Prior to his deployment to the Pacific war, all Cedric Shimo (MIS) wanted to do was to say “goodbye” to his mother imprisoned behind barbed wire at Manzanar. He was denied and protested the travel restrictions placed on Americans of Japanese ancestry. As a result, he was subsequently transferred to the 1800th Battalion and relegated to menial ditch-digging. Even now, he says he is proud to have served his country with a clear conscience. Co-sponsored by Asian Americans for Peace and Justice.

"Do U.S. military personnel have the right to resist orders if these violate domestic or international law? This passionate and scholarly account of Japanese American soldiers during World War II (Soldiers of Conscience) both stuns and compels. Castelnuovo assesses a hidden chapter in American history and asks: are we mistaken to ignore "Objectors of Conscience" in the U.S. Armed Forces?"-Lane Ryo Hirabayashi, George and Sakaye Aratani Professor of the Japanese American Internment, Redress & Community, UCLA

Booksigning follows.