WEBVTT

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There are many stories
that can be told about World War II,

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from the tragic to the inspring.

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But perhaps one 
of the most heartrending experiences

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was that of the Akune family,

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divided by the war against each other
and against their own identities.

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Ichiro Akune and his wife Yukiye

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immigrated to America
from Japan in 1918

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in search of opportunity,

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opening a small grocery store
in central California

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and raising nine children.

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But when Mrs. Akune died in 1933,

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the children were sent to live
with relatives in Japan,

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their father following soon after.

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Though the move was a difficult adjustment

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after having been born 
and raised in America,

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the oldest son, Harry, formed a close bond
with his grand uncle,

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who taught him the Japanese language,
culture and values.

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Nevertheless, as soon as Harry
and his brother Ken

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were old enough to work,

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they returned to the country
they considered home,

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settling near Los Angeles.

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But then, December 7, 1941,
the attack on Pearl Harbor.

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Now at war with Japan,

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the United States government
did not trust the loyalty

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of those citizens who had family
or ancestral ties to the enemy country.

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In 1942, about 120,000 Japanese Americans
living on the West Coast

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were stripped of their civil rights

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and forcibly relocated 
to internment camps,

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even though most of them, 
like Harry and Ken, were Nisei,

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American or dual citizens 
who had been born in the US

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to Japanese immigrant parents.

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The brothers not only had very limited
contact with their family in Japan,

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but found themselves confined
to a camp in a remote part of Colorado.

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But their story took another twist

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when recruiters from the US Army's
military intelligence service

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arrived at the camp looking for
Japanese-speaking volunteers.

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Despite their treatment by the government,

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Harry and Ken jumped 
at the chance to leave the camp

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and prove their loyalty 
as American citizens.

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Having been schooled in Japan,

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they soon began their service,

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translating captured documents,

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interrogating Japanese soldiers,

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and producing Japanese 
language propaganda

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aimed at persuading 
enemy forces to surrender.

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The brothers' work was invaluable
to the war effort,

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providing vital strategic information

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about the size 
and location of Japanese forces.

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But they still faced discrimination
and mistrust from their fellow soldiers.

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Harry recalled an instance

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where his combat gear 
was mysteriously misplaced

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just prior to parachuting 
into enemy territory,

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with the white officer reluctant
to give him a weapon.

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Nevertheless, both brothers 
continued to serve loyally

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through the end of the war.

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But Harry and Ken were not the only Akune
brothers fighting in the Pacific.

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Unbeknownst to them, two younger brothers,

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the third and fourth 
of the five Akune boys,

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were serving dutifully 
in the Imperial Japanese Navy,

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Saburo in the Naval Airforce,

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and 15-year-old Shiro as
an orientation trainer for new recruits.

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When the war ended, Harry and Ken
served in the allied occupational forces

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and were seen as traitors by the locals.

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When all the Akune brothers
gathered at a family reunion

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in Kagoshima for 
the first time in a decade,

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it was revealed that the two pairs
had fought on opposing sides.

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Tempers flared 
and a fight almost broke out

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until their father stepped in.

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The brothers managed to make peace

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and Saburo and Shiro joined
Harry and Ken in California,

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and later fought for the US Army in Korea.

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It took until 1988 for the US government

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to acknowledge the injustice 
of its internment camps

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and approve reparations payments
to survivors.

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For Harry, though, his greatest regret
was not having the courage

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to thank his Japanese grand uncle
who had taught him so much.

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The story of the Akune brothers 
is many things:

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a family divided by circumstance,

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the unjust treatment 
of Japanese Americans,

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and the personal struggle of reconciling
two national identities.

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But it also reveals a larger story
about American history:

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the oppression faced by immigrant groups
and their perseverance in overcoming it.