“It's
the first time in my life that there was a cause
greater than (myself). There were times at night
time that you couldn't wait until dawn to come
because you had to get certain of your jobs
done. That's the thrill I have never re-lived
since then.”
MIS Nisei linguists served in almost every major
battle and campaign in the Pacific War. The Army sent them
to the Aleutian Islands to the north, India to the west, and
Australia to the south.
They gathered information from POW interrogations,
translations of maps, diaries and other documents, and radio
transmissions. This work helped Allied commanders make informed
decisions, whether on the battlefields or from area command
posts. Other linguists worked on propaganda and other specialized
programs.
The U.S. Command divided the Pacific War into
regional campaigns, each led by a different commander. The
commanders oversaw the planning and operations for each of
the areas. MIS Nisei linguists’ duties depended on the
leaders of each campaign, the terrain of the battlefields,
and their own initiative.
Commanders and
Regions:
North and Central Pacific Ocean areas, and
the South Pacific Command:
Admiral Chester W. Nimitz
Southwest Pacific Command:
General Douglas MacArthur
China-Burma-India
Command:
Lord Louis Mountbatten of Great Britain
