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Related: • $1 Million for WWII Education Program • Japanese American Memorial Celebrates Patriotism

Japanese American Memorial to Patriotism

Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta speaks during the memorial’s opening ceremony. Photo by Sam Chu Lin.

By Sam Chu Lin

A double-decker tour bus slowed down, then stopped at a triangular park that sits at the juncture of New Jersey, Louisiana and D Streets, a short distance from Capitol Hill.

“This is the new Japanese American Memorial for Patriotism that’s just opened in Washington, D.C.,” the driver told the crowd with a portable megaphone. “It recognizes the contributions and patriotism of Japanese Americans during World War II.”

With cameras in hand, a couple from Maine walked through the memorial. Pausing to look at the inscriptions on the walls, they asked the group, “What kind of place was Gila Bend or Jerome, Arkansas?”

A veteran standing near by answered, “They were internment camps for Japanese Americans during World War II. Our families lived in barracks built in desolate places, behind barbed wire, while we went to fight the war.”

The Japanese American Memorial in Washington, D.C., features a reflection pool with granite boulders and a cascading waterfall. Photo by Sam Chu Lin.

Since the National Japanese American Memorial was unveiled to the public last week, many people have been asking similar questions. The United States has apologized for putting 120,000 Japanese Americans into 10 internment camps during the war. The names of those camps and 800 soldiers, who through their service proved the community’s loyalty, have been engraved in stone.

The memorial features sculptured cranes holding barbed wire in their beaks, soaring to the sky. A reflection pool with granite boulders and a cascading waterfall act as a backdrop. A long tubular bell rings out two harmonic tones that merge into one, symbolizing a healing process has taken place.

About 300 people were on hand for the opening ceremonies on June 29. Attendees came from across the country. Veterans Fred Murakami and Calvin Ninomiya presented a wreath in remembrance of their fallen comrades. Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta, Senator Daniel Inouye, D-Hawaii, and Rep. Bob Matsui, D-Calif., cut a ribbon to formally open the memorial.

The structure is dedicated to the isei, nisei, and Japanese American veterans of World War II, Matsui said. “At no other time in history have we seen such courage, strength and patriotism.”

Inouye described how the 442nd Regimental Combat Team, while suffering heavy casualties, fought for two weeks to rescue the Texas “Lost Battalion.”

“This was the battle to test our loyalty, the battle to test our patriotism, and the battle to test our love of country,” he said.

Mineta called attention to another battle that was fought at home, the fight to win redress and an apology from the U.S. government.

“We believed that our fellow Americans would one day recognize the internment for the injustice that it was,” he said. “As we stand here today, we know that, in fact, our faith has been rewarded.”

At the conclusion of the ceremony, the crowd walked into the new memorial. Families and friends posed for pictures in front of the names of the camps where they once lived. Others made charcoal paper rubbings of the names of veterans on the wall — a family friend, a loved one lost in battle.

Bowing his head in contemplation, Mineta looked out at the reflection pool. “It’s too bad mother and dad are not here,” he said to himself. “They would like this and what has been accomplished.”

Recognizing Heroes

The following day, an estimated crowd of 500 people gathered at the Hyatt Regency for a gala to celebrate the formal opening of the memorial. Former Defense Secretary William Cohen, General Eric Shinseki, army chief of staff, and John Parsons, director of the National Parks Service were among the honored guests. Former ABC correspondent Ken Kashiwahara served as master of ceremony.

The new Capitol Area Children’s Choir, consisting of boys and girls from different ethnic backgrounds, received a standing ovation as it completed a medley of Japanese songs and its own rendition of “America, The Beautiful.”

Afterward, Kashiwahara quipped, “Don’t you hate it when kids pronounce Japanese words better than you do?” The audience laughed in approval.

Mineta thanked the Japanese American Memorial foundation chair, Admiral Mel Chiogioji, for his leadership, and Cherry Tsuimida, executive director of the foundation, for building support for the project. He also recognized crane sculptor Nina Akamu, bell sculptor Paul Matisse, and architect Davis Buckley for their contributions. They have “created an enduring legacy and a wonderful gift to our community and to our great nation,” Mineta said.

Inouye, who was the keynote speaker, said: “The dedication of this memorial is the end of a journey that began in darkness and ended in brilliant glory. It stands together with other national capitol area park system memorials along the mall.”

Chiogioji presented service awards posthumously to Hideo Sasaki, formerly of Harvard’s Graduate School of Design, and to Dr. Mae Takahashi, former president of Manor Drugs Pharmacy in Central California, for their contributions and support for the memorial.

Another award went to Leila Meyerratken, a junior high school French, Spanish, and Japanese language teacher, who inspired her students to put together the large quilt as a tribute to the Japanese American World War II veterans and to the former internees. Throughout the evening, crowds walked up to the front of the ballroom to examine a huge 19-by-41 foot quilt created by 500 students from two schools in Lafayette, Ind. Displayed for the first time, it stretched across the stage. Inouye’s eyes brightened when he saw an image of himself embroidered into one the panels.

When Meyerratken and nine of her students came to the stage to receive their award, the audience gave them a standing ovation. The eighth graders had sponsored car washes and other fundraisers to pay for the trip to Washington.

“I thank all the veterans deep in my heart,” Meyerratken said. “I know they are not only our heroes, not only loyal Americans, but to me, Saints of America.”

“The reason the memorial was built was to educate,” the retired rear admiral remarked. “To let people know that a great injustice was done. This country was great enough to apologize to a very small minority. And even more importantly to ensure this kind of atrocity never happens again to anybody else in this country. That’s what this is all about, and Leila, we really thank you for assisting us in this education process.”

The Smithsonian Institution, the National Japanese American Museum in Los Angeles, and other museums are now considering displaying the quilt.

Said Meyerratken: “It would be a dream come true to show this quilt to students all across the country.”