76 years ago, on December 7th, 1941, war was a far-off concept. It had been more than two decades since the United States had been involved in a foreign war.
The Japanese had invaded Manchuria ten years prior in 1931 and the atrocities they had committed against the Chinese were well known as they were often splashed across American movie screens during the newsreel segments. Americans were concerned and prompted their elected representatives to do something for the Chinese. While America was almost 90% white and anti-Asian sentiment and racism was widespread, there was still care for suffering people. At this point, nobody in America even thought about war. It was happening "over there," thousands of miles away. How could that possibly affect the United States? Outside of political, diplomatic, and charitable avenues, how was Sino-Japanese conflict any of America's business?
In 1933, a highly popular but controversial politician by the name of Adolph Hitler came to power in Germany. Much of the western world was concerned by his rhetoric, especially his stated intention to expand Germany's military in violation of the Treaty of Versailles and to expand Germany's borders to pre-treaty lines to give German citizens "lebensraum" (living space). Of course, most people in the United States felt that German citizens had been treated unfairly in the Treaty of Versailles, so maybe Hitler was right?
That same year, both Germany and Japan withdrew from the League of Nations. In 1934, Japan ended its disarmament policies and instituted a policy of armament and militarization without limitation.
In 1935, Italy had invaded Ethiopia. Hitler assuaged the western world's fears about Germany's intentions by providing military aid and equipment to the Ethiopians. Maybe Hitler wasn't such a bad guy after all. Americans against asked, "How does this affect us?" and the answer was usually, "It doesn't."
In 1936, Hitler finally violated the Treaty of Versailles, moving troops into the Rhineland Demilitarized Zone. Neither France nor Britain was really expecting Germany to do anything like that. Both countries reduced the size and scope of their military after World War I, so they weren't in a position to respond even if they could. To top it all off, many politicians had begun rethinking the Treaty of Versailles and so, neither France nor England did anything.
In 1937, Japan invaded China. Italy withdrew from the League of Nations. The United States had a heavy presence in the Pacific and China Sea. The Japanese attacked an American gunboat, the USS Panay prompting national outrage. But Japan apologized for the attack insisting the attack had been unintentional. Declassified intelligence has since revealed that was a lie, but Americans were isolationist and anti-war and were willing to take Japan at their word.
In 1938, Germany invaded Austria. English, French, and American politicians and ambassadors began reaching out to Germany and Japan for guarantees that their objectives did not involve further expansion and in hopes of ending the reported atrocities abroad. There were talks of war, but Neville Chamberlain went to Germany and came back with a signed agreement of peace from Adolph Hitler. Chamberlain declared it "peace in our time." Though Chamberlain was the Prime Minister of Britain, most Americans were happy to believe in "peace in our time."
In 1939, Germany invaded Poland. Germany had already threatened Great Britain and at this point, despite Chamberlain's piece of paper, he was willing to take Germany seriously and declared war on Germany.
The whole world seemed to be at war. At this point, many American citizens began to wonder if the United States would be drawn into war. While most Americans believed that England, France, the Netherlands, and other allied countries were justified in going to war with Germany, there was no popular support for the United States entering the war. Several American servicemen and other volunteers that wanted to fight left to volunteer in Great Britain.
In 1940, concerned by Japan's continuing atrocities and expansionist policies, the United States and several other countries stopped supplying Japan with the materials it needed to wage war. The United States passed the Export Control Act, which ended all US exports of oil, iron, and steel to Japan.
That set the stage. Japan reacted by forming an alliance with Germany, and Italy joined in as well, forming the Tripartite Pact. In July of 1941, the United States, the United Kingdom, and the Netherlands froze Japanese assets and cut off all exports. Japan had taken control of most of the Chinese coast, but Franklin Roosevelt, in spite of there not having been a declaration of war, established a fighter and reconnaissance squadron, called "The Flying Tigers" made up entirely of volunteer pilots. They raided and harassed Japanese shipping and supply lines in China.
Americans were still firmly committed isolationists where Europe was involved, but the continued reports of atrocities and the danger of Japanese expansion seen on the newsreel screens and on the radio every day made Americans accept the aggressive policies towards Japan. US-Japanese diplomatic relations completely failed in the summer of 1941. Unfortunately, there was a disconnect between the Japanese Army, which made all military decisions, and the Japanese diplomatic corps, which was still trying to find a diplomatic solution to Japan's relationship with the United States.
Germany has broken its alliance with the Soviet Union and invaded the country. Hitler asked Japan to wait before it committed to any action against the United States. However, the Japanese Army knew it needed oil to continue and expand its control of China. The only way to get it was to take over the Pacific oil fields controlled by the UK and the Netherlands. Japan knew they could not take over the South Pacific Islands as long as the United States had a naval force in the Pacific. Japan knew it was no match for the American Pacific Fleet. The Japanese Army hoped a decisive and crippling attack on the US Pacific Fleet would bring the United States back to the negotiating table and that it would result in a favorable outcome for Japan.
December 7th, 1941 was a Sunday. It was holiday routine for the military. Servicemen who weren't on duty had the day off. Most servicemen were either in bed, getting ready for church, or getting ready for other Sunday leisure activities. On Battleship Row in Pearl Harbor Hawaii, ships' bands were assembling on the fantails of their ships and the color guard was getting ready to raise the American flag for morning colors.
The quiet of that mild and sunny Sunday morning was broken by the sound of whining turbines. Sailors, Soldiers, Marines, and civilians all across Oahu looked up to see planes flying low and in formation over the island. Most thought it was some kind of exercise. Even when the explosions started, those not on the exploding ships thought there was no way this could be anything other than an exercise. But there were a few who saw the red "meatballs" on the bottom of the wings and knew this was an attack. Within seconds, servicemen broke from their Sunday reverie and engaged the enemy.
An hour and fifteen minutes later, 2,403 were dead. The dead included both military and civilian casualties—men, women, and children, the youngest of which was three months old. Without a doubt, Japan was at war with the United States.
The next day, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt spoke to a joint session of Congress, giving a speech that was broadcast over the radio to the entire nation. He said that "Sunday, December 7th, 1941..." was a "... day that will live in infamy..." and called on Congress to declare war against the Empire of Japan. The Senate voted unanimously and only one U.S. Representative, Jeannette Rankin (R-MT) voted against.
Hitler was frustrated because he knew he couldn't fight a war on two fronts and it would only be a matter of time before the United States joined its allies in Europe. On December 11th, 1941 Hitler and Mussolini joined with Japan to declare war on the United States. Congress wasted no time and declared war on Germany and Italy just a few hours later.
Men lined up at recruiting offices to volunteer for the fight against Japan. Even some boys lied about their age to get into action. The youngest man to serve in World War II, was Calvin Graham who was 11 when he shipped to San Diego for Navy Recruit Training in early 1942. In spite of the way they were treated, minorities stepped up to serve their country, too. In spite of the fact that, for the most part, minorities continued to be mistreated throughout the war, they distinguished themselves even in the most mundane tasks, which they were usually relegated to regardless of their training or experience.
Women also served. They were not allowed to serve on "the front lines" and yet, they died at the hands of the enemy in spite of that. Women earned the Bronze Star, The Distinguished Flying Cross, Purple Hearts, and other awards for heroism.
World War II was before my time. The youngest veteran of World War II was 42 the year that I was born. Most were in their 50s or older. In spite of the gap between the end of the war and my birth, I've learned a lot about it. Some I learned because it was taught to me in school. Much of it I've learned through choice because the men and women of that generation had a great deal of influence on my life both directly and indirectly.
December 7th was one of America's defining moments. World War II is, in my mind, one of the most important conflicts in American history and third in importance after the Revolutionary War (#1), and the US Civil War (#2). It was important for both good (liberation of France, concentration camps, beginning of major changes in attitudes towards women and minorities back home) and bad (continued segregation, relegation of minorities to menial jobs, internment of Japanese). In college, I took a course on World War II, and in the last meeting of the class, the professor, World War II historian, Dr. Timothy Orr said, "At 25 years after a war, we are just beginning to make sense of it. At 50 years after a war, we thank our veterans for what they did. At 75 years after a war, we begin to say goodbye to our veterans, and we are in that period now. At 100 years, it becomes the responsibility of historians to interpret a war without the shadow of the veterans looming over them." There are several things to unpack in that statement, but one thing really stands out, and that's the responsibility of historians, both amateurs and professionals, to record the memories and document the experiences of veterans of any war.
In spite of the fact that there were many problems with the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan (and I believe the latter was and still is fully justified), and the Global War on Terror (GWOT) as a whole, I truly believe that September 11th, 2001, and the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan will be historically defining for my generation, and for good or bad, that the GWOT will probably rank with the three conflicts I mentioned above as one of the most important conflicts in history. Whether the US is remembered for good or bad because of the GWOT, it's important to remember so we don't repeat the mistakes that got us there and to build on the successes.
The people of the greatest generation entered the last phase suggested by Dr. Orr (75 years after the war) last year. Only two survivors of the USS Arizona still remain. We lost two famous WWII veterans this past weekend. By 2045, barring major advancements in geriatric medicine, there will be no survivors of World War II and interpretations of the conflict will be left to the opinions of historians. The greatest generation vowed to "Never Forget" December 7th, 1941, and ensured that their children and at least six generations to date would not forget the meaning of December 7th. In spite of that, it has become academically popular already to question America's involvement in World War II in spite of the fact that it was Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor that drew us into war.
I posted the long narrative leading up to Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor because there is a popular argument in some parts of academia that Japan was justified in its attack on Pearl Harbor due to the United States and its allies cutting off Japan's imports of oil, iron, and steel. This argument was popularized in Howard Zinn's pseudohistorical anti-American polemic "A People's History of the United States." According to Zinn and his proponents, it was a combination of American imperialistic corporate greed and anti-Asian racism that caused the United States to cut off Japan. In order for that argument to work, you have to ignore a decade of Japanese imperialist expansion and military atrocities committed against the Chinese, which Japan excused, and numerous attempts at diplomatic solutions, which Japan ignored. In fact, even my summary was reductive because the Japanese nationalism that led to its occupation of China and expansion in the Pacific can be traced back to the Meiji Restoration beginning in 1868!
There are people who are young adults who have no memory of September 11th, 2021. They have no memory of it being a quiet Tuesday morning. They have no memory that much of the United States was still asleep or just beginning their day. They have no memory of the hundreds of lives that were lost in just a few minutes or the thousands that died in the hours after. They have no memory of the stories of heroism that likely prevented further death and destruction. The greatest generation has Dorie Miller, who even though he was untrained on anti-aircraft guns, manned a gun and shot down Japanese attack aircraft. We have Todd Beamer, who though being unarmed and untrained, led a resistance against the hijackers of his plane resulting in its neutralization. I've heard stories from people who were at Pearl Harbor including my great uncle Jack and heard the stories of horror, heroism, and miracle in the aftermath. Likewise, my generation has stories of the same.
It's up to this generation—my generation to make sure those stories and everything that led up to 9/11/01 continues to be told. Why? Because in 2046 Americans will just begin to make sense of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. If I'm still around, I'll already be in the final phase of my life. There's still work to be done for GWOT vets, but America has already done a tremendous job of thanking and taking care of its GWOT vets compared with previous wars. In 2071, many vets will still be alive, maybe even me, and the US will begin the process of properly thanking them. In 2096, I'll probably be long gone, but American veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan will begin their final phase as the citizens of the United States begin to say goodbye. That's 75 years from now. There will be GWOT vets alive long after 2096, but historians have 75 years left to properly record and memorialize what we did and what really happened. Again, it's up to us to make sure that the Howard Zinns of the future are not able to get away with polemic denigrations, distortions, misrepresentations, and flat-out lies.
I don't want to steal the thunder from our World War II vets who are still alive and remain. I've had the chance to meet several, talk to them, really get to know them. Most importantly, I've been able to hear first-hand accounts of people who served at Pearl Harbor, Normandy, support positions back home, and civilian memories, as well. We have a very short amount of time left with our World War II veterans, so for those that can, cherish them, talk to them, and remember what they tell you so you don't forget and then pass that information on to the next generations.
Never Forget.
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