The 442nd Infantry Regiment
During World War II, Japanese-Americans faced prejudice and unfair treatment and were relegated to concentration camps, with over 117,000 people relocated. Thousands of Japanese community and religious leaders were arrested after the Pearl Harbor bombing. People had their houses, property, and families taken away from them and lived for the entire war in camps that had dismal living conditions.
Despite the prejudice that they faced in their own country, Japanese-Americans still volunteered to serve and fight in the war, and ironically, became the most decorated unit for its size and length of service in American military history.
Initially, Japanese citizens were banned from serving in the military as a result of the Pearl Harbor attack. However, in 1943, as a response to both Japanese propaganda and civil rights organizations, Washington began allowing Japanese-Americans to enlist. They formed a segregated infantry unit, called the 442nd Infantry Regimental Combat Team. Around 2100 Nisei, or American-born Japanese, stepped up to fight.
These recruits took on the motto “Go for broke,” because they felt that they had to put their lives on the line to not only fight in the war against Germany, but in the war against racial prejudice in their own country. One soldier, Susumu Satow, stated “My priority was to show the American people we are just as loyal as anybody else...the American public says that we our enemy aliens..that perception’s got to be changed.”
Though the regiment was united through their Japanese identity, there were major differences between Hawaiian and mainland soldiers, who comprised around ⅔ and ⅓ of the unit, respectively. Hawaiian Nisei, called buddhaheads, and mainland soldiers, called Katonks, argued over language, money, and family situation. Mainland soldiers who had their families imprisoned within camps often clashed the more free-spirited islanders, who they viewed as impulsive and crude. Fighting within the regiment got so bad that the unit was almost disbanded. However, when islanders learned about concentration camps in the US, they developed a new respect for their fellow soldiers and the unit was able to function as a whole.
The recruits were trained in Camp Shelby, Mississippi, and in 1944, joined the 100th Battalion in Italy. The 100th battalion was another group of Japanese soldiers, mainly from Hawaii, who were recognized for their unparalleled combat record. They were also known as the Purple Heart Battalion because of how many soldiers they had lost, since the Purple Heart was an award given to those wounded or killed in battle. In Italy, though the fall of Rome, had boosted morale, more troops were needed to continue to fight. The 442nd regiment was asked to spearhead the northward drive from Rome. Their fighting was praised by American generals and the regiment was moved away from Italy into France, where they were called upon to rescue the “Lost Battalion.” The “Lost Battalion” consisted of around 200 soldiers who had been surrounded by Germans due to an incompetent commander. The 442nd were able to rescue the soldiers, but lost almost 800 men in the process. However, this solidified their reputation for bravery and valor.
Throughout the war, the regiment fought in 8 major campaigns and earned over 9,486 Purple Hearts, 8 Presidential Unit Citations, 559 Silver Stars, and 52 Distinguished Service Crosses among many other decorations. Right at the end of the war, only one member of the regiment received a Medal of Honor. However, years later in 2000, 20 more members would also receive the Medal, America’s highest military honor.
These Japanese soldiers fought two battles: one against Germany, and one against racial prejudice. Though one had been one, many veterans returned home still frustrated at their treatment because of their race. Many veterans were denied service, and some found that there were still restaurants and establishments that refused to serve them. However, the accomplishments of the regiment did receive great publicity after the war, and multiple organizations that exist today were founded to bring recognition to veterans and to the rights of minorities. The soldiers of the 442nd regiment paved the way for great racial change in America and their contributions towards winning the war proved their bravery and loyalty to the country beyond any doubt.
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Wow, I knew they were a decorated unit, but I never realized that they were almost disbanded because of the issues between the islanders and mainlanders. It's interesting how different it made their lives and actions based off where they were because it changed the treatment they received and the way they seemed to act about life.
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