The Japanese American Memorial to Patriotism During World War II (, Zenbei Nikkei Beikokujin Kinenhi) is a National Park Service site to commemorate the contributions of American citizens of Japanese ancestry and their parents who patriotically supported the United States despite unjust treatment during World War II.
The work is at Louisiana Avenue and D Street, Northwest, Washington, D.C. in Washington, D.C. The memorial commemorates Japanese American war involvement, veterans, and patriotism during World War II, as well as the patriotism and endurance of those held in Japanese American internment, or, incarceration camps, and detention centers.
Description
The central cast bronze sculpture, named "Golden Cranes", consists of two Japanese cranes caught in barbed wire on top of a tall, square pedestal incised with grooves suggestive of drill cores used to extract stone from quarries. Standing in a landscaped plaza, a semi-circular granite wall curves around the sculpture. The wall features inscriptions of the names of the ten major internment camps where over 120,000 Japanese Americans were confined. Of the nearly 160,000 citizens of Japanese descent living in Hawaii, fewer than 2,000 were confined. There are also three panels that feature 1) the names of Japanese Americans who died fighting in World War II, 2) inscribed writings by Japanese American writers such as Bill Hosokawa, 3) quotes by presidents Harry S. Truman and Ronald Reagan.
Acquisition and creation
The concept for the monument was initiated in 1988 by the "Go For Broke" National Veterans Association Foundation. The name of this organization was later changed to the National Japanese American Memorial Foundation (NJAMF). Architect Davis Buckley and Sculptor Nina Akamu were the principal designers.
Construction of the National Japanese American Memorial on federal land was authorized by statute (PL 102-502) and signed into law by President George Bush on October 24, 1992, to "Commemorate the experience of American citizens of Japanese ancestry and their parents who patriotically supported this country despite their unjust treatment during World War II." The memorial groundbreaking took place on October 22, 1999, and the memorial was dedicated on November 9, 2000. A celebration of the completion of the memorial was held on June 29, 2001.
Preceding the final design and installation of the memorial, sculptor Nina Akamu traveled to the International Crane Foundation in Baraboo, Wisconsin, where she spent time studying and sketching the cranes that would become the centerpiece of the memorial.
Ownership of the memorial was officially transferred to the United States Government in 2002. The National Park Service is responsible for the maintenance of the national memorial.
Symbolism
Rising above the rest of the memorial, the cranes are visible from beyond the Memorial walls, which celebrates the ability to rise beyond limitations. Their postures reflect one another – one wing pointing upwards, the other downwards, mirroring each other and representing the duality of the universe. Pressing their bodies against one another and seeming to hold onto the barbed wire, the birds show individual effort to escape restraint with the need for communal support and interdependence on one another. There is an "Honor Wall" central within the memorial which lists the names of the 800-plus Japanese Americans in the U.S. Armed Forces who died in service during World War II.
According to the National Japanese American Memorial Foundation, the memorial:
...is symbolic not only of the Japanese American experience, but of the extrication of anyone from deeply painful and restrictive circumstances. It reminds us of the battles we've fought to overcome our ignorance and prejudice and the meaning of an integrated culture, once pained and torn, now healed and unified. Finally, the monument presents the Japanese American experience as a symbol for all peoples.
Veterans honored
The memorial honors Japanese American veterans who served in the 100th Infantry Battalion, 442nd RCT, Military Intelligence Service and other units. The 100th/442nd Regimental Combat Team would become the most decorated unit of the war for its size and length of service.