While George Doi was valiantly fighting his way across Europe and into Germany during WWII, his wife gave birth to their daughter while interned at the Amache Concentration camp, near Granada, CO. In a rare instance of a Nisei soldier being recognized for leadership, hard work, and character, Doi was promoted to second lieutenant, and received a Bronze Star. Thanks to Doi's promotion, his wife and child were released and allowed to relocate to California. Click the link to explore Doi's story.

George Hara and his family were sent to Minidoka concentration camp in 1943. In '44 he was drafted and assigned to the Military Intelligence Service. The military knew that in-depth knowledge of the Japanese language would be these soldiers’ secret weapon in defeating the enemy. Linguists like Hara interrogated prisoners, translated captured documents, and used loudspeakers and leaflets to encourage surrender. Their translations revealed the enemy’s plans, positions, and military operations.

Stanley Hayami’s tremendous journey from being imprisoned in a Wyoming concentration camp to fighting abroad is preserved through his wonderful drawings, earnest journal entries, and heartfelt letters home. On May 8, the US celebrated its victory in Europe. The next day, the Hayamis received a telegram that Stanley had been killed in action. He had been shot while administering first aid to two wounded soldiers. For his bravery, he was posthumously awarded the Bronze Star and Purple Heart.

On December 7, 1941, Takejiro Higa was working at the local YMCA when he heard something was happening a few miles away at Pearl Harbor. Running to the roof, he witnessed the bombing by Japanese military planes that lead the US to enter World War II. When the ban on Nisei (Japanese Americans) serving in the military was lifted, he volunteered and was eventually recruited into a secret unit that used the Japanese language to break codes, collect intelligence, and interrogate prisoners.

Dan Inouye became the first Japanese American member of the House of Representatives in 1959. Taking the oath of office, he was asked to raise his right hand. But he had no right hand. It was lost in combat in World War II. Attacking a machine gun nest in Italy, his right arm was almost torn off by a rifle grenade, yet he still destroyed the nest. He eventually served 53 years as Representative, then Senator from Hawaii. In 2000 he was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor for wartime valor.

When Susumu Ito was 21 he was drafted into the United States Army. But the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor changed everything. Because he was Nisei, they temporarily took away his rifle. Then his family was sent to an American concentration camp in the swamplands of Rohwer, Arkansas. Susumu was among soldiers who liberated a subcamp of Dachau, breaking up an SS death march. Ironically, while Susumu’s family was still imprisoned in Arkansas, his 522nd was aiding prisoners liberated in Germany.

Kazuo Masuda was inducted in 1941, five weeks prior to the bombing of Pearl Harbor. His family was split between Jerome and Gila River Internment camps. Still, his 3 brothers enlisted. Kazuo, on night reconnaissance in Italy, came under fire. He ordered others to retreat with details of enemy defenses as he covered them saying, “Not a step back. Never! You can’t win by going backwards!” He was killed. Post-war, his family faced acts of terror and discrimination in reclaiming their farm in CA.

Sadao Munemori was the first Japanese American awarded the Medal of Honor, the US military’s highest medal of valor. He made the ultimate sacrifice for his country, saving the lives of his fellow soldiers by throwing himself atop a live grenade during an assault on German defenses in Italy. His mother received a telegram announcing his death while still incarcerated in Manzanar concentration camp. Among his belongings was this blood-stained photo of his mother that he carried throughout the war.

Terry Nakanishi lived an adventurous childhood in rural Montana. After Pearl Harbor was bombed, her family was thrown out of their home and lived in a car for a time. She eventually joined the Women’s Army Corps. Terry and her Nisei comrades challenged the World War II stereotypes about Japanese Americans and women. By pursuing a nontraditional, military path, these WACs proved that Japanese American women could play an important role in protecting their nation’s interests and maintaining peace.

Kan Tagami left the US for Japan at 10 to learn his ancestral language and culture. His class once greeted Prince Hirohito at the Hiroshima train station. He finished high school in CA, earned a bachelor’s degree, and was drafted in 1941. Kan became a language instructor for the Military Intelligence Service, fought across Burma, and became Gen. MacArthur’s interpreter. Delivering a message, he became the only member of the Occupational Forces to have a private audience with Emperor Hirohito.

Sakae Takahashi was born into poverty on a sugar plantation in Kauai, HI. On scholarship to the University of Hawaii, he joined ROTC and renounced the Japanese part of his dual citizenship to qualify for Army Reserves. After serving in Algeria, he entered Italy through Anzio, engaging in bloody mountain assaults and house-to-house combat throughout Italy and France. After the 100th Infantry Battalion earned the Presidential Unit Citation, public perception of Japanese Americans began to change.