Go For Broke Monument, Memorial monument in Little Tokyo, Los Angeles, United States.
The Go For Broke Monument is a polished black granite semicircular wall in Little Tokyo, set at an angle facing the southern sky and embracing a flagpole. Its curved back wall lists the names of 16,126 nisei soldiers, and its face carries the motto "Go For Broke" above the insignia of the 100th Infantry Battalion, 442nd Regimental Combat Team, Military Intelligence Service, 522nd Field Artillery Battalion, 232nd Combat Engineer Company and 1399th Engineering Construction Battalion.
The memorial was dedicated in 1999 after a decade-long effort by Japanese American World War II veterans to preserve their stories. Its creation marked a significant recognition of their overlooked role in American military history.
The monument's motto, "Go For Broke," was the 442nd Regimental Combat Team's slogan and was later adopted for all Japanese American units of World War II. The main inscription, written by 100th Infantry Battalion veteran Ben Tamashiro, uses the term "concentration camps" instead of "internment camps." Veterans of the nisei units often attend the monument to explain its history and answer questions.
The monument stands at the end of North Central Street, next to the Japanese American National Museum, with a pay-parking lot for East Temple Street bordering it on three sides. Entry is free. A kiosk beside the monument provides interpretive information, and veterans of the nisei units are often present to answer questions.
The motto "Go for Broke" was the 442nd Regimental Combat Team's own slogan, later adopted for all Japanese American units; the 100th Battalion's was "Remember Pearl Harbor!" The main inscription, chosen after a nationwide search, was written by 100th veteran Ben Tamashiro, who changed his own wording from "internment camps" to "concentration camps."
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