#antifa #history #WWII #Nisei #CannonFodder
"The ‘Purple Heart Battalion’ fought Nazis abroad and injustice at home
These Japanese American soldiers amassed a total of nearly 9,500 Purple Hearts.
(. . .)
Their government’s actions did not strip many of them of their willingness to serve. About 33,000 of them either enlisted or were drafted during World War II. Japanese Americans fought heroically for the country of their birth. Most of them served in the 442nd Regimental Combat Team, which included 21 Medal of Honor recipients.
The 442nd suffered so many casualties that it became known as the 'Purple Heart Battalion.'
(. . .)
The Nisei soldiers refused to allow the injustice and prejudice they endured to affect their military service. For two seemingly endless days, they battled dense foliage and icy rain as they attempted to avoid setting off German mines. As they neared the ridge where the Germans had more than 270 members of the 1st Battalion, 141st Infantry Regiment, 36th Infantry Division surrounded, the enemy unleashed artillery fire, the National Museum of the U.S. Army reported. The 442nd sustained several casualties but kept fighting.
The 442nd launched several attacks, but could not save the Lost Battalion. Finally, after the Nazis killed one of his fellow Nisei soldiers, Pvt. George Sakato charged the enemy. By himself, he killed 12 Germans, wounded two more, and personally captured four others. Sakato also helped his platoon detain 34 Germans as prisoners.
'As a unit, we were used like cannon fodder,' Sakato later said. '… I was willing to die for my country.'
The same day, Pvt. Barney Hajiro charged a slope ominously called Suicide Hill. Hajiro took out two machine-gun nests and killed two snipers while dodging fire.
Sakato and Hajiro epitomized the fierce resolve of the 442nd’s soldiers. That determination finally paid off six days into the intense fighting when they saved the Lost Battalion."
