Chinese-American service in World War II

When the United States entered World War II, about 29,000 persons of Chinese ancestry were living in Hawaii and another 78,000 on the mainland. An estimated 40 percent of Chinese-American soldiers were not native-born citizens. After Congress repealed the Chinese Exclusion Act in 1943, many took advantage of their military service to become naturalized.[6] A quarter of those would serve in the U.S. Army Air Forces, some of them were sent to the Chinese-Burma-India theater for service with the 14th Air Service Group[7] and the Chinese-American Composite Wing.[8] Another 70 percent would go on to serve in the U.S. Army in various units, including the 3rd, 4th, 6th, 32nd and 77th Infantry Divisions.[3] Prior to the war, the U.S. Navy had recruited Chinese Americans but they had been restricted to serve only as stewards;[8] this continued until May 1942, when restrictions ceased and they were allowed to serve in other ratings.[8] In 1943, Chinese-American women were accepted into the Women's Army Corps in the Military Intelligence Service.[9] They were also recruited for service in the Army Air Force, with a few later becoming civilian Women Airforce Service Pilots.[9][10] Being American is at the core of their identity. This manifested itself in their actions and numbers. The 20,000 Chinese Americans who served in World War II represented 25 percent of the Chinese American population. This was the highest percentage of any ethnic community in the United States to serve in World War II.

Asian American women played a critical part in America’s war effort during World War II. Coming from diverse backgrounds—including Chinese, Japanese, Korean and Filipino—they served in important roles ranging from pilots and translators to factory workers and guerrilla fighters.[11] The Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASP) program, a division of the federal civil service, trained women to fly non-combat missions: testing military aircraft, transporting planes between bases, training male bomber pilots and hauling gunnery targets to be shot at with live ammunition. Among the nearly 1,100 women trained as WASPs were Chinese Americans Hazel Ying Lee (1912-1944) and Maggie Gee (1923-2013).[11]

The WASP pilots were not officially designated by the U.S. government as veterans until 1977; they collectively received the Congressional Gold Medal in 2010. Gee was in attendance.[11]

Captain Francis Wai of the 34th Infantry was posthumously awarded the Distinguished Service Cross for actions on the island of Leyte in late 1944; this awarding was later elevated to a Medal of Honor in the 2000 review.[7] Wilbur Carl Sze became the first Chinese-American officer commissioned in the Marine Corps.[12][13]

On May 4, 2017, Senators Tammy Duckworth, Thad Cochran and Mazie Hirono introduced S.1050 Chinese-American World War II Veteran Congressional Gold Medal Act[14] and Representatives Ed Royce and Ted Lieu introduced a companion bill H.R.2358.[15] Efforts to pass the bill were led by the Chinese American WWII Veterans Recognition Project.[16] The bill was passed in the Senate on September 12, 2018,[17] and in the House on December 12, 2018.[18] President Donald Trump signed the bill, enacting it into law on December 20, 2018.[19][20] On November 6, 2021, Chinese-American World War II veterans were awarded the Congressional Gold Medal at the Crane Building in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Ken Wong, Civilian Aide to Secretary of the Army-Pennsylvania East, hosted the ceremony honoring veterans Harry Jung, Raymond Lee, and Paul Toy, as well as over 40 families receiving medals on their loved ones’ behalf.[21] On Dec 9, 2020, Army Capt. Francis B. Wai, who was awarded the Medal of Honor, the highest military award given by the United States, also was recognized as a Gold Medal recipient. He was killed while saving fellow soldiers during an attack in the Philippines. One of those honored was Elsie Chin Yuen Seetoo, whose nursing studies in Hong Kong were interrupted when the U.S. entered the war after the attack on Pearl Harbor in December 1941.[22]

• List of Japanese American Servicemen and Servicewomen in World War II
• Lost Battalion (World War II)
• Day of Remembrance (Japanese Americans)
• Military history of Asian Americans