquet will be presented with bronze replicas of the medal by the banquet’s title sponsor, BAE Systems. Also on the banquet agenda is the showing of a special tribute video commissioned by the BAE Systems.

Veterans of the 100th, 442nd, MIS and 1399th and a guest of their choice will be hosted at the banquet. Tickets for all others are $75 per adult and $50 for children under 10 years of age. Those wishing to attend the banquet or purchase sponsor tables can contact either the 100th or the 442nd veterans clubs to reserve their seats. The 100th Infantry Battalion Veterans Club can be reached at (808) 946-0272 or by e-mail at club100vets@gmail.com; the 442nd Veterans Club can be reached at (808) 949-7997 or by e-mail at 442veterans@hawaiiantel.net.

Table sponsorships (for 10 people) are also available at the following levels: $10,000 Platinum (3 tables), $7,000 Gold (2 tables), $5,000 Silver (1 table), $3,000 Bronze (1 table) and $1,000 Family (1 table).

The Sunday memorial service at Punchbowl will honor the country’s newest Congressional Gold Medal recipients as well as the comrades they lost in battle and those claimed by the cycle of life. The service, which begins at 9 a.m., will additionally honor the 100th Infantry Battalion/442nd Infantry of the U.S. Army Reserves, which traces its lineage to the World War II 100th/442nd. The service is open to the public.

“Hawai‘i Salute to the Congressional Gold Medal Veterans” is being co-chaired by recently retired state adjutant general, Maj. Gen. Robert Lee; former television journalist and now communications executive Barbara Tanabe, who is the daughter of MIS veteran Frank Tanabe; and James Kuroiwa of the Go for Broke Association.

Editor’s note: This story ran in our recent Congressional Gold Medal of Honor issue, which recognizes the 100th Infantry Battalion, the 442nd Regimental Combat Team and the Military Intelligence Service. Due to popular demand, we will be featuring several articles from that commemorative edition of the Herald online. 

SISTER CITIES
Bruyeres-Honolulu Ties Reaffirmed

The 50th anniversary of the sister-city relationship between Honolulu and Bruyeres, France, was celebrated with a reaffirmation ceremony held in the courtyard of Honolulu Hale on Oct. 6.

Thirty-eight people from Bruyeres, which is located in the Vosges Mountains of northeastern France, near the French-German border, attended the ceremonies, including deputy mayor Ludovic Durain. The delegation was the largest from Bruyeres to visit Hawai‘i since 1976.

The relationship between the two cities — located more than 7,000 miles apart — dates back to October 1944, when Bruyeres was liberated from Nazi occupation by soldiers of the 100th Infantry Battalion and the 442nd Regimental Combat Team.

In 1960, the late Wilbert “Sandy” Holck, a 442nd veteran and future Honolulu city councilman, returned to Bruyeres as a tourist, where he met Bruyeres resident Gerard Deschaseaux for the first time. The story of how Honolulu and Bruyeres came to be united as sister-cities is detailed in the accompanying piece written by Holck’s son-in-law, Eric Nemoto, following the family’s trip to Bruyeres in October 2009.

In his City Hall remarks, Sandy Holck’s son Willard, chair of the Honolulu-Bruyeres 2011 Committee, paid homage to his father for his role in fostering the international friendship.

“Like many of the veterans who searched for meaning and purpose to the death and destruction they endured, he was determined never to forget,” Willard said.

“The sister-city relationship would become more than a gesture of goodwill; it would become a platform to educate future generations of the impact of the 100th/442nd Regimental Combat Team on the history of Hawai‘i, the rest of the United States and Europe.”

The Holck family has maintained ties with the Deschaseaux family through the years — Willard even refers to Deschaseaux’s widow, Marcelle, as his “French mother.” Marcelle, a former kindergarten teacher who attended the ceremony, taught her students to sing the state song “Hawai‘i Pono‘i” out of gratitude for the Nisei soldiers.

The younger Holck and his family got to witness that spectacle on their trip to Bruyeres in 2009.

“It was like a chicken-skin moment,” he said. “Not only did she teach her students to sing ‘Hawai‘i Pono‘i,’ she taught them to sign it like Hawaiians.”

Honolulu Mayor Peter Carlisle delivered his message to the audience in both French and English, declaring that he will visit Bruyeres “as soon as possible.” Carlisle pledged to continue the relationship between the two cities, saying, “We hope to be able to keep this tradition going as long as humanly possible.” He and deputy mayor Durain then signed the reaffirmation document.

Although the 33-year-old Durain was born more than three decades after the 100th/442nd liberated his town, he was nevertheless well-versed in Bruyeres’ World War II history. Durain honored the AJA soldiers who lost their lives in the liberation of Bruyeres.

“Along with freedom, peace, and a blow to Nazism and its procession of inhumanities, they brought us a friendship which will live for a long time across the land and sea,” he said.

Following an exchange of gifts and the signing of the reaffirmation document, honorary French Consul Patricia Lee presented France’s highest military honor, the Legion of Honor, to Masao Tamura of Kauai. The 88-year-old 442nd veteran was wounded in the Vosges during the rescue of the “Lost Battalion” in October 1944.

In lieu of an extended speech, Tamura, a bookkeeper for over 40 years at Kauai Veterans Express, left the crowd with a simple message: “I would like to say to the French people, ‘Merci beaucoup.’” (“Thank you very much.”) — Joe Udell