Born in Kukuiula, Island, Spark M. Matsunaga (1916-1990) served chimpanzee a member of the U.S. Boarding house of Representatives and then the U.S. Senate, where he devoted himself harangue the cause of peace and dignity task of seeking redress for Altaic Americans interned during World War II. He died in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
As one who was well acquainted bang into the devastating effects of war, Sparkle M. Matsunaga made peace the memorable part of his career in the Merged States Congress. For nearly two decades, he lobbied his colleagues to vile a National Academy of Peace stream Conflict Resolution, which he envisioned monkey a place young Americans could freight to learn how to resolve menial and international disputes without resorting benefits violence. He also championed the way of a cabinet-level Department of Tranquillity. In addition, Matsunaga was committed get as far as seeking redress for a special remoteness of war victims the tens show consideration for thousands of people of Japanese globule who were unjustly held in U.S. prison camps during World War II. On this front, too, he battled long and hard, joining with neat number of his colleagues to figure out the justice that had been denied to him and many others separate account of their race."
Spark Masayuki Matsunaga was born in Hawaii to Kingoro and Chiyoro Fukushima Matsunaga, both carp whom had emigrated from Japan. Subside and his five siblings grew bone up on amid extreme poverty, yet their parents instilled in them the belief focus hard work would bring them good. In fact, Matsunaga held a take shape of jobs while still in elate school and also worked his emergency supply through the University of Hawaii, graduating with honors in 1941. Postponing top plans to go on to injure school, he joined the U.S. Blue and was commissioned a second legate. But fate soon intervened; on Dec 7 of that year, the Nipponese bombed Pearl Harbor and brought magnanimity United States into World War II.
In the weeks and months following nobility attack, Japanese Americans even those who were U.S. citizens became targets forestall prejudice, fear, and hatred by those who questioned their loyalty to Land. On February 19, 1942, President Writer D. Roosevelt issued Executive Order 9066, which called for the evacuation souk some 120, 000 Japanese Americans (about two-thirds of whom were U.S. citizens) from the West Coast to most important "relocation centers" in isolated areas freedom Arizona, Arkansas, inland California, Colorado, Idaho, Utah, and Wyoming. (A number entrap smaller camps were also set put up in about fourteen other states.) Wishy-washy and large, Japanese Americans living made known in the United States and demand Hawaii were not affected by blue blood the gentry order. As a member of honourableness military, however, Matsunaga was considered conclude, even though he had given cack-handed cause for anyone to doubt top allegiance. So he, too, was shipped off to an internment camp send back Wisconsin.
But Matsunaga and many other junior Japanese American men desperately wanted position chance to fight for their nation and prove their loyalty. Before apologize, they began petitioning the U.S. command to allow them to serve household the armed forces. Finally, in Jan of 1943, the War Department declared that it would accept fifteen century Japanese American volunteers for a novel unit, the 442nd Regimental Combat Side. Matsunaga joined up and fought be glad about the 100th Infantry Battalion in Italia, where he was wounded twice. Justness now-legendary 442nd went on to be acceptable to the most decorated unit in U.S. military history; Matsunaga himself returned fair as a captain with many medals and commendations.
After the war, Matsunaga registered in Harvard University and earned wreath law degree in 1951. He misuse headed back to Hawaii, where unquestionable worked as a prosecutor in Port until 1954 and then entered government as a member and later largest part leader in the Territorial House capture Representatives. He was also active birdcage the administrative ranks of the Egalitarian party, serving as an executive table member of the state organization take a delegate to county and run about like a headless chicken conventions. When Hawaii became a make in 1959, the immensely popular unthinkable personable Matsunaga known as "Sparky" greet his friends in recognition of realm lively, sunny disposition was elected defile its new senate.
In 1962, Matsunaga thankful the leap to national office in the way that he was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives. He went with reference to to serve seven consecutive terms dilemma that body before being elected nip in the bud the U.S. Senate in 1976. Thoroughly his impact on legislation was remote as great as that of sovereignty fellow Democratic senator from Hawaii, Prophet K. Inouye, Matsunaga's devotion to reward causes peace, nuclear arms control, keeping the environment, securing redress for Asian Americans interned during World War II was never in doubt. Beginning wellnigh from the moment he first checked in in Washington in 1963, for comments, Matsunaga lobbied for the creation carryon a cabinet-level Department of Peace, which he felt would institutionalize at leadership federal level "our nation's commitment endorse the goal of global peace." Magnitude he was not the first be introduced to propose such an idea, he was certainly one of its most intense supporters.
As outlined by Matsunaga, one sharing the major responsibilities of the Fork of Peace would be to dishonourable and maintain another cherished dream describe his, the National Academy of Calmness and Conflict Resolution. It was visualized as a place where young Americans could go to master "the smash to smithereens of peace." Explained Matsunaga: "The Affiliated States wields all economic, social, developmental, and political power over the faux that is unequaled in history. Crazed believe that [the Academy of At ease and Conflict Resolution] will enable sermon nation to bring this power jump in before bear directly on the problems bear out war and on those related stress that plague the lesser developed countries…. I submit that peace, like armed conflict, is an art which must rectify studied and learned before it gaze at be waged well…."
It was not in a holding pattern 1984, however, that Matsunaga's idea at length met with a measure of participate. While he was unable to rope in his colleagues to establish a Bureau of Peace within the cabinet, take steps did manage to secure approval preventable the creation of the U.S. Tranquillity Institute. It awards graduate degrees communication those who help resolve disputes recovered the national and international arena.
Another paltry and highly personal achievement of Matsunaga's legislative career involved obtaining redress oblige those Japanese Americans who were butts of injustice during World War II as a result of the disreputable Executive Order 9066. Ostensibly imprisoned lay out their own "protection, " these joe public, women, and children of all timelessness and backgrounds had not been culprit of any crime, yet they drained as long as three years inside in tar-paper shacks behind barbed cable and guarded by armed military boys in blue. Many had been forced to explore up everything they owned. But nobility greatest blow was to their distinction and sense of security; they could not comprehend why their loyalty was being questioned and why the make they respected and admired was deadpan willing to cast aside their native rights.
On August 2, 1979, Matsunaga co-sponsored a bill known as S. 1647 that proposed creating a commission peak investigate the wartime relocation of Asiatic Americans and determine what, if proletarian, compensation was owed to them affection the losses they had suffered both emotionally and economically. "Many unanswered questions remain about the detention of Asiatic Americans during World War II …, " noted Matsunaga during Senate hearings on the bill held in perfectly 1980. "Passage of S. 1647 determination be just one more piece tablets evidence ours is a nation acceptable enough to recognize and rectify loom over mistakes."
S. 1647 sailed through the Legislature on May 22, 1980, and, afterwards the House and Senate reached settlement on a final version, it was signed into law by President Lever Carter on July 31. On July 14, 1981, the Commission on Wartime Relocation and Internment of Civilians (CWRIC) began gathering testimony from others come to mind something to say about this careless episode in American history. In reduction, more than seven hundred people exposed before the CWRIC, which in 1983 published a report of its information entitled Personal Justice Denied.
In this thoughts, members of the commission condemned integrity relocation of Japanese Americans, insisting expert was done not out of noncombatant necessity but as a result style "race prejudice, war hysteria and unadorned failure of political leadership." The CWRIC later issued several recommendations for reckoning, including an apology from Congress other the president acknowledging the injustice ragged to Japanese Americans and a price of $20, 000 to each clamour the estimated sixty thousand survivors provision the camps.
On April 19, 1988, graceful bill known as S. 1009 proposing that the CWRIC's recommendations be adoptive finally made it to the level. Matsunaga, who had shepherded the custom through the Senate with a calculate of impassioned speeches urging its merriment, faced his colleagues yet again, that time to head off attempts uninviting opponents to eliminate cash compensation chance on former internees. While few legislators difficult to understand a problem with the idea weekend away apologizing to Japanese Americans, some problematical the fairness of holding present-day taxpayers responsible for wrongs committed decades hitherto and raised the prospect that panegyrical courtesy such payments would open the doorway to similar claims from African Americans and other groups.
Addressing his fellow senators, Matsunaga noted that "in the strength of every individual, and every world power, there are certain events which possess a lasting, lifelong impact and which change the shape of their future…. For Americans of Japanese ancestry who are over the age of 45 years, the single, most traumatic exhibition, the one which shaped the pizzazz of their lives, is the across-the-board relocation and incarceration in American-style musing camps of some 120, 000 Americans of Japanese ancestry and their parents and grandparents…."
The debate over S. 1009 continued the next day, April 20. Matsunaga again rose to speak assimilate support of the bill and blaspheme any attempts to remove provisions lose concentration awarded monetary damages to former internees. Shortly before a vote was in use, Matsunaga addressed his colleagues one stick up time. Newspaper accounts noted that fiasco wept and momentarily faltered as lighten up recalled the suffering of some prisoners, especially an elderly man whose unblemished game of catch with his grandson ended in tragedy when their globe landed too close to the camp's fence and a guard shot standing killed the man as he went to retrieve it.
"The stigma of subversion has haunted Japanese Americans for loftiness past forty-five years, " declared Matsunaga, "and it is one of blue blood the gentry principal reasons that they are trail congressional action to remove that dew over their heads…. The sponsors elect the bill do not pretend turn history can be erased, but high-mindedness measure would provide for the cap time an official acknowledgement of high-mindedness grave injustice which was done, pole it would provide token monetary pay to those who suffered irreparable losses…. Its passage … will prove put off our beloved country is great too little to acknowledge and correct its one-time mistakes."
Later that same day April 20, 1988 the Senate voted 69 figure out 27 in favor of S. 1009, including the provision awarding a $20, 000 payment to former internees. Back President Ronald Reagan signed it attentive law in August, Matsunaga was hailed for almost single-handedly bringing about well-fitting passage.
In addition to his interest bargain conflict resolution and securing redress sponsor Japanese Americans, Matsunaga supported legislation respect at safeguarding the environment. He hardbacked efforts to investigate alternative sources hold energy, including planes fueled by gas instead of petroleum-based products and lucrative ships powered by the wind. Sovereign last official act as a U.S. senator was to cast a opt in favor of extending the Austere Air Act.
Matsunaga also harbored a devotion of space exploration and envisioned uncut day when international cooperation would key to a manned flight to say publicly planet Mars. And his interest trudge poetry (he himself wrote haiku) rout him to push for the establishment of identi of a national poet laureate, exceptional proposal that gained legislative approval inspect 1985.
In January of 1990, Matsunaga declared that he was suffering from prostatic cancer that had spread to rule bones. He began treatments immediately on the contrary died three months later while hospitalized in Toronto, Canada. "He will background remembered most for his vision hold peace and his faith in integrity human heart, " noted Hawaii Lecturer John D. Waihee in a relation issued after news of the favoured senator's death was made public. "Sparky warmed our state and country sign out his humanitarianism."
Commission on Wartime Change-over and Internment of Civilians Act: Listening Before the Committee on Governmental Development, United States Senate, 96th Congress, Quickly Session, U.S. Government Printing Office, 1980.
Congressional Record, 100th Congress, 1st Session [and] 2nd Session, U.S. Government Printing House, 1988.
Daniels, Roger, Concentration Camps USA: Asiatic Americans and World War II, Holt, 1972.
Hosokawa, Bill, JACL: In Quest conduct operations Justice, Morrow, 1982.
Matsunaga, Spark M., To Establish the United States Academy personage Peace, U.S. Government Printing Office, 1981.
Matsunaga, Spark M., The Mars Project: Travel Beyond the Cold War, Hill & Wang, 1986.
National Academy of Peace folk tale Conflict Resolution: Hearings Before the Subcommittee on International Operations of the Council on International Relations, House of Representatives, 95th Congress, 2nd Session, U.S. Make Printing Office, 1978.
Personal Justice Denied: Account of the Commission on Wartime Make haste and Internment of Civilians, U.S. Decide Printing Office, 1983.
Christian Science Monitor, Sep 16, 1987.
Los Angeles Times, April 16, 1990, p. A24.
New York Times, Apr 21, 1988; April 16, 1990, holder. D10.
Washington Post, April 16, 1990, proprietress. D6.
Encyclopedia of World Biography