Congress Approves Payments to Japanese-American Internees

Final approval by Congress to authorize a national apology and payments of $20,000 each to Japanese-Americans interned during World War II is commendable (Part I, Aug. 5). Such action, coming after so many years, could not have happened in any other country in the world. Thus, the most important aspect is that Congress does not give lip service to the meaning of democracy. And the U.S. proves to the world that it lives by its Constitution.

I was a resident of Nebraska and missed the internment. But I was involved in an unforgettable experience. After I finished 30 missions as gunner on B-24 bombers over European targets, I returned to the U.S. in 1943 for recuperation and reassignment. Washington soon ordered me to visit three internment camps in Wyoming, Idaho and Utah.

My first visit was to Heart Mountain, Wyo. I vividly remember what a shock it was. At the entrance were armed guards wearing the same uniform I was wearing. Inside, behind barbed wire, were “my own people.” My public relations task was to encourage internees to join the 442nd Regiment of Japanese-Americans being formed for training in Minnesota.

One morning I wished good luck to a busload of recruits. All I got was stony silence. Their reaction was puzzling. Perhaps it was because they had lost much property, stripped of their rights, their dignity demeaned. Despite whatever bitterness they may have harbored, they went to war and became the most decorated unit during the war. The 442nd and 100th Infantry Battalion did a super job under most adverse conditions. They deserve credit in moving the reparations to a successful conclusion.

This will not assure that “it won’t happen again.” Rep. Helen Delich Bentley (R-Md.) said her husband, a Korean War veteran, threatened to divorce her if she voted for the apology and payments. She voted against the bill. There are some who cannot differentiate between Japanese-Americans and the Japanese enemy who bombed Pearl Harbor.

What this adds up to is that the House vote of 257 to 156 was indeed most commendable. They corrected an injustice that could have been easily pigeonholed forever. They voted for a bill that helped a minority with very little voter-political clout. And in the face of a staggering deficit.

Thank you, Congress (and President Reagan), for respecting democracy. God bless a stronger America.

BEN KUROKI

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