190
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES             H.R. NO.              
TWENTIETH LEGISLATURE, 2000                                
STATE OF HAWAII                                            
                                                             
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                     HOUSE  RESOLUTION
  HONORING THE WORLD WAR II VETERANS OF THE 100TH INFANTRY
    BATTALION (SEPARATE) AND THE 442ND REGIMENTAL COMBAT TEAM.



 1        WHEREAS, this Spring, World War II veterans of the 100th
 2   Infantry Battalion (Separate) -- the "One-Puka-Puka" -- and the
 3   442nd Regimental Combat Team -- the "Men of the Go for Broke"
 4   -- will gather in Pietrasanta, Italy to unveil a monument to a
 5   man who, with exceptional gallantry and bravery, gave the last
 6   full measure of devotion to the cause of freedom, and the right
 7   to be called an American in his own country; and
 8   
 9        WHEREAS, the people and government of the City of
10   Pietrasanta have decided to erect a monument in honor of the
11   fallen of the Allied Armies that fought in Pietrasanta and
12   Versilia between 1944, and 1945; and
13   
14        WHEREAS, the sculptural structure of this monument will
15   include the figure of Private First Class Sadao Munemori, as a
16   symbol of the sacrifice of the fallen of the Allied Armies; and
17   
18        WHEREAS, while serving with the 100th Battalion of the
19   442nd Regimental Combat Team, PFC Munemori, who had heroically
20   silenced two machine-gun nests with hand grenades, was killed
21   as he smothered an enemy grenade which landed in the fox-hole
22   he shared with two others and was posthumously awarded the
23   Medal of Honor by the United States; and
24   
25        WHEREAS, the 100th Battalion, which originated in Hawaii,
26   and the 442nd Regimental Combat Team, which was made up of
27   volunteers from Hawaii and the mainland United States,
28   participated with the Allied forces and fought valiantly to
29   dislodge the German army from Hills Florida and Georgia and
30   Hill 140 (the so-called Gothic Line Defense); and
31   
32        WHEREAS, the soldiers of the 100th and the 442nd fought
33   tenaciously and died bravely to prove to a prejudiced and
34   deeply suspicious country and its government, through self-
35   sacrifice and an uncommon devotion to duty, that Americanism is
36   not and never was, a matter of race and ancestry; and to earn
37   for their children, wives, and parents, and for themselves, the
38   right to be called Americans -- even in death; and
39   

 
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 1        WHEREAS, while the bravery and tenacity of the men of the
 2   100th and the 442nd is legendary and earned them the respect of
 3   the soldiers who fought by their side, the enemy against whom
 4   they fought, and the townspeople whom they liberated, it is
 5   their selfless devotion to the children, wives, and parents
 6   whom they left behind -- and the ideals that they carried into
 7   battle -- that has ensured them a place in our hearts; and
 8   
 9        WHEREAS, the legacy of the 100th and the 442nd -- forged
10   in battle from steel and blood -- is best described by a
11   soldier who wrote "we all know and we are proud that [those who
12   died] did their duties as Americans looking forward to a better
13   world to live in, hoping to bring up the children-to-come under
14   an atmosphere of freedom where one has the same opportunities
15   regardless of his or her racial extractions"; now, therefore,
16   
17        BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the
18   Twentieth Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session
19   of 2000, that this body honors the World War II veterans of the
20   100th Infantry Battalion (Separate) and the 442nd Regimental
21   Combat Team for their devotion to the cause of freedom; and for
22   proving, through self-sacrifice and an uncommon devotion to
23   duty, that Americanism is not and never was, a matter of race
24   and ancestry.
25 
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28                         OFFERED BY:  ____________________________