YOUR ASAMATEURS

R-L: Insun, Jerry, Denise, Lawrence, Edi

Enjoy!

Frank Fong: Fighter Pilot Extreme

An American citizen, Frank Fong wanted to serve his country. He volunteered to join the army in WWII. However, despite Fong’s eagerness and national pride, the army denied him entry because of his race. Fong tried to get local help and support, but was unsuccessful. Eventually he had to write to General Hap Arnold for assistance. After reviewing Fong’s application, General Arnold appointed Fong as a pilot candidate. After training for a year and a half, Frank Fong graduated at the top of his pilot training class and became one of the first Chinese American fighter pilots in WWII.


During the war he successfully and skillfully shot down two German pilot fighters. Unfortunately, during the war he sustained a spinal and eye injury (that led him to be blind in the right eye) that sidelined him from the war. However, due to pilot shortage he was called back to fight despite his condition (the army was unaware of the severity of his injuries and was ignored due to Fong’s eagerness to go back to war and fight). On June 6, 1944, Fong provided air covering during the D-Day invasion of Normandy, France. He rescued more than 1,000 pilots between January and May 1945. Fong flew ten more missions through June 5-13 before a flight surgeon ordered him to be transferred in order to get an evaluation and treatment on his eye and spine.

Despite his injuries, once again he chose to continue. He also served in the Korean and Vietnam War. Eventually, in 1972, he left the Air Force as a major with more than 400 hours of combat and twenty accolades which includes eight Air Medals, two Distinguished Flying Crosses (highest flying honor), and a purple heart.

Purple Heart


Distinguished Flying Cross


Air Medal

After leaving the service, Fong became a commercial artist. During his retirement he educated hundreds of high school and college students about the contributions of Asian Americans in the military. In everything that he did, he showed respect to the army, his country, and fellow soldiers. Despite a 50-year battle with the U.S Department of Veteran Affairs (VA), over disability payments for his blindness in his right eye, Fong never lost love for his country. Even though he faced so much prejudice for being Asian and had such a long battle with the VA, his patriotism never wavered.

In 2007, Frank Fong died. However his story will never be forgotten. Frank Fong broke the barrier for all Chinese Americans. He was a man that had so much passion, and love for his country that he did all he could to defend it. He saw himself as an American. For that, the will always be remembered: Frank Fong, the fighter pilot that kept on fighting



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http://us_asians.tripod.com/timeline-1940.html

http://www.asianweek.com/2009/07/10/chinese-american-hero-frank-fong/

http://www.electronicaviation.com/news/Military/1110
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Denise Lee

Kenji Ito: Man of Many Words

Born in 1909, Kenji Ito was a gifted public speaker, debater, lawyer, and community leader. Correction. Kenji Ito was a Japanese American community leader in a time where Japanese Americans were targeted as secret agents for Japan. In 1935, Ito got his law degree at the University of Washington, and in 1936 he was admitted to the Washington state bar. In 1937, as a 28 year old, he moved back to his native town, Seattle, where he was frequently asked by local civic groups to debate the Sino-Japanese War. He openly expressed Japanese views even though the US supported China.

"I was expressing myself as an American -- of Japanese ancestry, of course - - who knew something about Japan and Japanese history" – Kenji Ito

In over a few years, Ito made 200 pro-Japanese speeches.


In 1941, Japan attacked Pearl Harbor. Within the next few days, federal agents showed up at Ito’s home and arrested him for failing to register as a spy for the Japanese government. The government hoped that they could use Ito’s pro-Japanese speeches as proof of espionage. However, Ito argued that he was just an U.S. citizen merely educating the public. Ito was one of hundreds of Japanese Americans that were arrested by the FBI in wave of hysteria following the Pearl Harbor attacks. Ito was tried, but was founded not guilty by an all white jury. In his closing statements, Ito proved his citizenship and where his loyalty lied.

"I'd rather live in this country behind bars than in another country where the dictator holds the olive branch in one hand and the dagger in the other" – Kenji Ito

Despite his acquittal, Ito and his family were evacuated and sent to internment camps (Tule Lake and then Minidoka) due to the U.S. Executive Order 9066. They were forced to leave everything they had and everyone they knew behind. In the camps he provided legal assistance to those who needed it.

After the war, he moved to LA and opened a law office in Little Tokyo. He was admitted to the California bar in 1945 and continued to practice law for 50 years. In little Tokyo, he helped former internees reclaim the land they lost because the executive order had forced them to abandon their property. He continued to practice law until his early 80s. During that time, he focused on corporate law and represented Japanese companies involved in film, motorcycle, automobile, and consumer product industries. In his lifetime, especially during the 1940’s, despite prejudice and hatred, Ito was able to be an American and still support his Japanese heritage and culture. He did not let government’s injustice affect him negatively, but instead he fought against the injustice and allowed other fellow Japanese Americans get a voice back by helping them reclaim their land and place in the states.

...
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2003/08/15/BA291862.DTL

http://us_asians.tripod.com/timeline-1940.html
....

Denise Lee

What ethnicity are you?

Consider for a moment all of your Asian friends.

Now think about all of the ones who call themselves "Chinese".

And now, think of those who consider themselves "Taiwanese".

Now consider the physical and cultural similarities between those who consider themselves "Chinese" and "Taiwanese". Most likely, you'll find that these two groups look almost physically identical and share multiple cultural similarities.

Now consider what would happen if you called a "Taiwanese" person "Chinese" or vice versa. If you're like me, or anyone who has Taiwanese friends, you'll know that upon being called Chinese, the Taiwanese person would instantly correct you, either casually or harshly.

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Why is it that the Taiwanese take so much offense to being called Chinese? After all, they share identical physical traits, and their cultures have many similarities. Why is it that there is so much friction between them? The answer comes from the late period of the Chinese Civil War in which two distinct cultural identities were formed.

The Chinese Civil War was a conflict between the then in power Nationalists led by Chiang Kai Shek (who was backed by the United States) and the Communist leader Mao Zedong. The war initially favored Chiang Kai Shek, but then quickly turned sour when Mao gained support from the popular masses and eventually forced Chiang Kai Shek to retreat to the island of Formosa. This island would later be renamed Taiwan. It was here that the final battle of the Chinese Civil War was fought and where two different cultural identities were formed.

In the mainland, the Communist forces of Mao Zedong were victorious. Communist China quickly became a dominating force, exerting influence over the events of the Korean War and the Vietnam War. The "Communist Chinese" identity quickly became synonymous with the "People's identity" in that the Communist ideals were directed at the masses. It is there that modern Chinese-American identity is derived. Almost all those who came to America after the defeat of Chiang Kai Shek were those who did not fit into the Communist system. To them, the word "Communist" was taboo and associated with terror, hate, and oppression. Those who came to the here sought refuge from regime that was Mao Zedong.

On the other end of the spectrum, there are those who consider themselves Taiwanese. These people are the survivors of the Chinese Civil War. Their cultural identity is scarred with defeat from the Communists. Like those who came to America from the Chinese mainland, they too held a strong hatred for the Communists. But their hatred stemmed not from oppression, but rather from defiance. The Taiwanese saw themselves as righteous compared to the Communists. When they came to America, it was by choice. Those who are Taiwanese pride themselves in their existence. They were never oppressed, but rather, defeated. Now the first generation that came here to America carries the bitterness of defeat with them.

Despite a mutual hatred of the Communist regime, Taiwanese-Americans and Chinese-Americans both have conflicting identities in America.

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Edwina "Edi" Dai

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http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/38/Taiwan_NASA_Terra_MODIS_23791.jpg
http://telematicsnews.files.wordpress.com/2009/06/taiwan_flag1.jpg
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/country_profiles/1285915.stm
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/shared/spl/hi/asia_pac/04/taiwan_flashpoint/html/chinas_stance.stm

We Love Spam!

Spam was introduced in 1937, and its popularity all over the world including Asia, Europe, and the United States caused it to influence millions of people’s daily diet until the present day. It is a canned product made by the Hormel Foods Corporations; its main ingredient is pork’s shoulder meat. It has been continuously popular in Asia in the 1940s and 50s, especially in South Korea and Japan because of the U.S. army base there. I believe Spam has been a significant food product in human history because of the following reasons: it transformed and created many Asian countries’ food, it dominates part of Asia’s food industry, and it shows which Asian countries had been impacted by wars.

Spam has definitely created innovative foods in Asia because many Asian countries have at least one food that is cooked with Spam. For example, South Korea keeps producing Spam in its own factory and has been one of the most popular industries in the country. Most Korean families have Spam cans on their kitchen shelves and cook different kinds of food with them. As a Korean who lived in Korea for many years, I ate Spam with rice, fried eggs, and ketchup when there was no other food to eat. During school picnics, parents make kimbab, a Korean traditional rice roll with assorted vegetables and meat, and the children love having Spam in them.

During the Korean War (1950-1953), many U.S. army soldiers lived in Korea and their presence gave Spam its popularity in Korea. Because Spam was a convenient way to eat meat, U.S. brought many Spam products to the army base. Because Korea was in jeopardy at the time and many Koreans lived in poverty, their only way to get valuable resources and food was from the U.S. army. Among those valuable resources, Spam was very popular because meat was almost non-existent and very expensive at the time. The stew that was created with Spam is called Budae Jjigae*. Koreans who lived in poverty literally mixed everything that was available to them and because the U.S. army enjoyed Spam, their major ingredient became Spam. Because Budae Jjigae mixed everything (including rotten and spoiled food) that was available, it was also known as the “pig’s soup.” However, budae jjigae eventually transformed into a popular and healthy food that many Koreans enjoy in the present time. It mixes kimchi, tofu, vegetables, assorted hams, noodles, and most importantly, Spam.

*Budae Jjigae in English is “army-base stew.”




After doing some research on Spam in Asia, I found out that some people give Spam cans in gift sets during holidays. Many other Asian countries such as Japan, China, Hong Kong, and Philippine, also blend their own cultural food with Spam.




Spam’s popularity has widened greatly and Asians who immigrated to America continue to consume Spam greatly. I believe Spam shows Asia’s history of wars because if the U.S. army had not been in Asian countries, Spam had not been able to enjoy such popularity as is today. Spam represents Asian’s life in poverty and hope during the war.

Hawaiian Spam(?)

Someone made a really cute box out of an empty Spam can!

Insun Cheon.

Feeling Jazzy

Glenn Miller- Moonlight Serenade

Sammy Lee: Diving into History

Dr. Samuel "Sammy" Lee. A doctor. A diver. The First Asian American to win a gold medal for the United States.

Samuel Lee was born in Fresno, California in 1920 to Korean immigrants who had settled in Hawaii in 1905. Sammy Lee began diving at a very young age and trained for years to accomplish his dreams of one day competing in the World Olympics. The Olympics is a competition bringing in the best athletes from all over the world to compete in various types of sporting events. It is a fundamental element in pop culture, a tradition that has been enjoyed by people everywhere since ancient Roman times. It is this big stage that Sammy was aiming for. Since he was 12 years old, he trained for 16 years to finally be good enough to show the world his talent.

However, this did not come without struggle. Lee would train in the pool in Pasadena, California where rules were very strict. People of color, like himself, could only use the pool once a week, which had to be drained and filled with fresh water that same night. These strict rules are accurate to the kind of racism that occurred during the time. An influx of Asians were coming into America around the time of the gold rush in hopes of attaining a lucky fortune. This caused a "terror" among white people who feared that the Chinese would take all the jobs and ruin the working economy. This fear came to be known as "yellow peril". Despite the yellow peril, however, Lee continued to train as hard as he could despite the racism he faced during his training which even caused him to become ashamed of his heritage. Lee's father responded to that by saying,

"Son, if you are not proud of the shape of your eyes and the color of your skin, how can your classmates respect you?"

Those words were all Lee needed to rekindle his dream of becoming an Olympic champion.

Lee's talent was discovered by his diving coach who trained him to eventually make it to the U.S. National Diving Team in 1942. In 1947, Lee was even able to satisfy his father's wishes, receiving his medical degree at the University of Southern California, School of Medicine. A year later, he would make history.


In 1948, Lee took his diving talents to compete in the summer Olympics in London. Sammy knew that no Asian American had ever won a gold medal in the Olympics. All gold medalists before him were typically white. For Lee to come into this competition with his eyes on the gold medal was a historical feat within itself. After a spectacular 16-second, three-and-a-half somersault dive, Lee became an Olympic champion and the first Asian-American Olympic gold medalist. In 1952, Lee won a gold medal in the platform diving competition, making him the first male athlete to win 2 gold medals in that event. Soon after, Lee put his doctoral skills to use serving as a doctor in the U.S. Army Medical Corps in World War II. He went back to diving in 1960 not as the athlete, but as a coach of the U.S. Olympic Diving Team. Lee has paved the way for Asian American athletes not only in the Olympics, but in American sports as well. Coached by Lee, Samoan American, Greg Lougains won gold medals in Olympic springboard and platform diving in 1984. Other Asian American athletes would proceed to win gold medals in weightlifting, swimming, figure skating and more. Sammy Lee paved the way for athletes like Japanese American Kristi Yamaguchi and Chinese American Michelle Kwan who have won gold medals in Olympic figure skating, breaking the mold of the what was thought to be the typical Olympian gold medalist.


Lawrence Dalusung

Music

A few songs that would have played during the internment camps, was influential music for the musicians or were internment camp bands.


Glenn Miller- In the Mood


Sidney Bechet- Summertime


Bix Beiderbecke- Singin the Blues


Benny Goodman- Sing Sing Sing

Japanese American Internment Camp Movies

Come see the Paradise (1990)


Snow Falling on Cedars


Farewell to Manzanar (1976)
Executive Order 9066

Collaboration: Edwina "Edi" Dai, Jerry Knaack

True Unsung Heroes

Imagine this. You're about 20 years old living in a country where living conditions could be, well...better. There's a country. A glorious country. The land of opportunity. This land of opportunity, however, is fighting a war, and they need help. They promise that in exchange for your help, you can finally get a ticket to this glorious land...and money to establish yourself there! So once you have done what they ask of you, they suddenly tell you, "Thanks, here's the ticket, but we can't give you everything else we promised you."

That ticket is called citizenship.

In 1941, President Roosevelt drafted 160,000 soldiers from the Philippines to fight in the war that succeeded the bombings in the Philippines and Pearl Harbor. The US promised full benefits and US citizenship to any Filipino soldier who volunteered to fight. Motivated by anger and incentives given by the US, over 250,000 Filipinos answered the call to fight alongside American soldiers against the Japanese in World War II. That number does not even include the number of guerrilla fighters who helped the United States as well. In 1942, Congress passed legislation that would give the soldiers US citizenship. Seems like they were holding their end of the bargain so far. However, following the end of the war in 1945, President Roosevelt signed the Rescission Act of 1946, one that would take away that promise giving full benefits to all nations fighting alongside the US, except the Filipinos. It wasn't until 1990 when President Bush signed a law that allowed them to come to the US but without veterans benefits.

After waiting more than 40 years for benefits, coming to the United States was no longer much of a reward. Many were growing old and could barely work. After moving to the US, the Filipino veterans were forced to move into transitional veteran housing, usually packed and overcrowded. Any money they received most likely went to their families left in the Philippines and the veterans would just remain there without benefits and without justice. Even today, the veterans struggle to find work so they can have a sustainable amount of income. But in this economy, the veterans are hit hard. They cannot find work so many must make do with what they have. California's state budget cuts have reduced their income benefits.


Many people, however, do not completely agree with the veterans' campaign for justice. One article on CNN.com is entitled, "U.S. to pay 'forgotten' Filipino World War II Veterans" The word "forgotten" stands out because it is in parentheses insinuating that Filipino veterans weren't really forgotten despite the injustices done to them.

Today, only 15,000 veterans remain. Although legislation, signed by President Obama, promised to finally reimburse the veterans for their services, only 10% of the money promised has been disbursed. Many still haven't received the $9,000 or $15,000 promised to them. The claims are being delayed and many of the veterans are dying, making them and their families ineligible to receive the lump sum of money.

Tule Lake: Standing Up to Injustice

Tule Lake started out just as any of the other interment camps, poor conditions, makeshift shelter, and barbed wire fences with armed watchtowers surrounding the internees. But as time went on, Tule Lake would make a name for itself. One that would set it apart from the rest of the camps and one that would ultimately make it the most controversial of all the Japanese American Internment camps during World War II.

Located near near the actual lake called Tule Lake, the Tule Lake Relocation Center was actually in the Northern California town of Newell. It opened its door on May 26^th, 1942 to the Japanese Americans who previously had lived in western Washington, Oregon and parts of Northern California. This camp began operation as just one of the several interment camps but following several incidences, Tule lake became know as the camp with a bunch of trouble makers. Following the loyalty questionnaire, “No-No” boys were all sent to Tule Lake, even those who answered as a sign of protest of their poor treatment. They were labeled as "disloyal" and assumed to be pro-Japan. Several protests and boycotts occurred leading to military police to seize control of the camp and declaring Martial Law. The camp thus became known as the Tule Lake Segregation Center.

Tule Lake was the final camp to close its doors in March of 1946. At its peak it was home to nearly 19,00 internees making it the largest of all the camps. Despite being the last to close and the biggest, Tule Lake will be remembered for those who choose to resist. The members of Tule Lake make great contrast to the traditional story that is told in classrooms and the heroic tale of the 442^nd. But some have considered the residents of the only “Segregation Center” to be the most American of all. They choose to stand up for their rights and wanted to have their voice heard. At the time this was seen as disobedience. Today it is seen as standing up for what you believe in and what is right. To commemorate what these Americans did, not only has Tule Lake been preserved as a California Historical Landmark, and later a National Historic Site, Tule Lake is the only site chosen by President Bush to represent the continental United States on the World War II Valor in the Pacific National Monument. “By conserving these important sites, President Bush recognized...the quiet courage of Japanese Americans incarcerated at Tule Lake,” remarked Dan Sakura who works to preserve the the Japanese American Interment camps.

Despite its poor reputation at the time, history shows how much bravery it took to stand up in the face of adversity. Only now are the residents of Tule Lake having their story told in a positive light. But perhaps it is time to adjust the story in our history books, at least a little bit.

Jerry Knaack

http://www.tulelake.org/history.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tule_Lake_War_Relocation_Center

http://www.lib.utah.edu/portal/site/marriottlibrary/menuitem.350f2794f84fb3b29cf87354d1e916b9/?vgnextoid=885a31af8dade110VgnVCM1000001c9e619bRCRD&vgnextchannel=3774f882f22de110VgnVCM1000001c9e619bRCRD

http://www.colostate.edu/orgs/TuleLake/Tule%20Lake%20Menu.html

http://www.nps.gov/archive/manz/cctulelake.htm

http://www.javadc.org/tule_lake.htm

http://home.nps.gov/pwr/customcf/apps/ww2ip/dsp_monuments.cfm

http://www.conservationfund.org/node/877

Popeye: You're a Sap, Mr. Jap

In 1943, Paramount Pictures released this cartoon short featuring the pop culture icon, Popeye the Sailor. It was released during the time of World War II to depict the attitude of the Americans towards the Japanese at the time. The cartoon also represents Japanese in an offensive manner using caricatures drawn from offensive stereotypes. In this cartoon, Popeye is sailing his ship when he spots a Japanese battleship through his telescope. He parks his boat right next to them, and before he can act out of anger, the Japanese present him with a peace treaty. Popeye, skeptical at first, finally attempts to sign it, but the Japanese repeatedly bother and provoke him while he's not looking ultimately signifying their "backstabbing nature" and inability to keep their treaty of peace. The multiple hits while Popeye is not looking, again, depict the Japanese as a sneaky people, making references to the bombing at Pearl Harbor.


This war propaganda cartoon was never aired and banned because of its racist portrayal of the Japanese. One noticeable depiction is that they all looked the same. All Japanese characters donned the same round pair of glasses, Japanese kimono, wooden sandals, and buck teeth speaking in what sounds like Japanese. Racism against the Japanese was very strong around this time. These stereotypes were based on actual racist stereotypes of the Japanese. At the time of this cartoon, Japanese Americans experienced a surge of racism. Some believe the internment of Japanese Americans into camps were racially motivated, not for military purposes as publicly stated. Lots of mediums of pop culture such as music, literature, and propaganda dehumanized the Japanese, calling them names like "dirty Japs" or different types of animals. Any Japanese American at the time was vulnerable to this racism.

Having had enough of the Japanese's antics, Popeye decides to teach them a lesson but eventually finds himself battling the entire naval battleship of the Japanese. As it appears that Popeye is about to lose, he eats a can of spinach and proceeds to beat up the entire Japanese navy. As he rests, the ship begins to fall apart. He holds a sign that reads: MADE IN JAPAN which he easily crumbles into pieces implying that Japanese products are substandard or incompetent to American products. The general of the ship consumes a tank of gasoline and kills himself while Popeye watches the ship die. The cartoon ends with the Japanese flag being submersed and Popeye celebrating a victory.

This cartoon is one of many racist forms of propaganda that circulated at the time of World War II. It portrayed the Japanese in a very offensive and stereotypical manner that was reflective of the racism that was popular during the time. The Japanese are portrayed to be backstabbers, people unable to be trusted. Lots of these racist sentiments toward the Japanese were fueled by anger from the Pearl Harbor attacks, causing many citizens to act violently. A 1942 comic strip published ways to distinguish a Japanese phenotypically.


They are also portrayed to be fanatic as shown in the climactic sequence of the cartoon when the general decides to "save face" and commit suicide rather than lose. This is evident by the desperate kamikaze tactics the Japanese used during the war in which fighter pilots would crash into naval ships sacrificing their lives to kill American soldiers. The cartoon ends with the Japanese ship sinking and Popeye, the representation of America, watching their foreshadowed defeat.


Lawrence Dalusung