‘GO FOR BROKE: JAPANESE AMERICAN SOLDIERS FIGHTING ON TWO FRONTS’ OPENS NOVEMBER 12

Los Angeles – The Japanese American National Museum will present the exhibition Go For Broke: Japanese American Soldiers Fighting on Two Fronts from November 12, 2013 to March 2, 2014. Go For Broke chronicles the history of Japanese American Nisei soldiers from the 100th Infantry Battalion, 442nd Regimental Combat Team, and Military Intelligence Service who served during World War II to prove their loyalty to the nation that classified them as “enemy aliens” despite the fact that they were American citizens.

Japanese American soldiers fought in eight brutal campaigns across Europe, receiving thousands of medals for heroism. Their segregated unit – the 100th Infantry Battalion and the 442nd Regimental Combat Team – became the most decorated military unit for its size and its length of service. Thousands more joined the Military Intelligence Service and operated throughout the Pacific Theater as language and intelligence specialists. However, their battles were not finished when the war ended. The Nisei veterans returned to fight pervasive racism back home where they proved to be just as successful.

First displayed at the Ellis Island Immigration Museum, Go For Broke shows how instrumental these soldiers were in the Japanese American fight for justice both overseas and at home. The Japanese American National Museum is pleased to present this exhibition and the remarkable legacy of the Nisei veterans. The photographs in Go For Broke are supplemented by a special Guide-by-Cell audio tour, with narration by curator Eric Saul, Director of the Japanese American Wartime History Project, as well as narration from Nisei veterans courtesy of the Go For Broke National Education Center’s Hanashi Oral History Program. Accompanying this exhibition is a continuous screening of A Flicker in Eternity - a documentary telling the true World War II story of Stanley Hayami, a talented young teenager caught between his dreams of becoming an artist and his duty to his country.

A special JANM member preview event is on Sunday, November 10, 2013 and includes a brief program and remarks by Eric Saul before the exhibition opens to the public. Complementing Go For Broke will be the Tateuchi Public Program, “The Military Intelligence Service (M.I.S.) in Occupied Japan,” which will take place on Saturday, December 7, 2013. Veterans of the M.I.S., Edwin Nakasone, Bruce Kaji, and Hitoshi Sameshima will discuss their roles in the rebuilding of Japan after the end of World War II. An additional public program presented by the Go For Broke National Education Center on Saturday, March 1, 2014, “Spotlight on the Japanese American Experience and Current Affairs” will be a community discussion finding parallels between the Japanese American experience, and current challenges facing our nation.

Go For Broke is organized by the Japanese American Wartime History Project and Director Eric Saul. Support for Go For Broke is provided in part by the fundraising efforts of the Southern California Community Committee for the American Heroes exhibition: 100th/ 442nd Veterans Association, Go For Broke National Education Center, Japanese American Citizens League – Pacific Southwest District, Japanese American National Museum, Military Intelligence Service Veterans Association of Southern California, and Veterans Memorial Court Alliance. Additional support provided by the Kazuo and Mary Yamane Family Foundation.

GENERAL INFORMATION

About the Japanese American National Museum
The Japanese American National Museum is dedicated to fostering greater understanding and appreciation for America’s ethnic and cultural diversity by preserving and telling the stories of Americans of Japanese ancestry. Since its incorporation in 1985, the National Museum has grown into an internationally recognized institution, presenting award-winning exhibitions, groundbreaking traveling exhibits, educational public programs, innovative video documentaries, and cutting-edge curriculum guides. www.janm.org

General Information
The Japanese American National Museum is located at 100 North Central Avenue in historic Little Tokyo in downtown Los Angeles. For more information, call 213.625.0414, or visit janm.org. Museum hours are Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday from 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., and Thursday from 12:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. Admission is $9.00 for adults, $5.00 for seniors; $5.00 for students and children; FREE for Museum members and children under age five. Admission is FREE to everyone on Thursdays from 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. and every third Thursday of the month from 12:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. Closed Mondays, 4th of July, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s Day.