[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 28 (Wednesday, February 27, 2013)]
[House]
[Page H675]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                             GEORGE ARATANI

  (Mr. TAKANO asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. TAKANO. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the legacy of George 
Tetsuo Aratani, a philanthropist and business executive who was a 
champion for Japanese Americans.
  Mr. Aratani was born and raised in California and, along with 122,000 
other Japanese Americans, was forced into internment camps during World 
War II. Never letting a poor situation get the best of him, Mr. Aratani 
used his bilingual skills to serve his country in the Army Military 
Intelligence Service. Following the war, he started two successful 
businesses--Mikasa tableware and Kenwood electronics--and enjoyed a 
wonderful life with his family.
  Though he achieved great commercial success, he will always be 
remembered for his upstanding citizenship in his community. Mr. Aratani 
and his wife, Sakaye, established the first endowed chair in the 
country to study the injustice of the Japanese American internment and 
the efforts to rectify it. In addition, the Aratanis gave millions in 
support of the Japanese American National Museum, UCLA's Departments of 
Asian American and East Asian Studies, the Japanese American Cultural & 
Community Center, Keiro Senior HealthCare, and countless Asian American 
candidates.
  I look to Mr. Aratani as an inspiration for all as he truly lived the 
American Dream.

                          ____________________