National Japanese American Memorial To Patriotism During World War II
Encyclopedia
The Memorial to Japanese-American Patriotism in World War II is a memorial and monument designed by Davis Buckley and Japanese American
artist Nina Akamu. The work is located at Louisiana Avenue and D Street, Northwest, Washington, D.C.. The memorial commemorates Japanese American war involvement, veterans and patriotism during World War II
, as well as those held in Japanese American internment
camps.
. Standing amongst a landscaped plaza, a semi-circular granite wall curves around the sculpture. The wall features inscriptions of the names of World War II battles that Japanese Americans fought in, as well as the names of the ten internment camps where over 100,000 Japanese Americans were placed. There are also two panels that feature the names of Japanese Americans who died fighting in World War II and inscribed writings by Japanese American writers such as Bill Hosokawa
.
Sculptor Nina Akamu traveled to the National Crane Foundation in Baraboo, Wisconsin
where she spent time studying and sketching what would form into the centerpiece of the memorial.
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 interdependency on one another.
According to the National Japanese American Memorial Foundation the memorial:
and other units.
Janet Reno
spoke at the dedication where she shared a letter from President Bill Clinton
stating:
, Akamu lived in Hawaii
and East Asia
as a child due to her father serving in the Air Force
. At the age of 10 her family moved to Japan
, where her passion for horseback riding was instilled (which would eventually lead to a passion for sculpting horses). In 1969 her family was transferred back to the United States, moving to Dover, Delaware
, where Akamu graduated high school. She received her Bachelors of Fine Arts in painting from the Maryland Institute College of Art
in 1977, however, she found her passion for sculpture the final year of her education.
Akamu trained under American painter Joseph Sheppard in Florence
, Italy
in the late 1970s. After furthering her painting skills and knowledge she moved into sculpture full time, becoming a member of the National Sculpture Society
in 1981. Moving to Pietrasanta, Italy in 1984, Akamu proceeded to expand on her skills and catalog of sculpture work.
Returning to the United States after 12 years in Italy, she eventually moved to Beacon, New York
to work on a full-scale sculpture of Leonardo's horse
, which became her most notable work to date, dedicating the piece in Milan, Italy and the Frederik Meijer Gardens and Sculpture Park
in Grand Rapids, Michigan
.
Currently living in Rhinebeck, New York, Amaku serves as Vice President of the National Sculpture Society. The cranes and memorial she created was awarded the Henry Hering Award
by the National Sculpture Society in 2002.
during the internment program. He was sent to a relocation camp on Sand Island
in Pearl Harbor
. Suffering from diabetes upon his internment, he died of a heart attack three months into his imprisonment. This family connection, combined with growing up for a time in Hawaii where she fished with her father at Pearl Harbor and the erection of a Japanese American war memorial near her home in Massa, Italy, inspired a strong connection to the memorial and its creation.
Japanese American
are American people of Japanese heritage. Japanese Americans have historically been among the three largest Asian American communities, but in recent decades have become the sixth largest group at roughly 1,204,205, including those of mixed-race or mixed-ethnicity...
artist Nina Akamu. The work is located at Louisiana Avenue and D Street, Northwest, Washington, D.C.. The memorial commemorates Japanese American war involvement, veterans and patriotism during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, as well as those held in Japanese American internment
Japanese American internment
Japanese-American internment was the relocation and internment by the United States government in 1942 of approximately 110,000 Japanese Americans and Japanese who lived along the Pacific coast of the United States to camps called "War Relocation Camps," in the wake of Imperial Japan's attack on...
camps.
Description
The memorial consists of two Japanese cranes caught in barbed wire on top of a tall pedestal made of green Vermont marbleMarble
Marble is a metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or dolomite.Geologists use the term "marble" to refer to metamorphosed limestone; however stonemasons use the term more broadly to encompass unmetamorphosed limestone.Marble is commonly used for...
. Standing amongst a landscaped plaza, a semi-circular granite wall curves around the sculpture. The wall features inscriptions of the names of World War II battles that Japanese Americans fought in, as well as the names of the ten internment camps where over 100,000 Japanese Americans were placed. There are also two panels that feature the names of Japanese Americans who died fighting in World War II and inscribed writings by Japanese American writers such as Bill Hosokawa
Bill Hosokawa
William Kumpai Hosokawa was a Japanese American author and journalist who worked for 38 years at The Denver Post, before retiring as the editorial page editor from that particular paper in 1984. Hosokawa retired from the newspaper industry in 1992.Hosokawa was also a prolific author...
.
Acquisition & creation
The concept for the monument began with the National Japanese American Memorial Foundation in 1988. Approval for the construction of the memorial and sculpture was passed by a federal statute on October 24, 1992.Sculptor Nina Akamu traveled to the National Crane Foundation in Baraboo, Wisconsin
Baraboo, Wisconsin
Baraboo is the largest city in, and the county seat of Sauk County, Wisconsin, USA. It is situated on the Baraboo River. Its 2010 population was 12,048 according to the US Census Bureau...
where she spent time studying and sketching what would form into the centerpiece of the 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 they represent the dualityDualism
Dualism denotes a state of two parts. The term 'dualism' was originally coined to denote co-eternal binary opposition, a meaning that is preserved in metaphysical and philosophical duality discourse but has been diluted in general or common usages. Dualism can refer to moral dualism, Dualism (from...
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 interdependency on one another.
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 ServiceMilitary Intelligence Service (United States)
The Military Intelligence Service was a World War II U.S. military unit consisting of two branches, the Japanese American Unit described here and the German-Austrian Unit based at Camp Ritchie, described partly in Ritchie Boys. The unit described here was primarily composed of Japanese-American...
and other units.
Dedication
Then United States Attorney GeneralUnited States Attorney General
The United States Attorney General is the head of the United States Department of Justice concerned with legal affairs and is the chief law enforcement officer of the United States government. The attorney general is considered to be the chief lawyer of the U.S. government...
Janet Reno
Janet Reno
Janet Wood Reno is a former Attorney General of the United States . She was nominated by President Bill Clinton on February 11, 1993, and confirmed on March 11...
spoke at the dedication where she shared a letter from President Bill Clinton
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
stating:
We are diminished when any American is targeted unfairly because of his or her heritage. This memorial and the internment sites are powerful reminders that stereotyping, discrimination, hatred and racism have no place in this country.
Nina Akamu
Born in Midwest City, OklahomaMidwest City, Oklahoma
Midwest City is a city in Oklahoma County, Oklahoma, United States, and a part of the Oklahoma City metropolitan area. As of the 2010 census, the population was 54,371, making it the eighth largest city in the state....
, Akamu lived in Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
and East Asia
East Asia
East Asia or Eastern Asia is a subregion of Asia that can be defined in either geographical or cultural terms...
as a child due to her father serving in the Air Force
Air force
An air force, also known in some countries as an air army, is in the broadest sense, the national military organization that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an army, navy or...
. At the age of 10 her family moved to Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, where her passion for horseback riding was instilled (which would eventually lead to a passion for sculpting horses). In 1969 her family was transferred back to the United States, moving to Dover, Delaware
Dover, Delaware
The city of Dover is the capital and second largest city in the U.S. state of Delaware. It is also the county seat of Kent County, and the principal city of the Dover, Delaware Metropolitan Statistical Area, which encompasses all of Kent County. It is located on the St. Jones River in the Delaware...
, where Akamu graduated high school. She received her Bachelors of Fine Arts in painting from the Maryland Institute College of Art
Maryland Institute College of Art
Maryland Institute College of Art is an art and design college in Baltimore, Maryland, USA. It was founded in 1826 as the Maryland Institute for the Promotion of the Mechanic Arts, making it one of the first and oldest art colleges in the United States. In 2008, MICA was ranked #2 in the nation...
in 1977, however, she found her passion for sculpture the final year of her education.
Akamu trained under American painter Joseph Sheppard in Florence
Florence
Florence is the capital city of the Italian region of Tuscany and of the province of Florence. It is the most populous city in Tuscany, with approximately 370,000 inhabitants, expanding to over 1.5 million in the metropolitan area....
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
in the late 1970s. After furthering her painting skills and knowledge she moved into sculpture full time, becoming a member of the National Sculpture Society
National Sculpture Society
Founded in 1893, the National Sculpture Society was the first organization of professional sculptors formed in the United States. The purpose of the organization was to promote the welfare of American sculptors, although its founding members included several renowned architects. The founding...
in 1981. Moving to Pietrasanta, Italy in 1984, Akamu proceeded to expand on her skills and catalog of sculpture work.
Returning to the United States after 12 years in Italy, she eventually moved to Beacon, New York
Beacon, New York
Beacon is a city located in Dutchess County, New York, United States. The 2010 census placed the city total population at 15,541. Beacon is part of the Poughkeepsie–Newburgh–Middletown, NY Metropolitan Statistical Area as well as the larger New York–Newark–Bridgeport,...
to work on a full-scale sculpture of Leonardo's horse
Leonardo's horse
Leonardo's horse is a sculpture which was originally commissioned of Leonardo da Vinci in 1482 by Duke of Milan Ludovico il Moro, but not completed. It was intended to be the largest equestrian statue in the world, a monument to the duke's father Francesco...
, which became her most notable work to date, dedicating the piece in Milan, Italy and the Frederik Meijer Gardens and Sculpture Park
Frederik Meijer Gardens and Sculpture Park
Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park is a botanical garden and outdoor sculpture park located in Grand Rapids Township, Michigan in Kent County. Commonly referred to as Meijer Gardens, it has quickly become one of the most significant sculpture experiences in the Midwest and an emerging...
in Grand Rapids, Michigan
Grand Rapids, Michigan
Grand Rapids is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. The city is located on the Grand River about 40 miles east of Lake Michigan. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 188,040. In 2010, the Grand Rapids metropolitan area had a population of 774,160 and a combined statistical area, Grand...
.
Currently living in Rhinebeck, New York, Amaku serves as Vice President of the National Sculpture Society. The cranes and memorial she created was awarded the Henry Hering Award
Henry Hering
Henry Hering was an American sculptor who was born New York City on February 15, 1874 and died there on January 17, 1949.-Early career:He was a student of Augustus Saint-Gaudens at Cooper Union and of Philip Martiny at the Art Students League of New York...
by the National Sculpture Society in 2002.
Connection to the memorial
Amaku's grandfather, on her mother's side, was arrested in HawaiiHawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
during the internment program. He was sent to a relocation camp on Sand Island
Sand Island (Hawaii)
Sand Island, formerly known as Quarantine Island, is a small island within the city of Honolulu, Hawaii, United States. The island lies at the entrance to Honolulu Harbor.-History:...
in Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor, known to Hawaiians as Puuloa, is a lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. Much of the harbor and surrounding lands is a United States Navy deep-water naval base. It is also the headquarters of the U.S. Pacific Fleet...
. Suffering from diabetes upon his internment, he died of a heart attack three months into his imprisonment. This family connection, combined with growing up for a time in Hawaii where she fished with her father at Pearl Harbor and the erection of a Japanese American war memorial near her home in Massa, Italy, inspired a strong connection to the memorial and its creation.
Further reading
- Moeller Jr., G. Martin. AIA Guide to the Architecture of Washington, D.C.. The Johns Hopkins University Press, 4th ed., 2006. ISBN 0801884683.
- Pencak, William A. Encyclopedia of the Veteran in America: Volume 1. Greenwood, 2009. ISBN 0313340099 - Features the memorial and others dedicated to the American veteran.