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President Bill Clinton corrected a shameful historical omission when, on January 13, 1997, he awarded seven African-American soldiers the Medal of Honor for heroism in World War II. The seven men had been denied the nation's highest decoration for bravery at the time of their service fundamentally because they were black. Due to the racial segregation of the U.S. military during World War II, the honorees had fought in all-black units, often under white officers who belittled the ability of black troops and questioned their courage. None of the Medals of Honor previously awarded to servicemen for supreme gallantry in World War II had gone to African Americans. In 1993, in response to requests from black veterans, the Department of the Army ordered an inquiry to determine why no blacks had received the award for World War II service. While the investigation found no cases where overt institutional racism prevented blacks from receiving the medal, it did conclude that a general climate of racism had kept some blacks from getting proper recognition for their extraordinary bravery. The army's inquiry led to Clinton's belated commemoration of black heroism in World War II. Six of the veterans received the honor posthumously. The lone living member of the group, Joseph V. Baker of Idaho, received his medal from Clinton at the White House ceremony honoring all seven recipients. "History has been made whole today," the president declared, "and our nation is bestowing honor on those who have long deserved it." Primary Source Citation: Clinton, Bill. "Presentation of Medals of Honor to Black WWII Veterans." The White House. Office of the Press Secretary. //American History Online//. Facts On File, Inc. http://www.fofweb.com/activelink2.asp?ItemID=WE52&iPin=E13360&SingleRecord=True (accessed September 28, 2011).

Racial and ethnic prejudice in America was generally ameliorated during the war years, as more African Americans were admitted into the workforce, anti-Semitism notably declined, and prejudices against most immigrant groups dissolved in a general sentiment of egalitarianism born of a feeling that "we're all in this together." The egregious exception to this was the attitude toward Americans (including American citizens) of Japanese descent, who, in large numbers, were interned in camps created for them.

Text Citation: Axelrod, Alan. "United States during World War II." //Encyclopedia of World War II//, Volume II. New York: Facts On File, Inc., 2007. //Modern World History Online//. Facts On File, Inc. http://www.fofweb.com/activelink2.asp?ItemID=WE53&iPin=WWII0687&SingleRecord=True (accessed September 28, 2011).

During World War II, Japan pillaged Korea's agricultural output as well as its stock of raw materials, especially strategic metals. While such despoliation yielded important resources for the Japanese war effort, it raised the level of resistance in Korea, necessitating the deployment of large numbers of troops in the country to maintain order. In 1941, there were 46,000 Japanese troops in Korea; by the end of the war, there were 300,000—none involved in direct combat. Also by the end of the war, Korea represented a slave workforce of some 2.6 million. In effect, Japanese military administrators had transformed the country into a vast forced-labor camp, presided over by Japanese soldiers as well as by a large cadre of coopted Korean "police" in the employ of the Japanese. In addition to the Koreans forced to work in factories at home, approximately three-quarters of a million Korean workers were sent to work abroad, mostly in Japanese war industries. Perhaps the most notorious exploitation of the Korean population was the forced employment of tens of thousands of "comfort women," Korean girls and women forced into prostitution as sexual partners for Japanese soldiers.

Text Citation: Axelrod, Alan. "Korea in World War II." //Encyclopedia of World War II//, Volume II. New York: Facts On File, Inc., 2007. //Modern World History Online//. Facts On File, Inc. http://www.fofweb.com/activelink2.asp?ItemID=WE53&iPin=WWII0356&SingleRecord=True (accessed September 28, 2011).