From Senator Dan Akaka's Facebook photo album

The JACL today issued a press release on the Congressional Gold Medal ceremonies held this week for the veterans of the 442nd Regimental Combat Team, the 100th Infantry Battalion, and the Military Intelligence Service (MIS) of the United States Army, who served valiantly during Word War II.

The veterans were honored on November 2 in Washington, D.C. as they were collectively presented with the Congressional Gold Medal. Over 300 veterans were in attendance to accept their replicas of the medal. The veterans, widows, next of kin of deceased veterans, family members, and friends attending the festivities numbered more than 2,500.

The 100th Infantry Battalion was comprised of servicemen from Hawai’i. The 442nd Regimental Combat Team was largely made up of Japanese American young men (Nisei, or second generation citizens of the United States) who were incarcerated with their families in the camps in which over 110,000 people of Japanese descent were held after the beginning of World War II.

President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066 on February 19, 1942, which paved the way for the camps to be established There were others in these units who were not interned because their homes were in various inland states. The MIS served primarily in the Pacific theater and were credited with shortening the war with their language expertise and service.

These brave and patriotic young men who faced severe racial discrimination and prejudice served willingly to defend their country, the United States of America. In spite of the challenges, the 442nd were exemplary and became the most highly decorated unit for its size and length of service in the history of the United States military.

At the end of World War II, President Harry S. Truman stated of the Nisei soldiers, “You fought not only the enemy, but you fought prejudice and you won.”

The National Veterans Network (NVN) is a coalition of Japanese American veteran and civic organizations which came together in 2008. Their chairperson is Christine Sato-Yamazaki. The NVN was responsible for putting together the events in Washington, D.C. with the assistance of PSA, an event planning and project management company.

All the organizations which comprise the NVN were heavily involved in the planning and execution of the three days of festivities to honor the veterans and their families.

“The JACL was honored to be a participating organization in this historic occasion,” said Floyd Mori, National Executive Director of the Japanese American Citizens League (JACL) and a member of the NVN steering committee.

“We revere the Japanese American veterans of the 442, 100th, and MIS who served courageously during World War II and to whom we owe a great deal. They made the world a better place for all Japanese Americans in subsequent years. We will be forever grateful for their sacrifice and dedication to life and liberty. They suffered untold ridicule, discrimination, bigotry, and hardship, but they triumphed. The veterans are most deserving of this long overdue honor.

“We are also grateful to the Japanese Americans who served in various others branches of the service. Thanks to the members of Congress, the United States Military, the NVN, the sponsors, and all others who made the Congressional Gold Medal events possible as well as to all the volunteers who assisted and all who attended to make this a memorable occasion.”

The first Fred Korematsu Day will be celebrated on January 30, 2011 on Fred Korematsu’s birthday. The Korematsu Institute, launched last year by the Asian Law Caucus and in partnership with the Korematsu family, plans to roll out curriculum in K-12 schools that week and on all future Korematsu Days.

The bill, authored by Assemblymembers Warren T. Furutani (D – South Los Angeles County) and Marty Block (D – San Diego), is in honor of the late Fred Korematsu, a man who became a civil rights icon for defying the mass incarceration of Japanese Americans during World War II.

“This is historic not only for Californians but for all Americans,” says Ling Woo Liu, Director of the Korematsu Institute. “Establishing Korematsu Day ensures that Fred Korematsu’s legacy will not be forgotten and future generations of Californians will learn about the importance of protecting civil liberties.”

Korematsu Day was spearheaded by former San Diego Superior Court Judge Lillian Lim and Susan Woo, who were dismayed by the general lack of knowledge of the Fred Korematsu story. These concerns were shared with others who agreed it was important to establish a a Fred Korematsu Day where schools would incorporate into their curriculum the history of the Japanese American incarceration. An ad hoc committee was then formed within the Southwest Center for Asian Pacific American Law, with the goal of establishing a Fred Korematsu Day.

“I would like to thank Governor Schwarzenegger for signing this significant piece of legislation, which promotes the protection of freedom and constitutional rights,” said Assemblymember Furutani. “Fred Korematsu was an ordinary man who did an extraordinary thing during a time when his constitutional rights were violated, and as a consequence, changed the course of history. The Fred Korematsu Day of Civil Liberties and the Constitution will provide an important teaching moment for California and its students.”

“As a trailblazer of civil rights who stood against the incarceration of Japanese Americans during World War II, Fred Korematsu’s legacy reminds us that we must use this dark period in our history as a teaching tool to educate future generations on the importance of preserving civil liberties for everyone,” said Assemblymember Block. “I thank the Governor for signing the Fred Korematsu Day of Civil Liberties and the Constitution into law because it further ensures that Fred’s legacy of bravery and sacrifice will be taught in classrooms and help us remain vigilant against the racism and stereotyping he fought to overcome.”

During World War II, Korematsu was a 23-year-old welder in San Leandro, California who defied military orders that ultimately led to the evacuation and incarceration of 120,000 Japanese Americans, including Korematsu and his family. The Korematsu family was held first in the Tanforan Race Track Assembly Center in San Bruno, Calif., and then incarcerated in the Topaz incarceration camp in Utah.

He took his challenge to the military orders to the U.S. Supreme Court, which, in 1944, upheld his conviction on the ground that the forced removal of Japanese Americans was justified by “military necessity.” That decision has been widely condemned as one of the darkest chapters in American legal history.

After four decades of having to live with a “disloyalty” conviction on his record that limited him from securing full-time work, Korematsu filed suit to reopen his case on proof that the government, when arguing his case during the war, had suppressed, altered, and destroyed material evidence that contradicted the government’s claim of military necessity. In 1983, the Federal District Court for the Northern District of California granted his petition for a writ of error coram nobis (a notice of error) and overturned his conviction.

“Fred Korematsu’s eventual court victory taught America about the fragility of civil rights especially during times of international tensions,” said attorney Dale Minami, a member of Korematsu’s legal team and Steering Committee of the Korematsu Institute. “It reinforced our belief that civil rights must be fought for and are not simply guaranteed by the courts or by any governmental institution.”

Korematsu went on to champion the cause of civil liberties, not only seeking redress for Japanese Americans who were wrongfully incarcerated, but also traveling the country to advocate for the civil rights of other victims of excessive government action, especially after 9/11. He passed away in 2005 at the age of 86.

“After my father’s conviction was overturned in 1983, his focus and mission was education,” said Karen Korematsu. “He believed it was important to teach about his struggle for justice and the Japanese American incarceration so that the mistakes of history would not be repeated in the future. The significance of this day will enable students of today and tomorrow to learn and discuss the lessons of American history relevant to the current discussions of the Constitution and our civil liberties.”

In a post-9/11 nation where national security policies are based on fear and prejudice, the Korematsu Institute is dedicated to advancing pan-ethnic civil rights through education, activism and leadership development.

SOURCE: Fred T. Korematsu Institute for Civil Rights and Education. PHOTO by Lia Chang.

During World War II, President Franklin Roosevelt recruited soldiers of the Philippine Commonwealth Army who were then U.S. nationals into American military service. Approximately 250,000 Filipino soldiers fought alongside the U.S. Army against the Japanese and were promised the same benefits that were given to the U.S. Army soldiers. In 1946, U.S. Congress passed the Rescission Act which stripped the Filipino soldiers of their promised benefits. The Rescission Act said Filipino soldiers “shall not be deemed to have been active military, naval, or air service for the purposes of any law of the United States conferring rights, privileges, or benefits…” For over 60 years, Filipino veterans have fought to get official recognition of their honorable U.S. military service during World War II and to be declared eligible to receive full veterans benefits from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.

In February 2009, President Obama signed a law called the Filipino Veterans Equity Compensation (FVEC) which set aside $198 million for their benefit. The Department of Veteran Affairs assured them that they would be able to receive the long delayed benefits that had been promised them for serving in World War II. Filipino veterans living in the U.S. would receive $15,000 and Filipino veterans living in the Philippines would receive $9,000.

Many of the Filipino veterans who sent in their applications to the Veterans Affairs office had their applications denied because they were not on a so-called “Missouri List”, a database that was intended to include all of the personnel who served in the U.S. armed forces in the 20th century. This list is an authoritative source of reference but is not an exclusive list of military veterans. On July 12, 1973, a disastrous fire at NPRC destroyed approximately 16-18 million Official Military Personnel files. Of those destroyed, 80 percent were Army personnel who were discharged from November 1, 1912 to January 1, 1960. There were no duplicate copies of the records that were destroyed. As the VA acknowledges, Filipino veterans were dissuaded from putting their name on this list because the Japanese military had access to that information and would find and kill the family members of those veterans who put their name on the List. Despite this historical fact, the VA has denied the applications of all Filipino veterans who are not on the List and have made no effort to develop any alternative mechanism for verifying service in World War II. Many of these Filipino veterans are in their late 80′s and 90′s and the VA’s actions may make it impossible for this country to fulfill the promise it made decades ago to these brave men and women.

According to Pete McCloskey of Cotchett, Pitre & McCarthy, the lead attorney in this case, “As a veteran myself, I know the sacrifices that have been made by these soldiers in both blood and tears. Compounding one injustice made decades ago with new injustices today do not reflect the true spirit of America. Hopefully, this suit will serve as a catalyst to convince the VA to do what is right.”

A copy of the complaint can be found at http://www.cpmlegal.com.

Mark Grafilo
Cotchett, Pitre & McCarthy
(650)697-6000
www.cpmlegal.com

Lourdes Tancinco
Tancinco Law Offices
(415)397-0808
www.tancinco.com

Luisa M. Antonio
Veterans Equity Center
415.255.2347
www.vetsequitycenter.org

COTCHETT, PITRE & McCARTHY

TANCINCO LAW OFFICES

The 2010 San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival presents NINOY AQUINO AND THE RISE OF PEOPLE POWER, a film by Tom Coffman, one of Hawai’i's leading filmmakers.

The film will show at Sundance Kabuki Cinemas on Saturday, March 13, at 4:30 p.m. and at VIZ Cinema, 1746 Post St., on Wednesday, March 17, at 7 p.m. Order your tickets online and join our Facebook event.

The Late Senator Benigno “Ninoy” Aquino was the boy wonder of Philippine politics until the object of his criticism, Ferdinand Marcos, declared martial law and threw Aquino into prison. A light bulb glared in his cell around the clock. When at last his frantic wife, Cory, found him, he was so thin he was holding up his undershorts with his hand.

NINOY tells the story of Aquino’s extraordinary transformation from brilliant politician of the Philippines to courageous martyr on the world stage in the tradition of Gandhi and Dr. Martin Luther King.

During Aquino’s eight-year imprisonment at the hands of the Marcos regime, Aquino wrote, studied nonviolence, fasted 38 days and at one point ran for Congress from his cell, constantly inspiring the opposition. When he was taken before a military tribunal, he refused to dignify an unconstitutional proceeding by defending himself. He was condemned to death. Too renowned to execute, too powerful to simply release, Aquino was finally exiled to America for heart surgery.

Three years later, believing with Gandhi, “The willing sacrifice of the innocent is the most powerful retort to insolent tyranny that has yet been conceived by God or man,” on August 21, 1983 he returned to Manila.

In his dying moment, his bullet-ridden body fell on Philippine soil. His mother laid out his remains in the family living room. A trickle of mourners became a flood of two million people, followed by three years of massive protests that drove Marcos from the country. The Philippines became the template for the many countries that since have transitioned peacefully to electoral democracy.

The film is emotionally explosive and intellectually challenging. It was shot with two matched HD cameras in Manila, Seoul, Taipei, Honolulu, San Francisco, Boston, New York and Washington DC, by Tom Coffman, whose previous credits include “Nation Within” and “First Battle.”

Join the Facebook page at http://facebook.com/ninoyfilm.

The Angel Island Immigration Station Foundation, in conjunction with the California State Parks and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), will commemorate the opening of the immigration station with a program on January 21, 2010, from 10 a.m. to Noon at Herbst Theater, 401 Van Ness Ave., San Francisco.

The program will feature:

• A naturalization ceremony for 100 new U.S. citizens, with the Oath of Allegiance to be administered by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services Director Alejandro Mayorkas, himself an immigrant from Cuba
• Congratulatory messages from federal, state and local officials
• California State Parks Director Ruth Coleman
• San Francisco Supervisor Eric Mar
• Past and present San Francisco poet laureates Diane DiPrima and Janice Mirikitani
• Buck Gee, President of the Angel Island Immigration Station Board of Directors
• Eddie Wong, Executive Director of the Angel Island Immigration Station

If you plan to attend, RSVP to AIISF at 415-262-4433 or email info@aiisf.org.

This was originally posted at aiisf.org. Special thanks to Grant Din for bringing to my attention.