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HONOLULU — <\/span>Seven Japanese American soldiers<\/a> will be promoted to officer ranks in a solemn ceremony Monday, eight decades after they died fighting for the U.S. during World War II despite having been branded \u201cenemy aliens.\u201d<\/p>\n The seven were students at the University of Hawaii and cadets in the Reserve Officer Training Corps, on track to become Army officers, when Japan bombed Pearl Harbor<\/a> on Dec. 7, 1941. They initially served in the Hawaii Territorial Guard, but soon after the attack the U.S. barred most Japanese Americans from service and deemed them enemy aliens.<\/p>\n The seven cadets instead worked with a civilian labor battalion known as \u201cVarsity Victory Volunteers,\u201d which performed tasks such as digging ditches and breaking rocks, until American leaders in early 1943 announced the formation of a segregated Japanese American regiment<\/a>. The seven were among those who joined the unit, known as the 442nd Regimental Combat Team. <\/p>\n The combat team, along with the 100th battalion comprised of mostly Japanese Americans from Hawaii, went on to become one of the most decorated units in U.S. history. Some of its soldiers fought for the Allies even as their relatives were detained in Japanese American internment camps because they were considered a public danger.<\/p>\n \u201cIt is important for us to really kind of give back and recognize our forefathers and these veterans that we stand on the shoulders of,\u201d said 1st Sgt. Nakoa Hoe of the 100th Battalion, 442nd Regiment, what the unit is now known as in the Army Reserve. He noted the once-segregated unit now includes a \u201cmultitude of cultures.\u201d <\/p>\n The seven \u201csacrificed so much at a challenging time when their loyalty to their country was questioned and they even had family members imprisoned,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n The seven men \u2014 Daniel Betsui, Jenhatsu Chinen, Robert Murata, Grover Nagaji, Akio Nishikawa, Hiroichi Tomita and Howard Urabe \u2014 died fighting in Europe in 1944. All but Murata were killed during the campaign to liberate Italy from Nazi Germany. Murata was killed by an artillery shell in eastern France.<\/p>\n They will be promoted Monday to 2nd lieutenant, the rank they would have had if they completed the ROTC program. Relatives of at least some of the men are expected to attend the ceremony, scheduled to be held in a Honolulu park.<\/p>\n Even though Hawaii was not yet a state, the cadets were American citizens because they were born in Hawaii after its annexation in 1898.<\/p>\n \u201cFighting an injustice at home, these seven men later gave their lives fighting on the battlefields of Europe,\u201d said a news release from U.S. Army Pacific. \u201cThey were unable to return to school and finish their commissioning efforts.\u201d <\/p>\n Monday’s ceremony capping efforts to honor the men comes amid growing concern and criticism that President Donald Trump’s administration is whitewashing American history ahead of the nation celebrating 250 years of its independence, including last week’s removal<\/a> of an exhibit on slavery at Philadelphia\u2019s Independence National Historical Park.<\/p>\n Last year, the Pentagon said internet pages honoring a Black Medal of Honor winner and Japanese American service members were mistakenly taken down \u2014 but it staunchly defended its overall campaign to strip out content singling out the contributions by women and minority groups, which the Trump administration considers \u201cDEI.\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n Honoring the seven isn’t about DEI \u2014 diversity, equity and inclusion \u2014 but recognizing them for their merit and that \u201cthey served in the ultimate capacity of giving their lives for the country,\u201d said Lt. Col. Jerrod Melander, who previously led the University of Hawaii’s ROTC program as professor of military science.<\/p>\n Melander said he launched the commissioning effort in 2023 during former President Joe Biden\u2019s administration and that the promotions were approved last year during the Trump administration. <\/p>\n The university awarded the men posthumous degrees in 2012. Laura Lyons, interim vice provost for academic excellence at the University of Hawaii at Manoa, called their promotions especially important.<\/p>\n \u201cEveryone\u2019s contribution to and sacrifice for the ideals of freedom and the security of this country should matter and should be acknowledged, regardless of who they are,\u201d Lyons said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n