Japanese American soldiers once branded ‘enemy aliens’ to be promoted posthumously

HONOLULU — Seven Japanese American soldiers will be promoted to the ranks of officers in a solemn ceremony Monday, eight decades after they died fighting for the United States during World War II despite being labeled “enemy aliens.”

The seven were University of Hawaii students and Reserve Officers’ Training Corps cadets, on track to become Army officers, when Japan bombed Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. They initially served in the Hawaii Territorial Guard, but shortly after the attack, the United States barred most Japanese Americans from serving and deemed them enemy aliens.

Instead, the seven students worked with a civilian labor battalion known as the University Victory Volunteers, which performed tasks such as digging trenches and breaking rocks, until American commanders announced in early 1943 the formation of a separate Japanese American regiment. The seven were among those who joined the unit known as the 442nd Regimental Combat Team.

The combat team, along with the 100th Battalion, composed mostly of Japanese Americans from Hawaii, became one of the most decorated units in U.S. history. Some of its soldiers fought for the Allies even while their relatives were detained in American-Japanese internment camps because they were considered a public danger.

“It’s important for us to give back and appreciate our grandparents and these veterans on whose shoulders we stand,” said Master Sgt. Nakoa Hui of the 100th Battalion, 442nd Regiment, what the unit is now known as the Army Reserve. He noted that the once isolated unit now includes “many cultures.”

He added that the seven “sacrificed a lot in a challenging time when their loyalty to their country was in question, even having their family members imprisoned.”

The seven men—Daniel Bitsui, Ginhatsu Chinen, Robert Murata, Grover Nagagi, Akio Nishikawa, Hiroichi Tomita, and Howard Urabe—died fighting in Europe in 1944. All but Murata were killed during the campaign to liberate Italy from Nazi Germany. Morata was killed by an artillery shell in eastern France.

On Monday, they will be promoted to second lieutenant, the rank they would have achieved if they completed the ROTC program. Relatives of at least some of the men are expected to attend the ceremony scheduled for a Honolulu park.

Although Hawaii was not yet a state, cadets were American citizens because they were born in Hawaii after it was annexed in 1898.

“Fighting injustice at home, these seven men later gave their lives fighting on the battlefields of Europe,” a U.S. Army Pacific news release said. “They were unable to return to school and finish their commissioning efforts.”

Monday’s ceremony, which culminates efforts to honor the men, comes amid growing concern and criticism that President Donald Trump’s administration is whitewashing American history ahead of the nation’s celebration of its 250th anniversary of independence, including removing an exhibit on slavery last week at Independence National Historical Park in Philadelphia.

Last year, the Pentagon said web pages honoring black Medal of Honor winners and Japanese American service members had been removed in error — but it strongly defended its sweeping campaign to remove content targeting the contributions of women and minority groups, which the Trump administration considers “DEI.”

Honoring the seven is not about DEI — diversity, equity and inclusion — but recognizing them for their merit and that they “served at the ultimate sacrifice of their lives for the country,” said Lt. Col. Jerrod Melander, who previously led the University of Hawaii’s ROTC program as a professor of military science.

Melander said he launched the commissioning effort in 2023 during former President Joe Biden’s administration, and that the promotions were approved last year during the Trump administration.

The university awarded the men posthumous degrees in 2012. Laura Lyons, interim vice provost for academic excellence at the University of Hawaii at Manoa, called their promotions particularly significant.

“Everyone’s contribution and sacrifice for the ideals of freedom and security in this country must matter and be recognized, no matter who they are,” Lyons said.