Lawson Ichiro Sakai
Lawson Ichiro Sakai grew up in Montebello, California to Issei parents. When Executive Order 9066 created “exclusion zones” on the West Coast, Sakai and his family moved inland in an attempt to avoid the forced removal of Japanese Americans from the West Coast. Sakai’s parents were able to secure a sponsorship for the family to move to Colorado through a church in Delta. In Delta, Sakai attended Mesa College and joined the U.S. Naval Air Force program, but he was quickly forced out due to discrimination. Once the 442nd Regimental Combat Team was formed, Sakai quickly volunteered. In this interview, he discusses his service in the 442nd, from training to battle. He recalls the camaraderie among the servicemen, seeing his friends killed in action, and witnessing acts of courage and valor from soldiers on the front lines, medics who tended to the wounded, and chaplains who comforted the dying.
