Even though Japanese Americans on the mainland were being interned by the U. But after Inouye and others petitioned the White House, the Army accepted Japanese American men for service in segregated units. By this time, Inouye was enrolled in pre-medical studies at the University of Hawaii. As a pre-med student and an Aid Station worker, he was exempt from military service, but he quit his job and dropped out of school to join the all-Nisei nd Regimental Combat Team.
Inouye distinguished himself in basic training, although he struggled to reconcile the violence of war with his Christian beliefs.
Within his first year, he was promoted to sergeant, and became a platoon leader. His unit participated in the brutal Rome-Arno campaign of and Inouye was shocked to learn how quickly he became accustomed to killing enemy soldiers no older than himself.
After D-Day, the nd moved to France. Inouye distinguished himself further in combat in France; shortly after he turned 20 he was promoted to lieutenant. He narrowly missed death in France when a bullet struck him in the chest.
His life was saved by a pair of silver dollars he carried in his shirt pocket. He continued to carry them as a good luck charm when his unit returned to Italy to clear the remaining strongholds of Axis resistance. On April 21, , weeks before the fall of Berlin ended the war in Europe, Lt.
Inouye realized his lucky silver dollars were missing. That day, Inouye led an assault on a heavily defended ridge known as Colle Musatello, near the town of Terenzo. And even as I cocked my arm to throw, he fired and his rifle grenade smashed into my right elbow and exploded. When Inouye regained consciousness, he refused to be evacuated until he was sure his platoon had secured its objective.
He continued to direct his men as they deployed in a defensive position in case of an enemy counterattack. Inouye and his men killed a total of 25 enemy soldiers and captured eight others in the successful attack.
Nine hours after being wounded, Inouye finally arrived at a field hospital. Doctors doubted he would survive, but Inouye insisted they attempt the operation.
He had already been given so much morphine that doctors could not risk administering further anesthetics, and consequently he underwent the surgery without sedation. He received a total of 17 blood transfusions. Over the next two weeks, Inouye underwent a series of surgeries, including one to amputate his right arm on May 1. His life was spared, but his hopes of being a surgeon were dashed. He was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross for his bravery and spent the next two years in army hospitals recuperating.
Like thousands of wounded veterans, Inouye had to relearn how to do even the simplest tasks, like lighting a match with one hand. He was honorably discharged from the US Army in with the rank of captain. Representative Inouye talks to President John F. Kennedy in April The Man dkiiadmin T The Honorable Daniel K.
Download a PDF of this biography. Go to Top. Burns was the final Hawaiian Delegate to Congress and helped secure statehood for the islands before serving three terms as governor from to He was elected to the territorial house during the Democratic revolution of , when Democrats swept statewide positions and took control of the legislature long held by Republicans. Inouye served as majority leader in the territorial house until , when he was elected to the territorial senate.
When Hawaii achieved statehood in , Inouye declared his intention to seek a seat in the U. He first planned to run for the Senate, leaving the House seat open for his territorial senate colleague Patsy Takemoto Mink. But he withdrew from the race and ran for the lone U. House, and he narrowly defeated her in the primary. He faced Dr. Charles H.
Silva, director of the territorial department of institutions, in the general election. Inouye won in a landslide, garnering 69 percent of the vote. His election made him the first Japanese-American Member of Congress, but it was his war injuries that initially made him an object of considerable interest in Washington.
When Inouye was sworn in on August 24, , he was asked to raise his right hand for the oath. Upon arriving in DC, outgoing Delegate Burns directed Inouye straight to the Texas delegation, with whom Hawaiians had developed a working relationship. Inouye became close with Speaker Rayburn, who steered him to the Agriculture Committee, an influential and helpful assignment for the Hawaiian Islands, notable for their sugar production. In turn, Inouye maintained the friendship between Hawaii and Texas.
Inouye toiled quietly for his two terms in the House, trying to foster a larger network of support for future campaigns and to protect the sugar industry in Hawaii. His only substantial piece of legislation passed late in his first term, extending several key provisions to recognize Hawaiian statehood in the Hawaii Omnibus Act H. The act amended a bevy of existing laws to ensure the new state received the full benefits accorded to the other 49 states.
In the general election Inouye faced Ben F. Dillingham also had opposed statehood, which cost him voter support as well. His victory made him the first Japanese-American Senator. Inouye gained a reputation as a prolific legislator, submitting a flurry of bills, resolutions, and amendments. Most of his early legislation tied the Hawaiian economy tighter to federal spending and the federal bureaucracy. He chose his words carefully and rarely made floor speeches in his early terms. He did not remain on either committee long, moving to the Commerce Committee later named Commerce, Science, and Transportation in the 91st Congress — and the Appropriations Committee in the 92nd Congress — He remained on both of these committees through the rest of his Senate career, eventually chairing the Commerce Committee in the th Congress — and the Appropriations Committee from until his death.
He also served on the Committee on the District of Columbia in the s and joined the Rules and Administration Committee in , in addition to a number of select and joint committees. He published a book, Journey to Washington , with author Lawrence Elliott in detailing his rise to the Senate. In Inouye served as the keynote speaker at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, which was rocked by anti-war protests.
He called upon the American people to follow their better instincts. And as we all know, we have much to do. Putting aside hatred on the one hand and timidity on the other, let us grow fresh faith in our purpose and new vigor in citizenship.
He had steadfastly backed the war during the s, but as opposition built, he stated that he regretted his support and attributed it to his close bond with President Johnson and the Texas delegation. Inouye was drawn into direct conflict with the administration in February , when the Senate voted 77 to 0 to launch the Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities known as the Ervin Committee for its chairman, North Carolina Senator Sam Ervin.
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