Editor’s Note: The following letter was sent in response to a column that appeared in the Oct. 24, 2019 issue of the Nichi Bei Weekly (“RABBIT RAMBLINGS: Dear JAVA, where is your sense of compassion and understanding?” by Chizu Omori). Dear Editor: I felt compelled to respond to Chizu Omori’s letter to JAVA. I am […]
‘The Registry’ shows vets fighting to preserve legacy of Military Intelligence Service
January 31, 2019 by Leave a Comment
“The Registry,” a film highlighting Japanese American soldiers whose exploits with the Military Intelligence Service in World War II helped the Allied Forces defeat Japan, will screen Feb. 23 at 4:45 p.m., during the Nichi Bei Foundation’s eighth annual Films of Remembrance program at the New People Cinema, 1746 Post St., in San Francisco’s Japantown. […]
Heart and courage: A Nisei veteran’s story
July 19, 2018 by Leave a Comment
MASAO: A NISEI SOLDIER’S SECRET AND HEROIC ROLE IN WORLD WAR II By Sandra Vea (Seattle: DMA Books, 2016, 360 pp., $18.99, paperback) As a visit to almost any American new or used bookstore will quickly confirm, military history is an exceedingly popular genre of literature. This is particularly the case as it pertains to […]
Films to Remember: Fifth annual film fest presents fresh stories on incarceration
March 31, 2016 by 2 Comments
The Nichi Bei Foundation presented its fifth annual Films of Remembrance program Feb. 20 at the New People Cinema in San Francisco’s Japantown. The one-day film festival hosted a full day of programming portraying the lives of Japanese Americans across the United States in a period of time spanning some 80 years, from pre-war Japanese […]
Bay Area artist, peace activist Suzuki dies at 95
February 4, 2016 by 1 Comment
BERKELEY — Noted artist and peace activist Iwao Lewis Suzuki passed away on Jan. 24, 2016 at the age of 95. An important figure in the watercolor movement known as the “California Style,” Suzuki once said, “I feel that art has a place in enriching the life of humanity … Through my art, I try […]
Digital exhibit to tell Nisei veterans’ stories
December 18, 2014 by Leave a Comment
The stories of the World War II Nisei soldiers, including heroes like Kazuo Masuda, Takejiro Higa and the late Sen. Daniel Inouye, will be highlighted in the upcoming Congressional Gold Medal Digital Exhibition, which the National Veterans Network in association with the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History, will develop, a statement issued by these entities said. […]
World War II MIS veterans hold ‘touching’ reunion after 67 years
May 15, 2014 by Leave a Comment
After World War II ended in 1945, the Military Intelligence Service soldiers played a vital role in aiding Japan’s reconstruction, connecting Gen. Douglas Macarthur to the Japanese people though their language interpretation. Like other military groups, these Nisei men formed strong, unforgettable friendships during their service. However, when it was time to return home, most […]
Roy Matsumoto, of Merrill’s Marauders fame, dies at 100
May 1, 2014 by Leave a Comment
“Ranger” Roy Matsumoto, a Nisei recognized for his military heroics with Merrill’s Marauders, passed away peacefully in his sleep at his San Juan Island, Wash. home on the morning of April 21, 2014, surrounded by his loving family. His passing came less than two weeks short of his 101st birthday. “We are all very sad, […]
Honoring the once-silenced MIS veterans
January 1, 2014 by Leave a Comment
Just one month before the United States and Japan formally declared war on each other, in November of 1941, the U.S. Army secretly enlisted Japanese American soldiers and trained them as military linguists. The Military Intelligence Service soldiers studied at the Presidio in San Francisco and at Camp Savage and Fort Snelling in Minnesota, before […]
MIS veterans recall wartime hysteria and their military exploits
December 19, 2013 by Leave a Comment
Several veterans who served in the Military Intelligence Service spoke about their wartime experiences on the 72nd anniversary of the bombing of Pearl Harbor at the Military Intelligence Service Historic Learning Center at the Presidio of San Francisco. The veterans, aged 88 to 92, spoke at the learning center Dec. 7 about their life from […]
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