Kazuo Otani

United States Army soldier (1918–1944)

Kazuo Otani

Staff Sergeant Kazuo Otani

Born| (1918-06-02)June 2, 1918
Visalia, California
Died| July 15, 1944(1944-07-15) (aged 26)
near Pieve di Santa Luce, Italy
Place of burial|

Veterans Liberty Cemetery, Fresno, California

Allegiance| United States of America
Branch| United States Army
Years of service| 1942–1944
Rank| Staff Sergeant
Unit| 442nd Regimental Combat Team
Battles / wars| World War II
Awards| Medal of Honor

Kazuo Otani (Japanese: 大谷 一雄,[1] June 2, 1918 – July 15, 1944) was a United States Army soldier and a recipient of the United States military's highest decoration—the Medal of Honor—for his actions in World War II.[2]

## Early life

[edit]

Otani was born in California. His parents were immigrants from Japan. He was a Nisei, which means that he was a second generation Japanese-American.[3]

Otani's family was interned at the Gila River War Relocation Center in Arizona following enforcement of Executive Order 9066.[4]

## Soldier

[edit]

Otani joined the US Army in February 1942,[5] and volunteered to be part of the all-Nisei 442nd Regimental Combat Team.[6] This army unit was mostly made up of Japanese Americans from Hawaii and the mainland.[7]

On July 15, 1944, Otani was serving as a staff sergeant in Company G of the all volunteer Japanese American 442nd Regimental Combat Team. On that day, near Pieve di Santa Luce, Italy, his platoon became pinned down in a field by an enemy machine gun and snipers. After killing one sniper, Otani shouted directions to his platoon and repeatedly exposed himself to the hostile fire, creating a distraction which allowed some of his men to reach cover. He then crawled to a wounded soldier who was lying in an exposed position and began rendering medical aid, but was killed by enemy fire in the process.

For his actions in July 1944, Otani was awarded the Army's second-highest decoration, the Distinguished Service Cross (DSC).[8]

Otani, aged 26 at his death, was buried in Veterans Liberty Cemetery, Fresno, California.

In the 1990s, there was a review of service records of Asian Americans who received the DSC during World War II. Otani's award was upgraded to the Medal of Honor. In a ceremony at the White House on June 21, 2000, his family was presented with his medal by President Bill Clinton. Twenty-one other Asian Americans also received the medal during the ceremony, but only seven of them were still alive.[8]

## Medal of Honor citation

[edit]

Staff Sergeant Otani's official Medal of Honor citation reads:

> Staff Sergeant Kazuo Otani distinguished himself by extraordinary heroism in action on 15 July 1944, near Pieve Di S. Luce, Italy. Advancing to attack a hill objective, Staff Sergeant Otani's platoon became pinned down in a wheat field by concentrated fire from enemy machine gun and sniper positions. Realizing the danger confronting his platoon, Staff Sergeant Otani left his cover and shot and killed a sniper who was firing with deadly effect upon the platoon. Followed by a steady stream of machine gun bullets, Staff Sergeant Otani then dashed across the open wheat field toward the foot of a cliff, and directed his men to crawl to the cover of the cliff. When the movement of the platoon drew heavy enemy fire, he dashed along the cliff toward the left flank, exposing himself to enemy fire. By attracting the attention of the enemy, he enabled the men closest to the cliff to reach cover. Organizing these men to guard against possible enemy counterattack, Staff Sergeant Otani again made his way across the open field, shouting instructions to the stranded men while continuing to draw enemy fire. Reaching the rear of the platoon position, he took partial cover in a shallow ditch and directed covering fire for the men who had begun to move forward. At this point, one of his men became seriously wounded. Ordering his men to remain under cover, Staff Sergeant Otani crawled to the wounded soldier who was lying on open ground in full view of the enemy. Dragging the wounded soldier to a shallow ditch, Staff Sergeant Otani proceeded to render first aid treatment, but was mortally wounded by machine gun fire. Staff Sergeant Otani's extraordinary heroism and devotion to duty are in keeping with the highest traditions of military service and reflect great credit on him, his unit, and the United States Army.[9]

## See also

[edit]

* List of Asian American Medal of Honor recipients
* List of Medal of Honor recipients for World War II

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "Kakushu Jji = Colorado Times February 5, 1949 — Colorado Historic Newspapers Collection".
2. ^ US Army Center of Military History, "Medal of Honor Recipients, World War II (M-S)" Archived 2008-04-30 at the Wayback Machine; retrieved 2012-12-27.
3. ^ Dunford, Bruce. "Nisei War Heroes Receive Long-Delayed Recognition," Los Angeles Times. June 18, 2000; retrieved 2012-12-27.
4. ^ "Japanese American Internee Data File: Kazuo Otani". National Archives and Records Administration. Retrieved September 2, 2019.
5. ^ JAVA, "Gila River Relocation Center, Arizona"; retrieved 2012-12-7.retrieved 2012-12-27.
6. ^ Go for Broke National Education Center, "Medal of Honor Staff Sergeant Kazuo Otani" Archived 2011-02-03 at the Wayback Machine; retrieved 2012-12-27.
7. ^ "100th Battalion, 442nd Infantry" at Global Security.org; retrieved 2012-12-27.
8. ^ a b "21 Asian American World War II Vets to Get Medal of Honor" at University of Hawaii Digital History Archived 2012-03-17 at the Wayback Machine; retrieved 2012-12-26.
9. ^ Gomez-Granger, Julissa. (2008). Medal of Honor Recipients: 1979–2008, "Otani, Kazuo," p. 18 [PDF 22 of 44]; retrieved 2012-12-27.

## External links

[edit]

* "Army Secretary Lionizes 22 World War II Heroes" at Defense.gov
* Kazuo Otani at Find a Grave

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Arizona during World War II

People|

* John Brown Jr.
* Thomas Claw
* Jack Fujimoto
* Harry K. Fukuhara
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* Philip Johnston
* Robert Taylor Jones
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* Nobe Kawano
* Yosh Kawano
* John F. Kennedy
* Yuriko Kikuchi
* Peter MacDonald
* Doris Matsui
* Pat Morita
* Joe Morris Sr.
* Michi Nishiura
* Isamu Noguchi
* Vincent Okamoto
* Ken Ota
* Miye Ota
* Kazuo Otani
* Sidney Preston Osborn
* Roy I. Sano
* Hideo Sasaki
* Reiko Sato
* Shinkichi Tajiri
* Miiko Taka
* Nao Takasugi
* Ronald Phillip Tanaka
* A. Wallace Tashima
* Hisako Terasaki
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* Kenichi Zenimura

Airfields|

* Ajo Army Airfield
* Coolidge Army Airfield
* Dateland Army Airfield
* Davis-Monthan Army Airfield
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* Ernest A. Love Field
* Falcon Army Airfield
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* Hereford Army Airfield
* Kingman Army Airfield
* Laguna Army Airfield
* Luke Army Airfield
* Marana Army Airfield
* Ryan Army Airfield
* Sahuarita Flight Strip
* Thunderbird Field No. 1
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* Williams Army Airfield
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* Yuma Army Airfield

Ground training and storage|

* Camp Bouse
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* Camp Laguna
* Desert Training Center
* Gila Bend Gunnery Range
* Fort Huachuca
* Navajo Ordnance Depot
* Sahuarita Bombing & Gunnery Range
* Yuma Proving Ground

Internment camps|

* Catalina Honor Camp
* Gila River War Relocation Center
* Leupp Isolation Center
* Mayer Assembly Center
* Parker Dam Reception Center
* Poston War Relocation Center

Prisoner of war camps|

* Camp Continental
* Camp Florence
* Camp Pima
* Camp Papago Park

See also|

* American Theater
* Arizona World War II Army Airfields
* Bushmasters
* Castle Hot Springs
* Great Papago Escape
* Machita incident
* Nevada during World War II
* New Mexico during World War II
* Phoenix Massacre
* Thunder Birds
* USS Arizona

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