George T. “Joe” Sakato always told people he wore his Medal of Honor, awarded for heroism during World War II more than half a century after the fact, not for himself but for those who weren’t so fortunate.
“I wear this for the men who didn’t come home,” he told The Denver Post in 2011.
Sakato, who received the military’s highest honor in 2000, one of seven living Asian-American veterans belatedly recognized for their valor, died Dec. 2 at his home in Denver. He was 94.
Sakato, who had congestive heart failure, according to his daughter, was the last surviving member of the seven.
During the war, Sakato served in the 442nd Regimental Combat Team, a segregated Japanese-American unit whose members have come to be known as national heroes after they rescued more than 200 men of the 141st Infantry Regiment of the Texas National Guard — the “Lost Battalion” — trapped behind enemy lines.
The 442nd, the most highly decorated combat unit, for its size and length of service, in U.S. military history, lost 800 men in the fight.
Sakato, for his part, didn’t speak highly of his prospects as an Army recruit, saying he performed poorly in marksmanship and the obstacle course in basic training.
He first tried to enlist shortly after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, on Dec. 7, 1941, but was turned down, classified as an “enemy alien,” despite the fact he was born and raised in California.
In October 1944, though, he and the 442nd were in the Vosges Mountains of northeastern France, tasked with finding and rescuing the Lost Battalion.
According to the official Army report, Sakato stopped “an organized enemy attack ” single-handedly.
“During this entire action,” the citation continued, “he killed 12 and wounded two, personally captured four and assisted his platoon in taking 34 prisoners. By continuously ignoring enemy fire, and by his gallant courage and fighting spirit, he turned impending defeat into victory and helped his platoon complete its mission.”
Sakato later received shrapnel wounds to his upper body and was evacuated from the battlefield. He received the Distinguished Service Cross, the Army’s second-highest combat honor, but was denied the Medal of Honor.
After the war, Sakato moved to Denver, where he spent 32 years working as a postal clerk.
Half a century later, Sen. Daniel K. Akaka, D-Hawaii, put forth legislation to initiate a review of the military records of Asian-American World War II veterans. On June 21, 2000, President Bill Clinton presented the Medal of Honor to 22 Asian- American veterans, including Sakato, only seven of whom were still alive.
“It is long past time to break the silence about their courage,” Clinton said at the White House ceremony in 2000. “Rarely has a nation been so well served by a people it has so ill treated.”
Sakato’s wife of 60 years, Bess Saito Sakato, died in 2007. Survivors include a daughter, Leslie Sakato of Denver, and two brothers.
The Washington Post contributed to this report.
