Japanese American soldiers of the 442nd RCT, 2nd Bn., salute as the American national anthem is played at the finale of the Memorial Day services held at the front, in France. 7th Army. November 11, 1944. Photo courtesy of the Seattle Nisei Veterans Committee and the U.S. Army.

Today, we honor all who served.

On Veterans Day, we pay tribute to the 33,000 Japanese American men and women of WWII—and to all American veterans—who put their lives on the line to defend the freedoms we hold dear.

The Nisei soldiers exemplified what it means to serve with honor despite facing injustice. While many of their families were imprisoned in American concentration camps, the soldiers of the 100th/442nd RCT fought on battlefields across Europe and the Pacific while the Military Intelligence Service served in the Pacific and stateside. The 442nd would become the most decorated unit for their size and length of service in U.S. military history, and the MIS is credited with shortening the war by two years and saving countless lives.

Their Go For Broke spirit—to give it your all—continues to inspire us: selfless sacrifice, unwavering courage, service to others, and a vision for a more perfect union.



In remembrance of all veterans who served in the U.S. Armed Forces, we present an expanded "Honor A Veteran" digital tribute from the 2025 Go For Broke Monument 26th Anniversary Virtual Tribute.

We are also sharing a brief video clip of U.S. Army Vietnam veteran Ken Hayashi speaking on the importance of the WWII American soldiers of Japanese ancestry:

“It’s because of what those Nisei men did that we [Japanese Americans] are not considered second-class citizens, with our loyalty constantly subject to question. They made us Americans again.”

We remain humbled and grateful to all veterans who answered the call to serve our nation. 

Okage sama de. Because of you, we are.

To learn more about the history of the Japanese American soldiers of WWII and our educational programming and outreach, visit goforbroke.org.