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Japanese-American who served in Vietnam War conveys painful memories

by Eriko Shintani, Staff Writer

Takeshi Furumoto, 71, a resident of the U.S. state of New Jersey, was born in an internment camp for Japanese-Americans in the state of California during World War II then lived in Hiroshima in the aftermath of the atomic bombing. On May 30, he spoke to around 280 fifth and sixth graders at Gion Elementary School in Asaminami Ward, which he once attended. He took U.S. President Barack Obama’s visit to Hiroshima as an opportunity to again travel back to Japan.

Mr. Furumoto lived in Asa-gun, Gion-cho (now part of Asaminami Ward), his father’s hometown, from 1946 to 1956. He then returned to the United States at the age of 11. He said that he volunteered to serve in the Vietnam War after graduating from college because he did not want to be looked down on as a Japanese-American.

He witnessed soldiers of both the United States and Vietnam losing their lives during the war while fighting on the front lines. After the war, he suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), saying, “I couldn’t stand the harrowing memories that haunted my mind, and because of this, I was hard on my wife. War makes everyone unhappy.”

An elementary school student asked Mr. Furumoto how to realize “a world without nuclear weapons,” which President Obama mentioned again in his speech at the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park. Mr. Furumoto said, “First of all, we have to talk to each other. President Obama’s visit to Hiroshima is the first step.”

(Originally published on May 31, 2016)

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