Japanese American veterans of the Vietnam War were among those who supported the renaming of Columbia Park after Ted Tanouye during the Torrance City Council’s Dec. 2 meeting.
RAFU STAFF REPORT
A proposal to rename Columbia Park after World War II hero Ted Tanouye was scheduled to be discussed at a meeting of the Torrance Parks and Recreation Commission on Dec. 10.
At its meeting on Dec. 2, the Torrance City Council voted 3-4 not to rename the park. It then voted to refer the matter back to the Parks and Recreation Commission, 4-3.
The commission discussed the issue at its Nov. 12 meeting and heard testimony from six people supporting the concept and eight expressing opposition or suggesting alternative naming approaches.
There was agreement that Tanouye, a Torrance native and posthumous recipient of the Medal of Honor, was worthy of recognition, but some speakers pointed out that there are places in the city that already bear his name — a memorial in front of Torrance High School, the Torrance National Guard facility, and an exhibit at the Torrance Historical Society.
The commission voted 6-0 to recommend further research and increase community outreach.
The proposal by City Councilmember Jon Kaji was previously taken up on Sept. 2 by the city’s Ad Hoc Committee on the Naming of Public Facilities, which moved the matter to the commission, citing a lack of public notice and public input. Kaji said that the meeting was duly publicized and open to the public.
The park, located at Prairie and 190th Street, was deeded to the city by the Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS) when it established its radio transmitter there. Some of the properties that comprise the park were formerly owned by Nikkei farming families.
“Since the park will be the site of the World War II Camp Wall memorial, my thought was to enhance the visitor experience by adding the story of Ted T. Tanouye,” Kaji said. “His response to the incarceration of his family along with the rest of the West Coast Japanese American community was to volunteer for military service. To me, it’s a natural tie-in to the Camp Wall memorial.”
Conceived by the late Torrance resident Kanji Sahara, the wall will include the names of more than 125,000 Japanese Americans who were incarcerated by the government during World War II. The WWII Camp Wall organization is not involved in the effort to rename the park.
At the Dec. 2 council meeting, Kaji said his proposal was supported by Diane Tanouye, niece of Ted Tanouye. Japanese American Vietnam veterans were among those who spoke in favor of honoring Tanouye.
Councilmember Asam Sheikh, however, emphasized that there was no rush to make a decision and that the council should wait for a recommendation from the commission.
Technical Sgt. Tanouye, who was born in Torrance on Nov. 14, 1919 and graduated from Torrance High School in 1937, died on July 7, 1944 while leading his platoon in an effort to capture the crest of a strategically important hill in Italy. In 1945 he was posthumously awarded the Distinguished Service Cross, which was upgraded to the Medal of Honor in 2000.
Tanouye was also awarded the Bronze Star, Purple Heart with Oak Leaf Cluster, European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal, Combat Infantryman Badge, and World War II Victory Medal.
Initially buried in Italy, he was later laid to rest at Evergreen Cemetery in Boyle Heights alongside his brother, Pvt. Yukiwo Tanouye, who was killed in action in the Korean War.