Go For Broke Monument

Go For Broke Monument is a memorial in Little Tokyo, Los Angeles honoring Japanese American soldiers who served in World War II. The monument commemorates members of the 442nd Regimental Combat Team, the 100th Infantry Battalion, and the Military Intelligence Service and stands amid sites associated with Japanese American incarceration and Japanese American history in Los Angeles. It sits near cultural institutions such as the Japanese American National Museum and the Higashi Honganji Buddhist Temple (Los Angeles).

History

The monument project originated from advocacy by veterans, family members, and organizations including the Go For Broke National Education Center, the Japanese American Citizens League, and local leaders in Little Tokyo. Planning intersected with civic entities such as the City of Los Angeles, the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority, and preservation groups active around Union Station (Los Angeles). Fundraising involved contributions from veterans linked to the 442nd Regimental Combat Team Association, survivors of the Manzanar War Relocation Center, and donors influenced by commemorations at sites like Pearl Harbor National Memorial and the National World War II Memorial. The effort reflected broader postwar recognition movements paralleling actions such as the Civil Liberties Act of 1988 and advocacy by figures tied to reparations campaigns and redress hearings before the U.S. Congress.

Design and Features

Designed by sculptors and architects who had worked on projects similar to memorials at Arlington National Cemetery, the monument incorporates bronze statuary, carved granite, and a central obelisk structure reminiscent of traditional commemorative forms found at the Lincoln Memorial and the Jefferson Memorial. The plaza integrates landscaping influenced by Japanese garden aesthetics seen at the Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens and meditation spaces comparable to installations at the National September 11 Memorial & Museum. Visual programing references the heraldry of units like the 36th Infantry Division and the patch of the 442nd Regimental Combat Team, while echoing iconography used in exhibitions at the Smithsonian Institution and the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. The monument site sits adjacent to transit corridors linked to the Gold Line (Los Angeles Metro), and its orientation considers sightlines to landmarks such as the Los Angeles City Hall and the Bradbury Building.

Inscriptions and Names

Plaques on the monument list thousands of personnel from units including the 100th Infantry Battalion and the Military Intelligence Service. The engraved names follow a commemorative practice similar to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial while also incorporating narrative panels reminiscent of interpretive displays at the Ellis Island National Museum of Immigration. Quotations on the monument draw from speeches by leaders such as veterans who later associated with organizations like the American Legion and the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW). The inscriptions reference campaigns in which these personnel fought, including battles in the Italian Campaign (World War II), the Po Valley Campaign, and operations in the Rhone Valley, connecting those names to theaters highlighted in histories by publishers like Oxford University Press and Cambridge University Press.

Dedication and Ceremonies

The dedication ceremony in July 1999 featured veterans from the 442nd Regimental Combat Team Association, dignitaries from the Office of the Mayor of Los Angeles, representatives of the California State Assembly, and delegates from the United States Department of Veterans Affairs. Ceremonies have echoed rites found at national memorials such as observances at the National WWII Memorial and wreath-laying customs practiced at Arlington National Cemetery. Special events have included panels with historians affiliated with universities like UCLA, USC, Stanford University, and guest speakers from the Japanese American National Museum and the Smithsonian Institution National Museum of American History. Annual commemorations often coincide with anniversaries recognized by organizations such as the American Historical Association and cultural festivals in Little Tokyo.

Cultural Impact and Legacy

The monument functions as a focal point for education and remembrance, informing exhibits and curricula at institutions including the Japanese American National Museum, the Go For Broke National Education Center, and university programs in Asian American studies at schools like UCLA and UC Berkeley. It has inspired scholarly work published by presses such as Routledge and community histories distributed through the Library of Congress collections. The site contributes to heritage tourism in Los Angeles alongside attractions like Olvera Street and the Walt Disney Concert Hall, and it plays a role in dialogues about redress that involve entities such as the Civil Rights Movement organizations and legislative bodies like the California State Legislature. The monument has appeared in media produced by outlets like the Los Angeles Times, the New York Times, PBS, and documentary filmmakers who have traced links to broader narratives involving the Nisei experience, internees from sites like Manzanar National Historic Site, and veterans who received honors including the Medal of Honor.

Category:Monuments and memorials in Los Angeles Category:Japanese American history