[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 111 (Thursday, August 2, 2001)]
[Senate]
[Pages S8697-S8698]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         ADDITIONAL STATEMENTS

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  COMMENDING THE STUDENTS OF SUNNYSIDE AND TECUMSEH MIDDLE SCHOOLS OF 
                             LAFAYETTE, IN

 Mr. Inouye. Madam President, I rise to commend the students of 
Sunnyside and Tecumseh Middle Schools of Lafayette, IN, for their 
efforts to honor the Japanese American veterans of World War II.
  On June 29, 2001, I was honored to help dedicate the long-awaited 
National Japanese American Memorial to Patriotism. Located just a 
stone's throw from this chamber, at the corner of New Jersey and 
Louisiana Avenues, the memorial is a beautiful evocation of Japanese 
American contributions to life of this great Nation.
  Though small in numbers, Americans of Japanese ancestry have had a 
tremendous impact on our Nation in countless ways, in fields and 
factories, in boardrooms and classrooms, in State houses and court 
houses. Of course, when their Nation called, they answered, performing 
magnificently on the battlefield. Their success, achieved in the face 
of discrimination and cultural misunderstanding, is a testament to 
their values of hard work, self-sacrifice, and love of family, 
community, and country, values that have helped make our Nation strong 
and prosperous.
  The National Japanese American Memorial to Patriotism is a fitting 
tribute to the ``patriotism, perseverance, and posterity" of this small 
but vigorous minority in our country. I hope that all our colleagues, 
and indeed Americans everywhere, will have a chance to visit this 
remarkable shrine and reflect on the lesson that it teaches us, that 
America is great because it embraces its diversity, and that freedom 
and opportunity can be realized only when they are available to all.
  Today I would like to share with you another tribute, one less grand, 
perhaps, and constructed of cloth and paper rather than steel and 
stone, but no less meaningful. I am referring to a remarkable work of 
art and remembrance, a quilt that comes from the heartland of America. 
Crafted by the young people in Lafayette, IN, the quilt honors the 
thousands of Japanese Americans who answered the call of duty during 
the Second World War.
  Through the good offices of the Japanese American Veterans 
Association, the larger-than-life quilt to which I refer had its 
inaugural unveiling at the dedication dinner celebrating the June 29, 
2001 opening of the National Japanese American Memorial to Patriotism. 
It captured the hearts and imaginations of all who saw it that evening, 
and in so doing, appropriately highlighted the memorial's primary 
mission, to educate Americans about the heritage of Japanese Americans 
and their special place in the fabric of our Nation.
  I would like to commend the 8th grade students of Sunnyside and 
Tecumseh Middle Schools of Lafayette, IN, who joined together to create 
this unique work, and to thank their teacher, Ms. Leila Meyerratken, 
for her inspirational support for this initiative. Five hundred 
students, often working after school and on weekends, contributed their 
time, energy, and inspiration to the school project. Mrs. Meyerratken 
herself gave up holidays and leave to see the project through.

[[Page S8698]]

  The quilt is a marvelously conceived and meticulously constructed 
work. The structure and detail were crafted with an eye for historical 
accuracy, and every opportunity was taken to imbue the quilt with 
appropriate symbolism. For example, 120,000 tassels edge the red-white-
and blue tapestry, to represent the number of Japanese Americans 
incarcerated in the wartime relocation camps. And the quilt's 
dimensions are carefully framed at 19 x 41 feet, to recall the fateful 
year America entered the war.
  The main body of the red, white, and blue cloth quilt is interspersed 
with memorabilia, including dog tags and parts of uniforms, that were 
selected from Nisei veterans themselves. Other sections contain 
heartfelt poems written by some of the junior high students. The names 
of more than 20,000 Nisei soldiers, from the 100th Battalion, the famed 
442nd Infantry Regiment, the 522nd Artillery Battalion, 1399th Engineer 
Construction Battalion, and the Military Intelligence Service, are 
painstakingly attached to the rest of the quilt's panels.
  Its creators intended the quilt to honor Americans of Japanese 
ancestry who volunteered to fight for their country in order to prove 
their loyalty, in spite of the detention of their family members in 
internment camps. The students expressed hope that the tapestry will 
teach others how Japanese Americans, by making sacrifices on the field 
of battle, rose above the indignities they suffered. These youths felt 
strongly that the World War II history of the Japanese Americans 
soldiers, which is not generally covered in history books, was a story 
worth telling.
  Mrs. Meyerratken, the leader of the project, says that the quilt ``is 
meant to promote social justice by teaching others in simple ways what 
these veterans did and how they overcame racism.''
  I hope that the quilt will tour the Nation and convey to all citizens 
the message of tolerance and understanding that these young people from 
Indiana have so beautifully and inspirationally captured in this 
marvelous quilt. If this quilt accurately represents the sentiments of 
America's heartland, then I think the future is in good hands 
indeed.

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