Documentary of Japanese American WWII Hero
To Screen April 11 at Cal State Fullerton
"Citizen Tanouye" chronicles the bravery
of Japanese American soldier's bravery in Italy.
March 23, 2006 :: No. 175
While his family was held in an internment
camp in Arkansas, Ted Takayuki Tanouye was in Europe, fighting
as a U.S. Army soldier.
His life is the
subject of an award-winning documentary, “Citizen Tanouye,” that
will be screened at 4 p.m. April 11 in the Ruby Gerontology
Center’s
Mackey Auditorium. Sponsored by the Asian Pacific Student
Association, the screening is free and open to the public.
The
film features the search to uncover Technical Sgt. Tanouye’s
story by eight Torrance High School students. Tanouye graduated
from Torrance High in 1938. At
the screening, producer Craig Yahata will discuss the documentary,
which has become part of the high school social science curriculum
in the Torrance Unified School District.
It was July 7,
1944, in Italy when Tanouye performed acts of bravery that
would be heralded 56 years later as “extraordinary heroism in action” when
as he was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor — the nation’s
highest award for individual valor in combat.
As part of the Japanese American
442nd Regimental Combat Team, Tanouye led his platoon in
a battle to capture Hill 140. Though wounded, Tanouye continued
to fight. He died of his wounds two months later.
Described
as “a kinetic shoot-from-the-hip style documentary,” “Citizen
Tanouye” was named the Best Feature Documentary title
at the 2005 International Family Film Festival. Other prizes
include: the Chris Award at the 2005 Columbus International Film & Video
Festival, the Audience Award for Best Full-Length Feature or Documentary at
the 2005 San Diego International Children’s Film Festival and the Audience
Award for Best Feature Documentary at the 2005 Zion Independent Film
Festival.
“This is an important film that documents
the story of a heroic Japanese American soldier during a
time when most Japanese Americans were being held in internment
camps by their own government,” said Craig Ihara, coordinator
of the university’s Asian
American Studies Program and emeritus professor of philosophy.
Public
parking on campus is available for $5 per day.
| Media Contacts: |
Craig Ihara, Asian American Studies, 657-278-2006
or cihara@fullerton.edu
Susan
S. Uyemura (Shoho), CSUF Gerontology Institute, 657-278-4686 or sshoho@fullerton.edu
Mimi
Ko Cruz, Public Affairs, 657-278-7586 or mkocruz@fullerton.edu
|
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