1946- Iva Ikuko Toguri D'Aquino, radio broadcaster (and possibly the "Tokyo Rose") charged with Treason

In March of 1946, Iva Ikuko Toguri D’Aquino was convicted and imprisoned on the charge of Treason. Iva Ikuko Toguri D’Aquino was an American born citizen, born in Los Angeles. Her parents were immigrants- her father came to the US in 1899, her mother in 1913. She grew up a girl scout and attended Methodist schools. She graduated from UCLA with a degree in Zoology. A relative became ill in Japan so in July of 1941 she traveled to Japan from LA, she was also interested in perhaps studying medicine in Japan. Before she left, she was issued a Certificate of Identification because she did not have a passport, so when she applied for a passport from the UC Vice Consul in Japan to come back to California in September, they did not get to address her request before the attack on Pearl Harbor in December. The attack had cut her relation to the US, from America’s perspective. She was employed by a radio broadcasting company by an American in Japan, and she received her own show entitled Zero Hour. Many veterans of World War 2 believe that she was the voice of Tokyo Rose, a nickname the Allied soldiers gave to one of the female radio broadcasters they had been listening to from the NHK- Nihon Hoso Kyokai- Japanese Broadcasting Association. NHK was a Japanese propaganda broadcast, but Toguri claimed to be loyal to the US. Witnesses claimed that she had been giving away military information over the radio and that she was announcing planned US attacks but She denied ever saying any of what the witnesses claimed she said over any of her shows. She remained in jail for one year, but was released on good behavior and lack of evidence, for no actual recordings were found of Toguri ever saying any of what was supposedly said. In 1976, Ron Yates exposed the two witnesses as they gave false testimonies- they were coached before the trials to lie against Toguri. Yates wrote articles arguing her innocence, and in 1977 President Ford pardoned her and restored her citizenship.


Imprisoned, 1946

Toguri being questioned

Iva Toguri was a Japanese American caught up in a sticky situation in which her American-ness was ignored. After the attack on Pearl Harbor, there was no way the US would continue to let any person of Japanese descent into the country, regardless of circumstance. The fact that she was an American born citizen did not matter in the least, regarding legality. As long as she had a Japanese name and particular narrow eyes, she could not get back into the US. Her forced stay in Japan, however, opened an opportunity for her to maintain a form of connection to her homeland as her broadcasts were tuned in to by American and other Allied soldiers. She kept the soldiers updated on frontline news and played popular American music during her Zero Hour show. The false accusations against her made by the two witnesses convey the idea that people were agitated by the fact that a Japanese woman was making broadcasts to the Allies. Even though NHK was a Japanese Propaganda radio corporation, Toguri remained loyal to the US in trying to make her broadcasts propaganda-free and lighthearted. Her pardon in 1977 by President Ford portrayed to Asian Americans that they finally understand and fully recognized Iva Toguri’s American citizenship, and that she was truly an American in remaining loyal to the US. Ultimately, (the suspected) Tokyo Rose’s plight from her trip to Japan to the present illustrates how non-Asian Americans have become more accepting and trusting of Americans of Asian descent. Asian Americans gained a sense of relief and satisfaction from Toguri’s redemption as an American citizen. Furthermore, this event helped open the minds of both Asian and non-Asian people alike; that ethnicity is diminishing as an obstacle for citizenship.

1947- Wataru Misaka, first Japanese American pro Basketball player is cut from New York Knicks

Wataru Misaka was the first Japanese American to play professional Basketball in the highest level of Basketball in America. Misaka was born on December 21, 1923 in Ogden, Utah. His father emigrated to California in 1902 then moved to Ogden where he went to work for his mother’s uncle farming. He played for the University of Utah in 1944 and had been a valuable player to his team in leading them to the NCAA and was chosen by Ned Irish, the owner of the New York Knicks, to join the team. After playing three regular-season games in 1947, however, Irish decided to cut him. (Misaka- nicknamed “Wat”- had scored seven points during the three games he played in. Furthermore, standing at 5 ft 7 inches, people claimed that it would have been hard for Misaka to keep up with all the bigger guys on the opposing team.) Shortly after, Wat decided to enlist in the US Army. He spent nine months in the American occupation of Japan. He stated in an interview that the Japanese people [in Japan] looked at [the other Japanese American army soldiers] and saw them to be “very different.” Also in the interview, Wat said that he did not believe that his cut from the Knicks had anything to do with race. After participating in the Army, Misaka went back to the University and received a degree in Engineering.




Wat represents America’s growing acceptance of people of other races, as he was drafted into one of America’s most famous Basketball teams. Basketball is a sport intended to attract audiences and fans to come and watch the games; the famous, professional teams exhibit the country’s best athletes and in a sense is a representation of the country itself. Ned Irish’s act of drafting Wataru Misaka from Utah reveals America’s newfound willingness to accept people of other ethnicities as normal Americans to comprise the basketball teams who are displayed internationally to represent America as an athletic and competitive (and now, multicolored) nation. In addition, Wat expresses a sense of racelessness, as he disregards the fact that he is Japanese when he joins the US Army to aid in the American occupation of Japan. Even though joining the Army would mean participating in the opposing party against his own race, perhaps he disagreed with what the Japanese military did to Pearl Harbor, as did all other Americans. Despite all the weird looks and raised brows he received in Japan, his sentiment remained purely American.

Jack Yoshihara (OSU Football player)

In 1941, the Oregon State University football team reached the Rose Bowl for the first time in the school’s history and then proceeded to upset no. 2 ranked Duke—an exciting experience for any college student, just being at the game and cheering on your teammates who you’ve left blood, sweat, and tears on the field with. But for Jack Yoshihara, that experience was taken away from him before he could even reach it.

While practicing with his team in mid-December like he always had during the season but that day was different. As one of Jack’s teammates recalls

"I will never forget that day," said George Zellick, a teammate of Yoshihara's. "It was late afternoon. It was drizzling. We noticed two men coming onto the field. They were very well-dressed, wearing overcoats and hats. You could tell they were different people. They met with the coach and, the next thing we new, Jack left with them. It was the first indication that Jack had a problem."

It was at that moment that Jack was transported to Minidoka internment camp in Idaho where Jack spent the next few years of his life. In an interview with Chris Foster of the Los Angeles Times on November 22, 2008, Jack reveals the conditions of the camp in which he lived:

"The wood floors were really dirty and the big mistake we made was hosing them down. All the animal manure underneath came though the floors."

The next fall, Yoshihara and his parents were sent to Minidoka, where it dipped to minus-21 degrees in the winter and hit 104 during the summer.

"They just had barracks, with wood siding and a tar roof," Yoshihara said. "We could see the dust come through the walls when the wind blew. And it always blew.

Jack’s story is the story of many Japanese Americans during World War II, who had their lives stripped away from them at such a young age. It’s hard to imagine how life would be under those conditions and to persevere and live the rest of your life without any hard feelings is really tough. America’s internment of its own citizens is a disgrace and shows the lengths at which the United States government will go in the name of self-defense. In a similar way, U.S. citizens who the government believes to merely look like a terrorist are interrogated or taken in for questioning—it shows that the United States doesn’t learn from its mistakes and that it is still very paranoid about its own citizens whether they are innocent or not.

Thai Nguyen

Forbidden City Nightclub

Though founded in 1938 in San Francisco by Charlie Low, the Forbidden City Nightclub reached its greatest popularity during World War II and the remainder of the 1940s and throughout the 1950s. It was the first and most popular of twelve cabaret clubs that were Asian-themed in the San Francisco area and it drew comparison as the Asian Cotton Club because of the multi-ethnic group of performers that performed for a predominantly White audience. However, rather than playing to the stereotypes or “authentic ethnic” representations of Asians, the club focused more on the styles of the time period.

The club was able to show White American audiences that Asian Americans were not the highly foreign bodies that they thought Asians were but more than capable of assimilating and adjusting to American culture. Asians were seen dancing American dances, singing American songs, and most importantly, speaking English without an accent. It gave white audiences a different perspective on who Asian Americans were at the time but unfortunately it had a very regionalized effect as most of the audience consisted of people on the West Coast and particularly the San Francisco Bay Area. A few other negatives stemming from the nightclub was that it perpetuated a highly sexualized and exotic image of the Asian American woman and that no matter what ethnicity the performer was (Chinese, Filipino, Japanese, Korean or other Asian Americans) they were presented as Chinese, playing into the stereotype that all Asian people look alike.

In order to create publicity for the club, Charlie Low advertised his performers as the Chinese version of popular white performers such as Larry Ching who was nicknamed “The Chinese Frank Sinatra.” This provided a double effect in that these Asian performers were put into an white role and their success was based on how well the performed these roles. In addition, it denied them success as people with their own artistic vision, that they would always be placed in this role that was different from who they are as individuals and as performers. However, for many of these performers working and performing at the Forbidden City Nightclub, this was the only opportunity that they had for work because of the discriminatory practices against Asian Americans at the time. The nightclub also provided these performers with a launching pad for their careers to which a good number of them gained a lot of success in the years following their employment at the club.

Thai Nguyen

1949- James Wong Howe marries Sanora Babb

James Wong Howe, relative of Anna May Wong, was born in Taishan Guangdong, China in 1899. His father emigrated to America when Howe was born to work on the Northern Pacific Railway and 5 years later sent for his family to live with him in Washington. Howe’s interest in photography began at an early age, and grew exponentially after his several oddjobs in Los Angeles, being a photographer’s delivery boy and taking stills during film productions under director Cecil B. DeMille. Howe developed a new method of photography as he captured a darker look in the eyes of Mary Miles Minter as she was producing a film with DeMille. Minter adored the photograph, so she made Howe her preferred photographer. Howe then established a reputation for himself as he was able to make female actresses look their best without having to cover them with any filters or stuff like that. He eventually built his way up and became a popular cinematographer and developed new methods of cinematography as well (ie: handheld camera, the camera dolly, lighting techniques, deep focus, and many more.) He then married (Caucasian) novelist Sanora Babb in Paris in 1947. It was not legally recognized because of the anti-miscegenation laws and interracial marriage bans at the time in the US. Their marriage was legally approved in 1949, after all such laws (such as the ban on interracial marriage) were realized to be unconstitutional. The Hays Code, the banning of a non-Caucasian to kiss a Caucasian on screen, however, lagged behind in being abandoned much later in 1968.




Sanora Babb 1938


The marriage of these two accomplished individuals was met with much scrutiny. The judge who married them just said, “She looks old enough to marry, if she wants to marry a chink that’s her problem.” It took them three weeks after inter-racial marriage was made legal to find a judge that would marry them, but even the one they found was disheartening. Considering the fact that the law banning people of different faces to join in marriage was in effect for so long, starting from the time when Asians and other immigrants established themselves as minorities in America, there was probably opposition coming from both parties, Asian Americans and White Americans alike. The law was in place for so long that no one in the country would be fully accepting of a marriage between two people of different races. James Wong Howe and Sanora Babb, however, defied these discouraging odds and wed anyway. This wedding in particular was significant to the lives of other Asian Americans in the nation because both of them were quite popular, so everyone had to find out about such a marriage. Having this inter-racial marriage be displayed for the country to see creates the sense that Asian Americans, (and non-Asian Americans) can marry whomever they wish to marry. The people of America started the process of acknowledgement in accepting the fact that people of different races are not so different after all, and that a miscegenated love (and that which follows) does not pose a threat to the American nation.

Go For Broke! (1951 Film)

In 1951 the movie Go For Broke! (directed by Robert Pirosh, produced by Dore Schary and stared Van Johnson, Robert Nakamura and several veterans of the 442nd Infrantry Regiment) was released to the American audience. The film is a dramatization of the real-life story of the 442^nd infantry unit which was a unit that predominantly consisted of Nisei, second generation Japanese Americans, who were fighting primarily in the European theatre of World War II.

The film focuses on the experience of Van Johnson’s character, Lieutenant Michael Grayson, who has recently been assigned to the 442^nd when he was expecting to the 36^th Infantry Division of the Texas National Guard. Initially, Johnson is angered by the fact that he is leading a battalion full of Nisei soldiers because of his narrow mindedness about the war in which he joined to fight Japanese soldiers, not to fight with them, and in effect he led his battalion with very harsh and strict adherence to regulations. Eventually, Grayson discovers the meaning behind the battalion’s catch phrase, “Go For Broke!” which is a pidgin phrase that means to gamble everything. In the end, Johnson’s character gains respect for the Nisei soldiers that he is fighting alongside because of their attitudes and their willingness to fight for their country and they eventually discover that he has defended them against bigotry by members of his former infantry unit.

The unit itself is one of the most decorated units for its size and the length at which the regiment was in service in the United States Army. However, it also holds the distinction as one of the units with the highest rate of casualties. Below is a list of distinctions that was awarded to the unit:

· 21 Medals of Honor (the first awarded posthumously to Private First Class Sadao Munemori, Company A, 100th Battalion, for action near Seravezza, Italy, on April 5, 1945; the others upgraded from other awards in June 2000).

· 52 Distinguished Service Crosses (including 19 Distinguished Service Crosses which were upgraded to Medals of Honor in June 2000)

· 1 Distinguished Service Medal

· 560 Silver Stars (plus 28 Oak Leaf Clusters for a second award)

· 22 Legion of Merit Medals

· 15 Soldier’s Medals

· 4,000 Bronze Stars (plus 1,200 Oak Leaf Clusters for a second award; one Bronze Star was upgraded to a Medal of Honor in June 2000. One Bronze Star was upgraded to a Silver Star in September 2009.)

· 9,486 Purple Hearts

The importances of the unit as well as the film revolves around the question of how does one determine who is American and who is not? Is it based on skin color or is it based on the heart behind each person? The unit goes to show that just because a group of people don’t quite look like they’re Americans that doesn’t make them any less American nor do they represent a less patriotic American.

Thai Nguyen

1944 - CHINESE AMERICAN SOLDIERS IN WORLD WAR II

Chinese Americans, like all other Americans, bravely served to preserve the American way of life and to advance democratic ideals around the world during WWII. Of the six million Americans who were drafted or enlisted to serve in the Second World War, over 20,000 Chinese Americans served in the Army, Navy, Air Force, the Marines, and the Coast Guard. These brave men and women served with honor in the European, Pacific, and the China-Burma-India Theatres of Operation. While most of these men and women are descendants of earlier Chinese immigrants, some were also first generation immigrants. It has been documented that these servicemen and women brought valuable skills and served the United States in a number of different capacities, as fighter pilots, intelligence operatives (Europe & Asia), infantrymen, nurses, and others throughout WWII. These great Asian Pacific American soldiers were honored by Congress on October 26, 1999.

First time in history, Chinese American women were recruited to serve with the Army Air Force as "Air WACs during WWII. They were often called the Madame Chiang Kai-Shek Air WAC unit. Hazel Toy Nakashima and Jit Wong were the first two women to become "Air WACs." They served in such jobs as photo interpretation, air traffic control and weather forecasting.

Other important Asian American women during WWII, were Chinese American Hazel Ying Lee and Maggie Gee. Hazel was one of 38 Women Airforce Service Pilots, or WASPs, who died in the line of duty. Maggie Gee, took male military pilots up for qualifying flights to renew their instrument ratings and co-piloted B-17 Flying Fortress bombers through mock dogfights staged to train bomber gunners.

Many Japanese women served in the armed forces while their families were in internment camps. Many Japanese and Chinese women were trained as interpreters and translators, and some Filipino American women put their lives on the line as members of the underground resistance in the Philippines.