MEMORIAL HONORS JAPANESE IN U.S.Byline: Bill Hillburg Washington Bureau WASHINGTON - Memories tinged with pride and pain came flooding back on Friday for Southern California Southern California, also colloquially known as SoCal, is the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Centered on the cities of Los Angeles and San Diego, Southern California is home to nearly 24 million people and is the nation's second most populated region, residents who celebrated their heritage and sacrifice at the opening of the National Japanese American Japanese Americans (日系アメリカ人 Nikkei Amerikajin Memorial on the Capitol grounds. ``This tells our story, the good and the bad,'' said Chuck Kishimoto of San Dimas, whose family was forcibly removed from West Covina in 1942 and sent to an internment camp at Heart Mountain, Wyo. ``A great many American people, including a lot of my friends, don't know Don't know (DK, DKed) "Don't know the trade." A Street expression used whenever one party lacks knowledge of a trade or receives conflicting instructions from the other party. that I was in a concentration camp,'' Kishimoto said. The monument, built with $12 million in donations from civic and veterans groups, portrays key elements of the Japanese-American experience. Five large stones set in a pond symbolize Japan's main home islands. Tablets surrounding the pond recall the 10 internment camps, including Manzanar in the Owens Valley, where more than 120,000 Japanese Americans were interned at the outset of World War II. The internment, limited to Japanese-American residents of California, Washington and Oregon, was ordered by President Franklin D. Roosevelt on the grounds that the evacuees Resident or transient persons who have been ordered or authorized to move by competent authorities, and whose movement and accommodation are planned, organized and controlled by such authorities. were security threats and that their loyalty lay with the Japanese Empire. A stark wall lists the hundreds of Japanese-American soldiers who volunteered out of the camps and gave their lives in World War II. They served in the Army's 442nd Regimental Combat Team A regimental combat team was a provisional major infantry unit of the United States Army during the Second World War and Korean War. The regimental combat team, or "R.C.T.", was formed by augmenting a regular infantry regiment with smaller tank, artillery, combat engineer, and Military Intelligence Service, which were among the most honored military units in American history. ``This isn't just for the vets, it's for all of us,'' said Paul Bannai of Redondo Beach, who volunteered for the Army at an internment camp and saw combat as a Japanese language interpreter in the Pacific. Bannai, who grew up in East Los Angeles East Los Angeles, uninc. city (1990 pop. 126,379), Los Angeles co., S Calif., a residential suburb of Los Angeles, in an industrial area. It has a large Mexican-American population. There is a performing arts center and a cultural center. A junior college is there. and graduated from Roosevelt High School Roosevelt High School is the name of various public and independent secondary schools:
``I reported that night to my unit at Exposition Park,'' he recalled. ``They kicked me out of the service and told me I was an ineligible alien.'' Bacon Sakatani of West Covina, a Korean War Korean War, conflict between Communist and non-Communist forces in Korea from June 25, 1950, to July 27, 1953. At the end of World War II, Korea was divided at the 38th parallel into Soviet (North Korean) and U.S. (South Korean) zones of occupation. veteran whose family was also removed from West Covina and interned in Wyoming, recalled the hardship they endured when they were released from the camp at war's end in 1945. ``We had given up everything and were starting out again with nothing,'' Sakatani said. ``We had to pick potatoes in Idaho to earn enough money for the trip back to California.'' ``This monument says it all,'' said Don Tokunaga, a Los Angeles businessman and board member of the foundation that built the new facility. ``It also says this is a great country. We right our wrongs.'' Tokunaga's family lived in Colorado and was allowed to remain in their home throughout the war. But, his future wife, Amy Sasaki, and her family, who lived in Long Beach, were removed in April 1942 and interned in Jerome, Ark. ``This is the perfect complement to our Japanese American National Museum The Japanese American National Museum opened its doors in 1992. The museum is located in the Little Tokyo area near downtown Los Angeles, California. It is devoted to preserving the history and culture of Japanese Americans. in Los Angeles,'' said Irene Hirano, a Gardena native and executive director of the museum in Little Tokyo. ``And it is a great opportunity to educate millions more people on the history of the Japanese Americans.'' Presiding over Friday's opening ceremony were a number of notable former wartime internees, including U.S. Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta, a former San Jose mayor and House member; and Rep. Robert Matsui, D-Sacramento. Also on hand was Sen. Daniel Inouye, D-Hawaii. He earned the congressional Medal of Honor Congressional Medal of Honor n. The highest U.S. military decoration, awarded in the name of Congress to members of the armed forces for gallantry and bravery beyond the call of duty in action against an enemy. Noun 1. while serving with the 442nd Regimental Combat Team in World War II. |
|
||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion