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Formed in March 1942, the 1st Filipino Infantry Battalion was activated in April of the same year at Camp San Luis Obispo.<ref name="LEM2006">{{cite book |title=Creating masculinity in Los Angeles's Little Manila |last=España-Maram |first=Linda |authorlink= |coauthors= |year=2006 |publisher=Columbia University Press |location=New York |isbn=9780231115933 |page=152 |pages=252 |url=http://books.google.com/books?id=AhGgymG6luMC&lpg=PA104-IA8&dq=%22Filipino%20Infantry%20Regiment%22&pg=PA152#v=onepage&q&f=false |accessdate=12 May 2011}}</ref> During the following months Filipino Americans continued to volunteer and the unit grew. [[Philippine Army]] personnel who were in the United States were instructed to report to the unit.<ref name="CAINF" /> Filipinos military personnel who had escaped the fall of Philippines<ref>{{cite book |title=Beyond Courage: One Regiment Against Japan, 1941–1945 |last=Cave |first=Dorothy |authorlink= |coauthors= |year=2006 |publisher=Sunstone Press |location=[[Santa Fe, New Mexico]] |isbn=9780865345591 |page=91 |pages=484 |url=http://books.google.com/?id=uvP0jo8rURMC&lpg=PA91&dq=%22USS%20Mactan%22&pg=PA91#v=onepage&q&f=false |accessdate=12 May 2011}}</ref> and were recuperating in the United States were also instructed to report to the unit.<ref name="CAINF" /><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.militarymuseum.org/FtOrd.html |title=Fort Ord |author= |date= |work=California Military Museum |publisher=California State Military Department |accessdate=25 May 2011 |quote=Another unit of interest, the 1st Filipino Infantry Regiment, was activated in April and eventually included a few veterans of fighting on Bataan that had been wounded, evacuated, and returned to duty in the United States. }}</ref> In July 1942, the battalion was elevated to a regiment at the [[California Rodeo Salinas|California Rodeo Grounds]] in [[Salinas, California]].<ref name="CAINF" /><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.hmdb.org/marker.asp?marker=28040 |title=The First and Second Filipino Infantry Regiments U.S. Army |author=Andrew Ruppenstien |coauthors=Manny Santos |date=21 January 2010 |work= |publisher=Historic Marker Database |accessdate=12 May 2011}}</ref>
Formed in March 1942, the 1st Filipino Infantry Battalion was activated in April of the same year at Camp San Luis Obispo.<ref name="LEM2006">{{cite book |title=Creating masculinity in Los Angeles's Little Manila |last=España-Maram |first=Linda |authorlink= |coauthors= |year=2006 |publisher=Columbia University Press |location=New York |isbn=9780231115933 |page=152 |pages=252 |url=http://books.google.com/books?id=AhGgymG6luMC&lpg=PA104-IA8&dq=%22Filipino%20Infantry%20Regiment%22&pg=PA152#v=onepage&q&f=false |accessdate=12 May 2011}}</ref> During the following months Filipino Americans continued to volunteer and the unit grew. [[Philippine Army]] personnel who were in the United States were instructed to report to the unit.<ref name="CAINF" /> Filipinos military personnel who had escaped the fall of Philippines<ref>{{cite book |title=Beyond Courage: One Regiment Against Japan, 1941–1945 |last=Cave |first=Dorothy |authorlink= |coauthors= |year=2006 |publisher=Sunstone Press |location=[[Santa Fe, New Mexico]] |isbn=9780865345591 |page=91 |pages=484 |url=http://books.google.com/?id=uvP0jo8rURMC&lpg=PA91&dq=%22USS%20Mactan%22&pg=PA91#v=onepage&q&f=false |accessdate=12 May 2011}}</ref> and were recuperating in the United States were also instructed to report to the unit.<ref name="CAINF" /><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.militarymuseum.org/FtOrd.html |title=Fort Ord |author= |date= |work=California Military Museum |publisher=California State Military Department |accessdate=25 May 2011 |quote=Another unit of interest, the 1st Filipino Infantry Regiment, was activated in April and eventually included a few veterans of fighting on Bataan that had been wounded, evacuated, and returned to duty in the United States. }}</ref> In July 1942, the battalion was elevated to a regiment at the [[California Rodeo Salinas|California Rodeo Grounds]] in [[Salinas, California]].<ref name="CAINF" /><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.hmdb.org/marker.asp?marker=28040 |title=The First and Second Filipino Infantry Regiments U.S. Army |author=Andrew Ruppenstien |coauthors=Manny Santos |date=21 January 2010 |work= |publisher=Historic Marker Database |accessdate=12 May 2011}}</ref>


The regiment continued to train and grow leading to the activation of the [[2nd Filipino Infantry Regiment (United States)|2nd Filipino Infantry Regiment]] at [[Fort Ord]] in November 1942.<ref name="CAINF" /><ref name="DAVCH11">{{cite web |url=http://www.davchapter11nc.com/ww2phillippinearmy.html |title=The Philippine Army World War II |author= |date= |work=Chapter 11 Wilmington, NC |publisher=[[Disabled American Veterans]] |accessdate=16 May 2011}}</ref> Following this the regiments were assigned to different posts; the 2nd to [[Vandenburg Air Force Base#History|Camp Cooke]] and the 1st to [[Camp Beale#United States Army|Camp Beale]].<ref name="CAINF" /> While at Camp Beale, there was a mass [[Naturalization#United_States|naturalization]] ceremony of 1,200 of soldiers of the regiment.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://filam.si.edu/curriculum/u3-part-06a.html |title=World War Two 1st Filipino Infantry |author= |year=2008 |work=Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Program |publisher=[[Smithsonian Institute]] |accessdate=16 May 2011 }}</ref><ref name="CAPAA" /><ref>{{cite book |title=Golden dreams: California in an age of abundance, 1950–1963 |last=Starr |first=kevin |authorlink= |coauthors= |year=2009 |publisher=Oxford University Press |location=New York, NY |isbn=9780195153774 |page=452 |pages=564 |url=http://books.google.com/?id=ZWy4TexzsScC&lpg=PA452&dq=Filipino%20infantry%20regiment%20camp%20beale%20citizen&pg=PA452#v=onepage&q&f=false |accessdate=16 May 2011}}</ref> As members of the armed forces they were able to become citizens;<ref name="CAPAA" >{{cite web |url=http://www.capaa.wa.gov/data/timeline.shtml |title=Selected Dates and Events of Asian Pacific American History |author= |date= |work=Commission on Asian Pacific American Affairs |publisher=State of Washington |accessdate=16 May 2011 |quote=As members of the armed forces, Filipinos are allowed to become U.S. citizens. 1,200 Filipino soldiers stand proudly in "V" formation at Camp Beale as citizenship is conferred on them. }}</ref> naturalization of Filipino Americans was previously [[Immigration Act of 1924|barred in 1924]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://history-world.org/asian_americans.htm |title=Asian Americans |author= |date= |work= |publisher=History World International |accessdate=16 May 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |title=The Filipino Americans |last=Posadas |first=Barbara Mercedes |authorlink= |coauthors= |year=1999 |publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group |location=Westport, Connecticut |isbn=9780313297427 |page=27 |pages=190 |url=http://books.google.com/?id=FR8qo2MPMR4C&lpg=PR7&dq=Leyte%20%221st%20Filipino%20Infantry%20Regiment%22&pg=PA27#v=onepage&q&f=false |accessdate=21 May 2011 |quote=Finally eligible for naturalization because of their service in the U.S. Army, these soldiers of the 1st Filipino Infantry Regiment took their citizenship oath in 1943 at Camp Beale, California. Courtesy of the Filipino American National Historical Society, Seattle, Washington.}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |title=The Filipino Americans |last=Posadas |first=Barbara Mercedes |authorlink= |coauthors= |year=1999 |publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group |location=Westport, Connecticut |isbn=9780313297427 |page=23 |pages=190 |url=http://books.google.com/books?id=FR8qo2MPMR4C&lpg=PR7&dq=Leyte%20%221st%20Filipino%20Infantry%20Regiment%22&pg=PA23#v=onepage&q&f=false |accessdate=21 May 2011 |quote=Thus, although all children born in the United States to Filipino immigrants were U.S. citizens, before World War II, no matter how many years Philippine-born Filipinos had lived in the United States, they were ineligible for naturalization, and, therefore, could not vote, or be absolutely sure of their future status and security.}}</ref> During their remaining time stateside, due to [[Anti-miscegenation laws in the United States|anti-miscegenation laws]], those soldiers who wanted to get married to non-Filipino women were transported to [[Gallup, New Mexico]], where they could marry,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://userwww.sfsu.edu/~gonzo1/files/456/456_READER_2004S.pdf |title=My Funny Valentine: A Battle In The Filipino American Civil Rights Movement |author=Alex S. Fabros, Jr. |year=1995 |work=AAS 456 |publisher=[[San Francisco State University]] |accessdate=18 May 2011}}</ref> as New Mexico had repealed their anti-miscegenation law after the [[American Civil War|Civil War]].<ref>{{cite book |title=What comes naturally: miscegenation law and the making of race in America |last=Pascoe |first=Peggy |authorlink= |coauthors= |year=2009 |publisher=Oxford University Press US |location=New York, New York |isbn=9780195094633 |page=40 |pages=404 |url=http://books.google.com/books?id=xbrRiFgNs_MC&lpg=PA40&dq=miscegenation%20laws%20repeal%20new%20mexico&pg=PA40#v=onepage&q&f=false |accessdate=7 June 2011}}</ref> Soldiers of the regiment discrimination in [[Marysville, California|Marysville]] while off post from neighboring Camp Beale, as the businesses stated they did not serve Filipinos;<ref name="RTT1998">{{cite book |title=Strangers from a different shore: a history of Asian Americans |last=Takaki |first=Ronald T. |authorlink= |coauthors= |year=1998 |publisher=Little, Brown |location= |isbn=9780316831307 |page= |pages=591 |url=http://www.esubjects.com/curric/general/world_history/unit_two/pdf/StrangersfromaDifferentShore.pdf |accessdate=18 May 2011 }}</ref><ref name="DAVCH11" /><ref>{{cite web |url=http://userwww.sfsu.edu/~gonzo1/files/456/456_READER_2004S.pdf |title=Letters from Readers: The Filipinos Do Not Understand |author=A Filipino Wife |date= |work=AAS 456 |publisher=[[San Francisco State University]] |accessdate=18 May 2011}}</ref><ref name="RB2011" /> further instances of discrimination against soldiers of the regiment were also reported in [[Sacramento]], and [[San Francisco]], where they were mistaken for [[Japanese Americans]].<ref name="RB2011">{{cite book |title=The Third Asiatic Invasion: Migration and Empire in Filipino America, 1898-1946 |last=Baldoz |first=Rick |authorlink= |coauthors= |year=2011 |publisher=NYU Press |location=New York |isbn=9780814791097 |page=214 |pages=336 |url=http://books.google.com/books?id=qtn31sdI4j8C&lpg=PA10&dq=The%20Third%20Asiatic%20Invasion%3A%20Migration%20and%20Empire%20in%20Filipino%20America%2C%201898-1946%20(Nation%20of%20Newcomers)&pg=PA214#v=onepage&q&f=false |accessdate=7 June 2011}}</ref> In November 1943, the Regiment paraded through [[Los Angeles]], with [[Carlos Bulosan]] there to witness it.<ref>{{cite news |title="The Day of Infamy" SD’s Unsung Heroes of World War II |author= |url=http://asianjournalusa.com/the-day-of-infamy-sds-unsung-heroes-of-world-war-ii-p706-80.htm |newspaper=Asian Journal |date= |accessdate=21 May 2011}}</ref>
The regiment continued to train and grow leading to the activation of the [[2nd Filipino Infantry Regiment (United States)|2nd Filipino Infantry Regiment]] at [[Fort Ord]] in November 1942.<ref name="CAINF" /><ref name="DAVCH11">{{cite web |url=http://www.davchapter11nc.com/ww2phillippinearmy.html |title=The Philippine Army World War II |author= |date= |work=Chapter 11 Wilmington, NC |publisher=[[Disabled American Veterans]] |accessdate=16 May 2011}}</ref> Following this the regiments were assigned to different posts; the 2nd to [[Vandenburg Air Force Base#History|Camp Cooke]] and the 1st to [[Camp Beale#United States Army|Camp Beale]].<ref name="CAINF" /> While at Camp Beale, there was a mass [[Naturalization#United_States|naturalization]] ceremony of 1,200 of soldiers of the regiment.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://filam.si.edu/curriculum/u3-part-06a.html |title=World War Two 1st Filipino Infantry |author= |year=2008 |work=Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Program |publisher=[[Smithsonian Institute]] |accessdate=16 May 2011 }}</ref><ref name="CAPAA" /><ref>{{cite book |title=Golden dreams: California in an age of abundance, 1950–1963 |last=Starr |first=kevin |authorlink= |coauthors= |year=2009 |publisher=Oxford University Press |location=New York, NY |isbn=9780195153774 |page=452 |pages=564 |url=http://books.google.com/?id=ZWy4TexzsScC&lpg=PA452&dq=Filipino%20infantry%20regiment%20camp%20beale%20citizen&pg=PA452#v=onepage&q&f=false |accessdate=16 May 2011}}</ref> As members of the armed forces they were able to become citizens;<ref name="CAPAA" >{{cite web |url=http://www.capaa.wa.gov/data/timeline.shtml |title=Selected Dates and Events of Asian Pacific American History |author= |date= |work=Commission on Asian Pacific American Affairs |publisher=State of Washington |accessdate=16 May 2011 |quote=As members of the armed forces, Filipinos are allowed to become U.S. citizens. 1,200 Filipino soldiers stand proudly in "V" formation at Camp Beale as citizenship is conferred on them. }}</ref> naturalization of Filipino Americans was previously [[Immigration Act of 1924|barred in 1924]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://history-world.org/asian_americans.htm |title=Asian Americans |author= |date= |work= |publisher=History World International |accessdate=16 May 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |title=The Filipino Americans |last=Posadas |first=Barbara Mercedes |authorlink= |coauthors= |year=1999 |publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group |location=Westport, Connecticut |isbn=9780313297427 |page=27 |pages=190 |url=http://books.google.com/?id=FR8qo2MPMR4C&lpg=PR7&dq=Leyte%20%221st%20Filipino%20Infantry%20Regiment%22&pg=PA27#v=onepage&q&f=false |accessdate=21 May 2011 |quote=Finally eligible for naturalization because of their service in the U.S. Army, these soldiers of the 1st Filipino Infantry Regiment took their citizenship oath in 1943 at Camp Beale, California. Courtesy of the Filipino American National Historical Society, Seattle, Washington.}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |title=The Filipino Americans |last=Posadas |first=Barbara Mercedes |authorlink= |coauthors= |year=1999 |publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group |location=Westport, Connecticut |isbn=9780313297427 |page=23 |pages=190 |url=http://books.google.com/books?id=FR8qo2MPMR4C&lpg=PR7&dq=Leyte%20%221st%20Filipino%20Infantry%20Regiment%22&pg=PA23#v=onepage&q&f=false |accessdate=21 May 2011 |quote=Thus, although all children born in the United States to Filipino immigrants were U.S. citizens, before World War II, no matter how many years Philippine-born Filipinos had lived in the United States, they were ineligible for naturalization, and, therefore, could not vote, or be absolutely sure of their future status and security.}}</ref> In November 1943, the Regiment paraded through [[Los Angeles]], with [[Carlos Bulosan]], the influential author of [[America Is in the Heart]], there to witness it.<ref>{{cite news |title="The Day of Infamy" SD’s Unsung Heroes of World War II |author= |url=http://asianjournalusa.com/the-day-of-infamy-sds-unsung-heroes-of-world-war-ii-p706-80.htm |newspaper=Asian Journal |date= |accessdate=21 May 2011}}</ref>
During their remaining time stateside, due to [[Anti-miscegenation laws in the United States|anti-miscegenation laws]], those soldiers who wanted to get married to non-Filipino women were transported to [[Gallup, New Mexico]], where they could marry,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://userwww.sfsu.edu/~gonzo1/files/456/456_READER_2004S.pdf |title=My Funny Valentine: A Battle In The Filipino American Civil Rights Movement |author=Alex S. Fabros, Jr. |year=1995 |work=AAS 456 |publisher=[[San Francisco State University]] |accessdate=18 May 2011}}</ref> as New Mexico had repealed their anti-miscegenation law after the [[American Civil War|Civil War]].<ref>{{cite book |title=What comes naturally: miscegenation law and the making of race in America |last=Pascoe |first=Peggy |authorlink= |coauthors= |year=2009 |publisher=Oxford University Press US |location=New York, New York |isbn=9780195094633 |page=40 |pages=404 |url=http://books.google.com/books?id=xbrRiFgNs_MC&lpg=PA40&dq=miscegenation%20laws%20repeal%20new%20mexico&pg=PA40#v=onepage&q&f=false |accessdate=7 June 2011}}</ref> Soldiers of the regiment discrimination in [[Marysville, California|Marysville]] while off post from neighboring Camp Beale, as the businesses stated they did not serve Filipinos.<ref name="RTT1998">{{cite book |title=Strangers from a different shore: a history of Asian Americans |last=Takaki |first=Ronald T. |authorlink= |coauthors= |year=1998 |publisher=Little, Brown |location= |isbn=9780316831307 |page= |pages=591 |url=http://www.esubjects.com/curric/general/world_history/unit_two/pdf/StrangersfromaDifferentShore.pdf |accessdate=18 May 2011 }}</ref><ref name="DAVCH11" /><ref>{{cite web |url=http://userwww.sfsu.edu/~gonzo1/files/456/456_READER_2004S.pdf |title=Letters from Readers: The Filipinos Do Not Understand |author=A Filipino Wife |date= |work=AAS 456 |publisher=[[San Francisco State University]] |accessdate=18 May 2011}}</ref><ref name="RB2011" /> This was later remedied by the regiment's commander.<ref name="RTT1998" /> Further instances of discrimination against soldiers of the regiment were also reported in [[Sacramento]], and [[San Francisco]], where they were mistaken for [[Japanese Americans]].<ref name="RB2011">{{cite book |title=The Third Asiatic Invasion: Migration and Empire in Filipino America, 1898-1946 |last=Baldoz |first=Rick |authorlink= |coauthors= |year=2011 |publisher=NYU Press |location=New York |isbn=9780814791097 |page=214 |pages=336 |url=http://books.google.com/books?id=qtn31sdI4j8C&lpg=PA10&dq=The%20Third%20Asiatic%20Invasion%3A%20Migration%20and%20Empire%20in%20Filipino%20America%2C%201898-1946%20(Nation%20of%20Newcomers)&pg=PA214#v=onepage&q&f=false |accessdate=7 June 2011}}</ref>


In April 1944, the regiment departed California aboard the [[USS General John Pope (AP-110)|USS ''General John Pope'']] for [[Oro Bay, New Guinea]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ichiban1.org/pdf/USSPope.pdf |title=USS General John Pope (AP-110) |author= |date= |work=Naval History Division |publisher=Office of the [[Chief of Naval Operations]] |accessdate=18 May 2011}}</ref> Upon arriving the regiment was assigned to the [[31st Infantry Division (United States)|31st Infantry Division]], [[Eighth United States Army|8th Army]] to provide area security and continue training.<ref name="DAVCH11" /> Some soldiers of the regiment were then assigned to the [[Alamo Scouts]]<ref>{{cite book |title=The Cabanatuan Prison Raid: The Philippines 1945 |last=Rottman |first=Gordon |authorlink= |others= Mariusz Kozik, Howard Gerrard |year=2009 |publisher=Osprey Publishing |location=[[Oxford, United Kingdom]] |isbn=9781846033995 |page=15 |pages=64 |url=http://books.google.com/?id=3FG4P65w5GYC&lpg=PA15&dq=training%20%221st%20Filipino%20Infantry%20Regiment%22&pg=PA15#v=onepage&q&f=false |accessdate=18 May 2011 |quote=Many were paratroopers or from the 1st Filipino Infantry Regiment, a US Army unit organized in the States.}}</ref> and the [[5217th Reconnaissance Battalion (United States)|5217th Reconnaissance Battalion]].<ref name="DAVCH11" /><ref>{{cite book |title=Us Special Warfare Units in the Pacific Theater 1941–45: Scouts, Raiders, Rangers and Reconnaissance Units |last=Rottman |first=Gordon L. |authorlink= |editor1-first=Dr. Duncan |editor1-last=Anderson |year=2005 |publisher=Osprey Publishing |location=Oxford, United Kingdom |isbn=9781841767079 |pages=96 |url=http://books.google.com/books?id=sMnCNdLO888C&lpg=PA40&dq=5217th%20Reconnaissance%20battalion%20%22Filipino%20Infantry%22&pg=PA41#v=onepage&q&f=false |accessdate=21 May 2011}}</ref> Replacements from [[Territory of Hawaii|Hawaii]], who were not allowed to enlist until 1943, were integrated into the regiment.<ref name="CAINF" /><ref name="LARevilla1996" />
In April 1944, the regiment departed California aboard the [[USS General John Pope (AP-110)|USS ''General John Pope'']] for [[Oro Bay, New Guinea]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ichiban1.org/pdf/USSPope.pdf |title=USS General John Pope (AP-110) |author= |date= |work=Naval History Division |publisher=Office of the [[Chief of Naval Operations]] |accessdate=18 May 2011}}</ref> Upon arriving the regiment was assigned to the [[31st Infantry Division (United States)|31st Infantry Division]], [[Eighth United States Army|8th Army]] to provide area security and continue training.<ref name="DAVCH11" /> Some soldiers of the regiment were then assigned to the [[Alamo Scouts]]<ref>{{cite book |title=The Cabanatuan Prison Raid: The Philippines 1945 |last=Rottman |first=Gordon |authorlink= |others= Mariusz Kozik, Howard Gerrard |year=2009 |publisher=Osprey Publishing |location=[[Oxford, United Kingdom]] |isbn=9781846033995 |page=15 |pages=64 |url=http://books.google.com/?id=3FG4P65w5GYC&lpg=PA15&dq=training%20%221st%20Filipino%20Infantry%20Regiment%22&pg=PA15#v=onepage&q&f=false |accessdate=18 May 2011 |quote=Many were paratroopers or from the 1st Filipino Infantry Regiment, a US Army unit organized in the States.}}</ref> and the [[5217th Reconnaissance Battalion (United States)|5217th Reconnaissance Battalion]].<ref name="DAVCH11" /><ref>{{cite book |title=Us Special Warfare Units in the Pacific Theater 1941–45: Scouts, Raiders, Rangers and Reconnaissance Units |last=Rottman |first=Gordon L. |authorlink= |editor1-first=Dr. Duncan |editor1-last=Anderson |year=2005 |publisher=Osprey Publishing |location=Oxford, United Kingdom |isbn=9781841767079 |pages=96 |url=http://books.google.com/books?id=sMnCNdLO888C&lpg=PA40&dq=5217th%20Reconnaissance%20battalion%20%22Filipino%20Infantry%22&pg=PA41#v=onepage&q&f=false |accessdate=21 May 2011}}</ref> Replacements from [[Territory of Hawaii|Hawaii]], who were not allowed to enlist until 1943, were integrated into the regiment.<ref name="CAINF" /><ref name="LARevilla1996" />

Revision as of 22:29, 7 June 2011

1st Filipino Infantry Regiment
Per pall Argent, Gules and Azure, over the second and third an Igorot war shield and kris in saltire Or.
Regiment Coat of Arms
Active4 March 1942[1] – 10 April 1946[2]
Disbanded1952[2]
Allegiance United States
Branch United States Army
TypeInfantry
SizeRegiment
Motto(s)"Laging Una" (Always First)[3]
March"On to Bataan"[3][4]
EngagementsNew Guinea campaign[5]

Philippines Campaign (1944–45)[5]

DecorationsPresidential Unit Citation streamer
Philippine Presidential Unit Citation[2]
Battle honoursAsiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal streamer
  • New Guinea[2]
  • Leyte[2]
  • Southern Philippines[2]
Commanders
Regiment CommanderColonel Robert H. Offley[1]
Insignia
Shoulder Sleeve InsigniaOn a yellow disk 3 1/4 inches in diameter with a 1/8 inch edge, a conventionalized black volcano emitting smoke, the volcano charged with three yellow mullets in fess.
Distinctive Unit InsigniaA Gold color metal and enamel device 1 1/4 inches (3.18 cm) consisting of a shield blazoned: Per pall Argent, Gules and Azure, over the second and third an Igorot war shield and kris in saltire Or. Attached above the shield a wreath of the colors Argent and Gules three mullets Or. Attached below the shield a Gold scroll inscribed �LAGING UNA� in Blue letters.

The 1st Filipino Infantry Regiment was a segregated[7][8] United States Army infantry regiment made up of Filipino Americans from the continental United States and a few veterans of the Battle of the Philippines. It was formed and activated at Camp San Luis Obispo, California.[1] Originally created as a battalion, it was elevated in classification to a regiment on 13 July 1942.[1][2][9] Deployed initially to New Guinea in 1944,[1] the regiment became a source of manpower for special units that would serve in occupied territories.[10] In 1945, the regiment deployed to the Philippines, where it would first see combat as a unit.[1] Following the end of major combat operations, the regiment remained in the Philippines until it returned to California;[3] upon returning it was deactivated in 1946 at Camp Stoneman.[1]

Background

In 1898 the Philippines was ceded to the United States, and after a conflict between Philippine independence forces and the United States, Filipinos as U.S. nationals were able to freely immigrate to the United States.[11] Most would immigrate to the Territory of Hawaii and the West coast.[12] In 1934, their national status was withdrawn.[13][14]

When the Imperial Japanese Navy attacked Pearl Harbor, other Japanese forces attacked the Philippines.[15] Filipino Americans, like other Americans, began to volunteer for military service; unlike others they were neither citizens or resident aliens, therefore they were not allowed to enlist.[16][17] Following a change in legislation it was announced on 3 January 1942, the day after Manila fell,[18] that Filipinos were permitted to volunteer, and could be drafted, for military service; in California, almost half of the male Filipino American population enlisted.[19] Some who volunteered to serve were refused due to their age, other older volunteers were refused due to the need of agricultural labor.[20] Only Filipinos who volunteered to serve in the regiment were assigned to it, those who did not volunteer to serve in the regiment served in regular (white) units in various theaters of operation.[1]

History

Formed in March 1942, the 1st Filipino Infantry Battalion was activated in April of the same year at Camp San Luis Obispo.[19] During the following months Filipino Americans continued to volunteer and the unit grew. Philippine Army personnel who were in the United States were instructed to report to the unit.[1] Filipinos military personnel who had escaped the fall of Philippines[21] and were recuperating in the United States were also instructed to report to the unit.[1][22] In July 1942, the battalion was elevated to a regiment at the California Rodeo Grounds in Salinas, California.[1][23]

The regiment continued to train and grow leading to the activation of the 2nd Filipino Infantry Regiment at Fort Ord in November 1942.[1][10] Following this the regiments were assigned to different posts; the 2nd to Camp Cooke and the 1st to Camp Beale.[1] While at Camp Beale, there was a mass naturalization ceremony of 1,200 of soldiers of the regiment.[24][25][26] As members of the armed forces they were able to become citizens;[25] naturalization of Filipino Americans was previously barred in 1924.[27][28][29] In November 1943, the Regiment paraded through Los Angeles, with Carlos Bulosan, the influential author of America Is in the Heart, there to witness it.[30]

During their remaining time stateside, due to anti-miscegenation laws, those soldiers who wanted to get married to non-Filipino women were transported to Gallup, New Mexico, where they could marry,[31] as New Mexico had repealed their anti-miscegenation law after the Civil War.[32] Soldiers of the regiment discrimination in Marysville while off post from neighboring Camp Beale, as the businesses stated they did not serve Filipinos.[4][10][33][34] This was later remedied by the regiment's commander.[4] Further instances of discrimination against soldiers of the regiment were also reported in Sacramento, and San Francisco, where they were mistaken for Japanese Americans.[34]

In April 1944, the regiment departed California aboard the USS General John Pope for Oro Bay, New Guinea.[35] Upon arriving the regiment was assigned to the 31st Infantry Division, 8th Army to provide area security and continue training.[10] Some soldiers of the regiment were then assigned to the Alamo Scouts[36] and the 5217th Reconnaissance Battalion.[10][37] Replacements from Hawaii, who were not allowed to enlist until 1943, were integrated into the regiment.[1][3]

In February 1945, the regiment was sent to Leyte and was assigned to the Americal Division,[38][39] 10th Corps.[40] The regiment would later be assigned back to the 8th Army, along with the Americal Division.[40] Finally in the Philippines, the regiment conducted "mopping up"[41] operations on the island,[42][43] Samar,[1][3][44] and other islands in the Visayan islands group.[10]

By August 1945, operations came to a close, and soldiers of the regiment that were reassigned back to the regiment.[1][45] During the period between the close of operations and their return to the United States, without the Imperial Japanese Army to fight, the men of the regiment were recorded to have clashed with soldiers of the Philippine Army over differences in pay, cultural differences, and the attraction of local women.[3][10] Others took the time to find wives due to the War Brides Act,[1][10][46] and younger soldiers connected to a culture that they only had tacit connection to.[3]

Soldiers of the regiment who did not qualify to return home,[10] and those who wanted to remain in the Philippines, were transferred to 2nd Filipino Infantry Battalion (the remnants of the 2nd Filipino Infantry Regiment) in Quezon City.[1] Returning to the United States aboard the USS General Calan on 8 April 1946, the regiment was sent to Camp Stoneman, near Pittsburgh, California, where the regiment was inactivated on 10 April 1946.[1][2]

Legacy

During the war the efforts of Filipino and American defenders during the Battle of Bataan were widely covered,[7] as were the activities of the 442nd Infantry.[47] After the war, the efforts of the 442d continued to be lauded;[48][49][50] with the 1951 film Go for Broke! portraying their endeavors.[51] However, the activities of the Filipino Infantry Regiment and her sister units have gone largely unpublicized;[3] it was not until the regiment was documented in the documentaries Unsung Heroes and An UnTold Triumph that any significant visual media covered the history of the regiment.[52][53][54][55]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s Alex S. Fabros. "California's Filipino Infantry". The California State Military Museum. California State Military Department. Retrieved 10 May 2011.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h "Statement of Service". Center of Military History. United States Army. 1 May 2011. Retrieved 24 May 2011.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h Revilla, Linda A. (1996). ""Pineapples," "Hawayanos," and "Loyal Americans": Local Boys in the First Filipino Infantry Regiment, US Army" (PDF). Social Process in Hawai`i. 37. University of Hawai`i at Manoa: 57–73. Retrieved 10 May 2011.
  4. ^ a b c Takaki, Ronald T. (1998). Strangers from a different shore: a history of Asian Americans (PDF). Little, Brown. p. 591. ISBN 9780316831307. Retrieved 18 May 2011. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  5. ^ a b c d e Scott Ishikawa (30 November 2001). "New film depicts Filipino regiments' exploits". Honolulu Advertiser. Retrieved 10 May 2011. Soldiers of the 1st and 2nd Infantry Regiments also participated in bloody combat and mop-up operations in New Guinea, Leyte, Samar, Luzon and the southern Philippines.
  6. ^ McKibben, Carol Lynn (2009). Seaside. San Francisco, California: Arcadia Publishing. p. 39. ISBN 9780738569819. Retrieved 24 May 2011. The 1st and 2nd Filipino Infantry Regiments trained at Ford Ord, after which they distinguished themselves in the Battle of Leyte and on the Bataan Peninsula. {{cite book}}: More than one of |pages= and |page= specified (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  7. ^ a b Espiritu, Yen Le (1995). Filipino American lives. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: Temple University Press. p. 17. ISBN 9781566393171. Retrieved 12 May 2011. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help); More than one of |pages= and |page= specified (help)
  8. ^ McNaughton, James C. (2006). Nisei Linguists: Japanese Americans in the Military Intelligence Service during World War II (PDF). Washington, D.C.: Department of the Army. p. 87. ISBN 0-16-072357-2. Retrieved 26 May 2011. the War Department already had several long-serving segregated units for African Americans, Puerto Ricans, and Filipinos and established several more during 1942. the Office of War information saw propaganda value in having combat units of different nationalities. thus during 1942 the War Department organized the 1st Filipino infantry in California and battalion-size units of Norwegians, Austrians, and Greeks. {{cite book}}: Check |isbn= value: checksum (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help); More than one of |pages= and |page= specified (help)
  9. ^ S.L. Stanton (1992). "American Infantry Regiments 1941–1945" (PDF). United States Army Command and General Staff College. Retrieved 10 May 2011.
  10. ^ a b c d e f g h i "The Philippine Army World War II". Chapter 11 Wilmington, NC. Disabled American Veterans. Retrieved 16 May 2011.
  11. ^ Ueda, Reed (2006). A companion to American immigration. Malden, Massachusetts: Wiley-Blackwell. p. 15. ISBN 9780631228431. Retrieved 10 May 2011. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help); More than one of |pages= and |page= specified (help)
  12. ^ Powell, John (2005). Encyclopedia of North American immigration. New York, New York: Infobase Publishing. p. 97. ISBN 9780816046584. Retrieved 10 May 2011. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help); More than one of |pages= and |page= specified (help)
  13. ^ "Filipino Immigration" (PDF). Angel Island Immigration Station Foundation. Retrieved 10 May 2011.
  14. ^ Eftihia Danellis. "Fight for Democracy: An Educator's resource guide" (PDF). National center for the preservation of Democracy. Retrieved 18 May 2011. However, in 1934, they were reclassified as "aliens". {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  15. ^ "Philippine Islands". Center of Military History. United States Army. 3 October 2003. Retrieved 10 May 2011.
  16. ^ Robert Barkan, Elliot (1999). A nation of peoples: a sourcebook on America's multicultural heritage. Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 210. ISBN 9780313299612. Retrieved 10 May 2011. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help); More than one of |pages= and |page= specified (help)
  17. ^ Frank, Sarah (2005). Filipinos in America. Minneapolis, Minnesota: Lerner Publications. p. 37. ISBN 9780822548737. Retrieved 10 May 2011. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help); More than one of |pages= and |page= specified (help)
  18. ^ "Key Events in the Presidency of Franklin Delano Roosevelt". Miller Center of Public Affaris. University of Virginia. Retrieved 10 May 2011.
  19. ^ a b España-Maram, Linda (2006). Creating masculinity in Los Angeles's Little Manila. New York: Columbia University Press. p. 152. ISBN 9780231115933. Retrieved 12 May 2011. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help); More than one of |pages= and |page= specified (help)
  20. ^ Perez, Frank Ramos; Perez, Leatrice Bantillo (1994). "The Long Struggle for Acceptance: Filipinos in San Joaquin County" (PDF). The San Joaquin Historian. 8 (4). The San Joaquin County Historical Society: 3–18. Retrieved 10 May 2011. In San Joaquin County many Filipinos who volunteered for military service were rejected because of their age and/or the need for them to continue to work in the fields harvesting the crops to feed the armed forces.
  21. ^ Cave, Dorothy (2006). Beyond Courage: One Regiment Against Japan, 1941–1945. Santa Fe, New Mexico: Sunstone Press. p. 91. ISBN 9780865345591. Retrieved 12 May 2011. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help); More than one of |pages= and |page= specified (help)
  22. ^ "Fort Ord". California Military Museum. California State Military Department. Retrieved 25 May 2011. Another unit of interest, the 1st Filipino Infantry Regiment, was activated in April and eventually included a few veterans of fighting on Bataan that had been wounded, evacuated, and returned to duty in the United States.
  23. ^ Andrew Ruppenstien (21 January 2010). "The First and Second Filipino Infantry Regiments U.S. Army". Historic Marker Database. Retrieved 12 May 2011. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  24. ^ "World War Two 1st Filipino Infantry". Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Program. Smithsonian Institute. 2008. Retrieved 16 May 2011.
  25. ^ a b "Selected Dates and Events of Asian Pacific American History". Commission on Asian Pacific American Affairs. State of Washington. Retrieved 16 May 2011. As members of the armed forces, Filipinos are allowed to become U.S. citizens. 1,200 Filipino soldiers stand proudly in "V" formation at Camp Beale as citizenship is conferred on them.
  26. ^ Starr, kevin (2009). Golden dreams: California in an age of abundance, 1950–1963. New York, NY: Oxford University Press. p. 452. ISBN 9780195153774. Retrieved 16 May 2011. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help); More than one of |pages= and |page= specified (help)
  27. ^ "Asian Americans". History World International. Retrieved 16 May 2011.
  28. ^ Posadas, Barbara Mercedes (1999). The Filipino Americans. Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 27. ISBN 9780313297427. Retrieved 21 May 2011. Finally eligible for naturalization because of their service in the U.S. Army, these soldiers of the 1st Filipino Infantry Regiment took their citizenship oath in 1943 at Camp Beale, California. Courtesy of the Filipino American National Historical Society, Seattle, Washington. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help); More than one of |pages= and |page= specified (help)
  29. ^ Posadas, Barbara Mercedes (1999). The Filipino Americans. Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 23. ISBN 9780313297427. Retrieved 21 May 2011. Thus, although all children born in the United States to Filipino immigrants were U.S. citizens, before World War II, no matter how many years Philippine-born Filipinos had lived in the United States, they were ineligible for naturalization, and, therefore, could not vote, or be absolutely sure of their future status and security. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help); More than one of |pages= and |page= specified (help)
  30. ^ ""The Day of Infamy" SD's Unsung Heroes of World War II". Asian Journal. Retrieved 21 May 2011.
  31. ^ Alex S. Fabros, Jr. (1995). "My Funny Valentine: A Battle In The Filipino American Civil Rights Movement" (PDF). AAS 456. San Francisco State University. Retrieved 18 May 2011.
  32. ^ Pascoe, Peggy (2009). What comes naturally: miscegenation law and the making of race in America. New York, New York: Oxford University Press US. p. 40. ISBN 9780195094633. Retrieved 7 June 2011. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help); More than one of |pages= and |page= specified (help)
  33. ^ A Filipino Wife. "Letters from Readers: The Filipinos Do Not Understand" (PDF). AAS 456. San Francisco State University. Retrieved 18 May 2011.
  34. ^ a b Baldoz, Rick (2011). The Third Asiatic Invasion: Migration and Empire in Filipino America, 1898-1946. New York: NYU Press. p. 214. ISBN 9780814791097. Retrieved 7 June 2011. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help); More than one of |pages= and |page= specified (help)
  35. ^ "USS General John Pope (AP-110)" (PDF). Naval History Division. Office of the Chief of Naval Operations. Retrieved 18 May 2011.
  36. ^ Rottman, Gordon (2009). The Cabanatuan Prison Raid: The Philippines 1945. Mariusz Kozik, Howard Gerrard. Oxford, United Kingdom: Osprey Publishing. p. 15. ISBN 9781846033995. Retrieved 18 May 2011. Many were paratroopers or from the 1st Filipino Infantry Regiment, a US Army unit organized in the States. {{cite book}}: More than one of |pages= and |page= specified (help)
  37. ^ Rottman, Gordon L. (2005). Anderson, Dr. Duncan (ed.). Us Special Warfare Units in the Pacific Theater 1941–45: Scouts, Raiders, Rangers and Reconnaissance Units. Oxford, United Kingdom: Osprey Publishing. p. 96. ISBN 9781841767079. Retrieved 21 May 2011.
  38. ^ Captain Francis D. Cronin (1951). "Americal Division Order of Battle". Americal Division Veterans Association. Retrieved 24 May 2011.
  39. ^ Smith, Robert Ross (1963). Triumph in the Philippines. Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office. p. 437. Retrieved 24 May 2011. Reinforced by elements of the 1st Filipino Infantry, U.S. Army, the 182ds battalion overran organized resistance on northwest Samar by 1 March, and on the 4th of the month relinquished responsibility for patrolling in the region to the 1st Filipino Infantry and attached guerillas. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help); More than one of |pages= and |page= specified (help)
  40. ^ a b Cannon, M. Hamlin (1993). Leyte: The Return to the Philippines. Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office. p. 365. Retrieved 25 May 2011. In the X Corps phase, the island of Samar was cleared of Japanese troops. The Americal Division, advance elements of which arrived on 24 January, extensively patrolled both the islands of Leyte and Samar. During the Eighth Army Area Command phase, the constant searching out of isolated groups of enemy soldiers continued. In addition to the Americal Division, the 1st Filipino Infantry Regiment patrolled Leyte. On 8 May, the control of the Eighth Army over the area came to an end. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help); More than one of |pages= and |page= specified (help)
  41. ^ Eftihia Danellis. "Fight for Democracy: An Educator's resource guide" (PDF). National center for the preservation of Democracy. Retrieved 24 May 2011. Assigned to the 1st Filipino Infantry Regiment, Domingo came ashore on Leyte Island in the Philippines. His unit had been assigned the dangerous task of "mopping up" enemy soldiers who refused to surrender at all costs. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  42. ^ M. Hamilin Cannon (1993). "Chapter XXII: Leyte is Liberated". Leyte: The Return to the Philippines. ibiblio.org. Retrieved 24 May 2011. In addition to the Americal Division, the 1st Filipino Infantry Regiment patrolled Leyte.
  43. ^ Merriam, Ray (1999). World War II journal. Bennington, Vermont: Merriam Press. p. 27. ISBN 9781576381649. Retrieved 24 May 2011. Additional American units were called into the battle of Leyte: the 32nd Infantry Division, the 77th and 37th Infantry Divisions, the Americal Division, the 11th Airborne Division, the 112th Cavalry Regiment Combat Team, the 503rd Parachute Infantry Regiment, the 20th Armored Group, and the 1st Filipino Infantry. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help); More than one of |pages= and |page= specified (help)
  44. ^ Bell, Walter F. Bell (1999). Philippines in World War Two, 1941–1945. Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 74. ISBN 9780313306143. Retrieved 24 May 2011. "On Samar, elements of Americal Division and 1st Filipino Infantry clear Mauro area. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help); More than one of |pages= and |page= specified (help)
  45. ^ "The Philippine Airborne". The Corregidor Historic Society. 29 March 2011. Retrieved 25 May 2011. Shortly after the mission, the 5217th, now the 1st Reconnaissance Battalion, was sent to Manila, where Walter and his cadre were returned to the 503d PRCT. Shortly thereafter, in August of 1945, the 1st Reconnaissance Battalion was disbanded and the men reassigned.
  46. ^ Mabalon, Dawn B. (2008). Filipinos in Stockton. San Francisco, California: Arcadia Publishing. p. 8. ISBN 9780738556246. Retrieved 25 May 2011. The 1945 War Brides Act enabled these veterans to bring back war brides from the Philippines, and the 1946 Luce-Cullar Act gave all Filipinos the right to naturalize. {{cite book}}: More than one of |pages= and |page= specified (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  47. ^ Chan, Sucheng (1991). Asian Americans: an interpretive history (PDF). Twayne. p. 242. ISBN 9780805784374. Retrieved 21 May 2011. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  48. ^ Slavicek, Louise Chipley (2007). Daniel Inouye. New York, New York: Infobase Publishing. p. 74. ISBN 9780791092712. Retrieved 21 May 2011. The previous summer, the Nisei veterans of the 442nd Regiment Combat Team had gathered at the White House for special review by President Harry Truman in recognition of their battlefield achievements. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help); More than one of |pages= and |page= specified (help)
  49. ^ Jason Lee (5 October 2010). "An Awe-Inspiring Chapter of America's History". The White House Blog. White House. Retrieved 21 May 2011.
  50. ^ Congressional Record. Government Printing Office. 1966. p. 6266. Retrieved 21 May 2011. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  51. ^ Shibusawa, Naoko (2006). America's geisha ally: reimagining the Japanese enemy. Harvard University Press. p. 256. ISBN 9780674023482. Retrieved 21 May 2011. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help); More than one of |pages= and |page= specified (help)
  52. ^ Miguel Llora. "World War II in the Pacific: A Filmography of U.S. Documentaries" (PDF). Teachers workshop. Pacific Historic Parks. Retrieved 21 May 2011.
  53. ^ "Philippine Studies Audio-Visual Resources". Wong Audio-Visual Room, Sinclair Library. University of Hawaii at Manoa. 4 May 2011. Retrieved 21 May 2011.
  54. ^ Dennis Harvey (26 March 2003). "An Untold Triumph: The Story of the 1st and 2nd Filipino Infantry Regiments, U.S. Army". Variety. Retrieved 21 May 2011.
  55. ^ Genevieve A. Suzuki (8 November 2002). "'Untold Triumph' tells the tale of Filipino soldiers". Honolulu Star-Bulliten. Retrieved 21 May 2011.

Further reading

External links

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