Kristen Hayashi

When their mission is accomplished and the regiment assembles for a recognition ceremony four days after being stood down from their month of action, Dahlquist impatiently demands to know why their ranks seem thin. Lieutenant Colonel Virgil Miller answers, That's all that's left, sir.

The 442nd and the famed 100th Battalion is to this day the most decorated unit of its size and length of service in U.S. military history. It was also formed entirely of second-generation Japanese Americans, Nisei, whose families were at the same time interned in prison camps back home in the United States. For these soldiers, these men, these Nisei, this war was a battle fought on two fronts.

The 442nd and the famed 100th Battalion is to this day the most decorated unit of its size and length of service in U.S. military history. It was also formed entirely of second-generation Japanese Americans, Nisei, whose families were at the same time interned in prison camps back home in the United States. For these soldiers, these men, these Nisei, this war was a battle fought on two fronts.

The 442nd and the famed 100th Battalion is to this day the most decorated unit of its size and length of service in U.S. military history. It was also formed entirely of second-generation Japanese Americans, Nisei, whose families were at the same time interned in prison camps back home in the United States. For these soldiers, these men, these Nisei, this war was a battle fought on two fronts.

We are a nation of immigrants, an alloy forged of millions of souls from disparate cultures united here in a land of liberty. The American promise fulfilled. Sound familiar? It's a traditional theme you'll be hearing a lot of this campaign season, certainly.

We are a nation of immigrants, an alloy forged of millions of souls from disparate cultures united here in a land of liberty. The American promise fulfilled. Sound familiar? It's a traditional theme you'll be hearing a lot of this campaign season, certainly.

We are a nation of immigrants, an alloy forged of millions of souls from disparate cultures united here in a land of liberty. The American promise fulfilled. Sound familiar? It's a traditional theme you'll be hearing a lot of this campaign season, certainly.

But you'll also hear the other side of that story, the strident opposition to this notion of a nation, how such immigration ought to be heavily regulated and restricted. Sure, we're a nation of immigrants. That's great. But don't get carried away. We've touched on this topic in past episodes, 155 on Irish immigration, one of our most popular.

But you'll also hear the other side of that story, the strident opposition to this notion of a nation, how such immigration ought to be heavily regulated and restricted. Sure, we're a nation of immigrants. That's great. But don't get carried away. We've touched on this topic in past episodes, 155 on Irish immigration, one of our most popular.

But you'll also hear the other side of that story, the strident opposition to this notion of a nation, how such immigration ought to be heavily regulated and restricted. Sure, we're a nation of immigrants. That's great. But don't get carried away. We've touched on this topic in past episodes, 155 on Irish immigration, one of our most popular.

And today we cover another specific demographic, no less fundamental to the American tale, that of the complex and astonishing story of Japanese immigration from later 1800s into the 20th century and how their experience and their history lays bare so many of the difficult issues of this nation still ongoing. It's a story that will surprise and enlighten you.

And today we cover another specific demographic, no less fundamental to the American tale, that of the complex and astonishing story of Japanese immigration from later 1800s into the 20th century and how their experience and their history lays bare so many of the difficult issues of this nation still ongoing. It's a story that will surprise and enlighten you.

And today we cover another specific demographic, no less fundamental to the American tale, that of the complex and astonishing story of Japanese immigration from later 1800s into the 20th century and how their experience and their history lays bare so many of the difficult issues of this nation still ongoing. It's a story that will surprise and enlighten you.

So let's meet our expert today, Kristen Hayashi, Director of Collections Management and Access and Curator of the Japanese American National Museum in Los Angeles, right there in Little Tokyo, one of my favorite neighborhoods in America. Hello, Kristen.

So let's meet our expert today, Kristen Hayashi, Director of Collections Management and Access and Curator of the Japanese American National Museum in Los Angeles, right there in Little Tokyo, one of my favorite neighborhoods in America. Hello, Kristen.

So let's meet our expert today, Kristen Hayashi, Director of Collections Management and Access and Curator of the Japanese American National Museum in Los Angeles, right there in Little Tokyo, one of my favorite neighborhoods in America. Hello, Kristen.

Hello. It's very nice to meet you, Don.

Hello. It's very nice to meet you, Don.

Hello. It's very nice to meet you, Don.

Thanks. I used to live in L.A., and Little Tokyo led the way to the redevelopment of downtown L.A. People only had to learn that ramen wasn't just in little plastic packages anymore, right?