The USPS has announced that the official release date of the Go For Broke Japanese American Soldiers of World War II Forever Stamp is Thursday, June 3rd, 2021.
The first city of issue for the stamp will be Los Angeles, California. The U.S. Postal Service is currently working with the Stamp Our Story Campaign to set up special dedication events across the nation to celebrate the release of the stamp. The USPS named the stamp after the “Go For Broke” motto of the U.S. Army’s 100th/442nd Regimental Combat Team, which now commonly refers to all of the American men and women of Japanese heritage who served in the war. Some dedications are planned to be virtual, and some in-person.
Outreach to communities is currently being conducted to see if there is interest in developing local events. Ceremony planning is already underway in Hawaii, California, Oregon, Idaho, and Texas. Those interested are encouraged to reach out to their local affiliated veterans organizations that may already be in contact with Stamp Our Story.
Due to the ongoing pandemic, the USPS will produce a national-level dedication in a virtual form only through a short video that will officially announce the release of the Go For Broke Stamp online. In-person events will be limited by local COVID-19 standards. Stamp Our Story is working closely with USPS to develop these dedications in lieu of one national event. County USPS staff will be available to help coordinate local events.
Stamp Our Story is a coalition of friends and family of the Nisei soldiers and their descendants, and includes organizations that are supportive. Nisei is the term for American citizens whose parents immigrated from Japan. The campaign has long sought to honor the legacy of the Nisei men and women who served in the U.S. military during the war despite intense racial prejudice and war hysteria directed at them, and at the whole Japanese American community. The civil rights of over 120,000 Americans of Japanese heritage were removed, and they were forcibly confined in incarceration camps across the country.
Formerly called the Nisei World War II Soldiers Stamp Campaign, the effort was started in 2005 by three California Nisei women who each endured incarceration in the camps during the war: Fusa Takahashi (93) of Granite Bay, Aiko O. King (93) of Camarillo, and the late Chiz Ohira of Gardena. Two of the women are widows of U.S. Army veterans of the war: Ms. Takahashi’s husband, Kazuo, was a Military Intelligence Service veteran from San Francisco, California, and Ms. Ohira’s husband, Ted, was a 442nd Regimental Combat Team veteran from Makaweli, Hawaii. “We thank all of you who have supported the stamp campaign over the past 15 years,” said Ms. Takahashi in a recent statement. “It took the support from many, many organizations and individuals to make this stamp become a reality. We invite you to celebrate the stamp with us when it comes out. Thank you!”
Find more information, including instructions for local event planners, visit us at niseistamp.org.
3/18/21, Wayne Osako, Cochair, Stamp Our Story Campaign.
Dedications in Hawaii:
We are now planning to celebrate this historic event in Hawaii as well. For planning the Hawaii event, a team has been formed with representatives from the Nisei Veterans Legacy, 100th Infantry Battalion Veterans, Sons & Daughters of the 442nd RCT, 442nd Veterans/Legacy Center, Military Intelligence Service Veterans Education Society of Hawaii, Nisei Veterans Memorial Center, and the Japanese American Citizens League (Honolulu Chapter). If you would like to participate, send us an email at inquire@nvlchawaii.org.
