The Nisei in Italy: the 100th and 442nd, and the home-front fight over return

Vol. 19, No. 5, August 5, 1944. 8 pages. View this issue

News from the Italian front filled this eight-page issue. Members of the 100th Infantry Battalion relaxed in Livorno after entering the city, and the 442nd Regimental Combat Team held memorial rites for nearly 120 soldiers killed in its first month. Page three carried report after report of Japanese American soldiers killed or wounded, many with families in camps such as Minidoka, Poston, Topaz and Manzanar. Saburo Kido wrote about the 442nd, and Joe Grant Masaoka paid tribute to Lt. Kei Tanahashi.

At home, the Illinois Central pulled 59 Japanese American workers after an AFL strike threat, and Ira Latimer of the Chicago Civil Liberties Committee and Rev. Paul J. Folino spoke against it. Church groups urged justice for evacuees, and vandals desecrated the Japanese cemetery in Portland. Heart Mountain Fair Play Committee leaders faced a federal trial, and Carey McWilliams argued the affirmative at a Town Meeting broadcast.

What’s in this issue

Military & Veterans

• Nisei Soldiers Relax in Livorno, page 1. Members of the 100th Infantry Battalion relax with a card game in a Livorno park shortly after entering the city. The unit had swept into Livorno from the hills above in a surprise assault alongside General Mark Clark.
• King George of England Chats With Nisei Soldiers, page 1. King George of England inspected American front-line troops in Italy and briefly spoke with two Japanese American soldiers, both Silver Star recipients. The soldiers, Sgt. Hideo Kaichi and Pfc. Paul K. Tahara of the 442nd Infantry, were praised for their record in Italy.
• 442nd Combat Team Holds Memorial Rites for Soldiers Killed in First Month’s Action, page 1. The 442nd Regimental Combat Team held a memorial ceremony near Cecina for nearly 120 Japanese American soldiers killed in its first 29 days of action. A 36-round salute was fired and Lieut. Hiro Higuchi conducted the services.
• Twelve Japanese Americans Reported Killed, 25 Hurt in Recent Action in Italy Front, page 1. The Pacific Citizen reported twelve Japanese American soldiers killed and 25 wounded in Italy, with one missing, all presumed members of the 442nd and 100th Battalion. The unofficial casualty list named soldiers by hometown and relocation center.
• Nisei Soldiers Win Commendation After Shelby Tests, page 2. Japanese American soldiers of the First Battalion, 442nd Infantry, were commended for their performance on the Expert Infantryman’s Badge tests at Camp Shelby. Capt. Wendell L. Garrison praised their enthusiasm, physical prowess, and military bearing.
• Two Nisei Chosen to Attend Infantry OCS at Ft. Benning, page 2. Tech. Sgt. George R. Sakanari and Cpl. Hidetaka Nakaki were the first of 25 Japanese American enlisted men of the First Battalion, 442nd Infantry, selected for Officer Candidate School. Quotas for the battalion were also increased.
• Second Gila Soldier Gives Life in Battle, page 2. Pfc. Todd Sakahiro of Fowler, California, was killed in action in Italy on July 4, becoming the second Gila River volunteer to die in combat. He had graduated from Fowler high school and was prominent in school athletics.
• Salinas Soldier Killed in Action with Nisei Unit, page 2. Pfc. George Sameshima, formerly of Salinas, California, was killed in action on July 6 while serving with the Japanese American Combat Team. He had volunteered for military service in February 1943 and his family farmed near Kersey, Colorado.
• Rivers Volunteer Gets Purple Heart, page 2. Pvt. Takashi Wada of Sanger, California, received the Purple Heart for wounds sustained on the Italian front on July 7. The War Department telegram was received by his mother in Rivers, Arizona.
• Pvt. Masaoka Qualifies for Expert’s Badge, page 2. Pvt. Henry Masaoka became the first soldier in division headquarters company at Camp Adair to win the expert infantryman badge. He has four brothers overseas with the 442nd combat team.
• Two Masaoka Brothers Hurt in Recent Action in Italy, page 3. Two brothers of the Masaoka family of Salt Lake City were wounded in Italy, Sgt. Ike Masaoka and Tad Masaoka, according to War Department notices. Other brothers were also serving with the Japanese American Combat Team and at Camp Adair.
• 1000 Purple Hearts Won By Famous 100th Infantry, page 3. The 100th Infantry Battalion, honored with a Distinguished Unit Citation, has been awarded 11 Distinguished Service Crosses, 44 Silver Stars, 31 Bronze Stars, and more than 1000 Purple Hearts. General Clark praised the battalion as having written a brilliant chapter in the history of America’s fighting men.
• Father Learns Son Killed in Italy, page 3. Staff Sgt. George Katsuya Sawada was killed in Italy on July 5, according to word received by his father in Hunt, Idaho. He was a University of Washington graduate and a member of the Japanese American Combat Team.
• Five Hunt Volunteers Killed, Seven Wounded in Combat, page 3. The Irrigator reported five Minidoka servicemen killed and seven wounded in action in Italy, all attached to the Japanese American Combat Team. Two of the fallen, Tom Takemoto and Pfc. Kiyoshi Tanaka, were identified as natives of Portland and Seattle.
• Four Poston Camp Volunteers Hurt in Italy Campaign, page 3. Four Poston volunteers were slightly wounded in action in Italy, according to War Department notices received by their families. The men were Pvt. Kobe Shoji, Tech. Sgt. Hayao R. Miyahara, Pvt. Samuel Yamaguchi, and Pvt. Noboru Togioka.
• Report Death of Granada Nisei Soldier, page 3. Pvt. Joe R. Yasuda of the Granada relocation center was killed in action in Italy on July 9, his sister was informed by the War Department. He had volunteered in April 1943 and trained at Camp Shelby.
• Manzanar Learns Pvt. Goto Wounded, page 3. Pvt. Takiji Goto, a Japanese American Combat Team volunteer formerly of Manzanar, was wounded in action in Italy, according to a letter he sent to the Free Press. He reported a slight wound and expected to rejoin his unit.
• Topaz Volunteer Killed in Action, page 3. Pvt. Tom T. Misumi of Topaz was killed on the Italian front on July 6 during the Fifth Army’s drive on Livorno. He was 20 years old and a former resident of Oakland, California.
• Sgt. Matsukawa Killed in Recent Italy Fighting, page 3. Staff Sgt. Isamu Matsukawa of Salt Lake City was killed in action in Italy on July 6, the first Japanese American from the intermountain area reported killed. Two other Salt Lake Japanese Americans were also reported wounded in Italy.
• Pfc. Tajiri Hit by Sniper’s Bullet on Italian Front, page 3. Pfc. George S. Tajiri, formerly of San Diego and now of Poston, was wounded in action with the 442nd in Italy. In a letter from an Italian hospital he described being hit by a sniper while crossing a river bed.
• Two Amache Nisei Volunteers Die in Italian Fighting, page 3. Pfc. Arnold Ohki and Pvt. Calvin Saito of the Granada relocation center were both killed in action on July 7, and two others were wounded. Both men had volunteered for service and had families in Colorado and Massachusetts.
• Four Topaz Nisei Reported Wounded in Italian Campaign, page 3. Four Japanese American soldiers with relatives in Topaz were wounded in action in Italy, according to War Department word received locally. The wounded included Eddie Iino, Pfc. Takeshi Yatabe, Tom Sagamori, and William Ishida.
• Article in Collier’s Tells Story of 100th Infantry Unit, page 5. Collier’s profiled Pfc. Mac Yazawa of the 100th Infantry Battalion, a Honolulu-raised soldier wounded in Italy who now recovers at Gardiner General Hospital. The article describes how the 100th fought from Salerno onward and achieved several firsts in the Italian campaign.
• Letters Arrive From Italian Front, page 5. Letters from Sgt. Kaz Yasuda of the 232nd Combat Engineers describe the punishment of Corsican dancers who had entertained Nazi occupiers and other wartime scenes in Italy. The letters offer a mix of humor and hardship from the front.
• Nisei in Uniform: Letters From Servicemen, page 5. Lt. Russell Otake praised Chaplain Yolst for conducting services across the front lines for the 100th Infantry. Other letters describe soldiers’ hardships, wounded veterans recovering at Dibble General Hospital, and the unit’s Independence Day meal.
• Nisei Combat Team Goes into Action, by Saburo Kido, page 5. The 442nd Regimental Combat Team, which absorbed the 100th Infantry Battalion, is spearheading Fifth Army drives in Italy. The writer hopes the sacrifices of Nisei soldiers will shift public opinion toward fair treatment.
• Topics: Narrow-Minded Democracy, page 5. The Twin Falls Times-News criticized the mistreatment of Japanese American citizens and Mexican nationals, arguing that some people discuss democracy without practicing it. The editorial warns that narrow-minded attitudes undermine American ideals.

Community

• Portland Vandals Desecrate Japanese Cemetery; Officer Blames Adults for Crime, page 1. Vandals broke and scattered gravestones and set markers ablaze at the Portland Japanese cemetery for the second time in a year. A juvenile court officer blamed adults rather than boys, noting the cemetery has been largely abandoned since the 1942 evacuation.
• L.A. Convention of Christians Backs Nisei, page 1. More than 1000 members of the Disciples of Christ at their Los Angeles convention voted by acclamation to favor a gradual return of loyal evacuees to the West Coast. The convention also reaffirmed Christian brotherhood with Japanese American Christians.
• Smear Campaign Against Nisei Charged by Chicago Official, page 2. Ira Latimer of the Chicago Civil Liberties Committee charged that demands to dismiss 59 Japanese American Illinois Central employees were driven by a few union officials. He warned that the Hearst-owned Herald American was starting a hate campaign against Japanese Americans in Chicago.
• Gertrude Sugioka Hurt in Wyoming Auto Accident, page 2. Gertrude Sugioka suffered a fractured hip when the car carrying her and other Disciples of Christ members overturned near Cheyenne while en route to Casper. She was returned to Denver by ambulance for hospitalization.
• Chinese Minister to Aid Topaz Protestant Church, page 2. Rev. Harold Jow, a Chinese minister from Oakland, arrived in Topaz to help with the Protestant church program over the summer. He was to leave for Hawaii at the end of August.
• Fifty-Four Granada Evacuees Inducted, page 3. Fifty-four Japanese Americans from the Granada relocation center left for Fort Logan, Colorado, for induction into the U.S. Army. Fifty-five had been called, with one listed as delinquent.
• Ayashi Watch Repairing, page 5. Ayashi Watch Repairing advertises watch repair services in Chicago at a flat fee. This is a classified advertisement.

National

• Jewish Group Urges Justice for Evacuees, page 1. The Central Conference of American Rabbis adopted a resolution pleading for justice for Japanese Americans and deploring agitation against their return to West Coast homes. The resolution noted their battlefield distinction and stated they were not responsible for Pearl Harbor.
• Strike Threat by AFL Group Halts Employment of Evacuees, page 2. A threatened walkout by 800 AFL maintenance workers forced the Illinois Central to withdraw 59 Japanese Americans from service pending discussion. The WRA said it would make every effort to keep the men employed.
• Minister Rebukes AFL Union for Stand on Evacuees, page 2. Rev. Paul J. Folino of the United Church of Chicago sharply criticized the AFL union members who threatened to strike over the hiring of Japanese Americans. He declared that these loyal Americans had suffered enough for their ancestry.
• Rail Company May Reemploy 59 Evacuees, page 2. The Illinois Central may reinstate 59 Japanese Americans after Army investigations of their records, according to an official. However, sixteen employee unions remained opposed, warning that the workers’ presence would disturb morale.
• Army to Permit Nisei’s Return, page 2. The California-Nevada Presbyterian synod unanimously passed a resolution urging the War Department to permit immediate return of loyal Japanese Americans to the Pacific coast. The resolution also deplored distortions of facts in press and radio regarding this minority.
• Center Group’s Leaders Face Federal Trial, page 2. Leaders of the Heart Mountain Fair Play Committee were arrested and face conspiracy charges for urging draft evasion, with 61 of 63 convicted draft evaders identified as committee members. The indictment cites articles in James Omura’s Denver newspaper as part of the alleged conspiracy.
• Hunger Strike Ended by Tule Stockade Group, page 2. Thirteen segregees at the Tule Lake center ended their hunger strike on July 30 after the WRA exposed the protest as an apparent fraud. The WRA reported that foodstuffs had been hidden in the isolation area kitchen to be eaten during the strike.
• Record Number of Nisei Inducted at Fort Logan, page 2. 152 members of the Enlisted Reserve Corps of Japanese ancestry reported for active duty at Fort Logan, Colorado, on July 31. The reservists came from Wyoming, Colorado, and Nebraska, including residents of Heart Mountain and Amache.
• Splendid Record of Nisei Since Pearl Harbor Cited, page 2. A Seattle Times dispatch reported that Japanese Americans have hardly a black mark since Pearl Harbor, citing FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover and WRA findings of no sabotage or espionage. The article also recognized the military record of over 10,000 Japanese Americans in service.

Commentary

• McWilliams Raps Anti-Evacuee Views as “Racist Nonsense”, page 3. Carey McWilliams called the negative arguments of Robert Fouke and Wayne Millington on Japanese assimilation “racist nonsense” during a Town Meeting broadcast from Sacramento. He cited the combat record of Japanese Americans in upholding the affirmative position.
• Lieut. Kei Tanahashi, Killed In Italy, Had Many Friends, by Joe Grant Masaoka, page 5. Joe Grant Masaoka pays tribute to Lt. Kei Tanahashi, recalling his leadership as an assistant scoutmaster and his kindness to fellow Nisei. He reflects on how casualty reports become personal grief for the families affected.
• Ten Thousand Copies of Kuroki’s Speech, by Saburo Kido, page 5. Sgt. Ben Kuroki’s Commonwealth Club speech was issued as a pamphlet, with some 10,000 copies distributed and thousands on the Pacific Coast. The narrative of his experiences as an air force soldier was praised for its readability and power.

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