International Translation Day is an opportunity to pay tribute to the work of language professionals and their role in bringing about peace. Roughly 6,000 Japanese Americans served as translators and interpreters with the Military Intelligence Service (MIS) in the Pacific, using the language of their parents and grandparents to shorten the war and save lives.

Mexican-born Jose Lopez earned America’s highest military honor for his heroic one- man stand during the Battle of the Bulge.

With the German Afrika Korps driving toward the Suez Canal in July 1942, heroic resistance by a small band of Indian soldiers and anti-tank gunners stopped Rommel in his tracks, setting the stage for the climactic battle of El Alamein.

Pursuing his passion for flight, William Holloman II enlisted in the only unit that would let him fly—the Tuskegee Airmen. He joined as a fighter pilot with the famous “Red Tails” of the 332nd Fighter Group.

From rural Mississippi to Iwo Jima, Joseph LaNier confronted racism in society and service.

When World War II ended, British and American leaders were unsure how to continue their nation’s grand alliance.

Vernon Baker was one of seven African Americans to receive the Medal of Honor for service in World War II, an award delayed decades by bias and discrimination. In both war and peace, Baker served as an inspirational leader for the soldiers that served under his command and for generations to come.

The 442nd Regimental Combat Team, a segregated Japanese American unit, is remembered today for its brave actions in World War II. Despite the odds, the 442nd’s actions distinguished them as the most decorated unit for its size and length of service in the history of the US military.

Jack Glass describes his experiences aboard the USS Enterprise (CV-6) during the Battle of the Eastern Solomons in August 1942.

It was only in the wake of Executive Order 8802, and a presidential directive issued directly to the Corps, that the Marines began setting up a new segregated training facility for African American recruits at Montford Point, North Carolina. One of the first recruits was Edgar Cole.

The United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration saved the lives of millions of people in Europe and China from 1944-1947.

The American assault on Fortress Brest, led by the 2nd, 8th, and 29th Divisions under General Troy Middleton, marked one of World War II’s most ferociously contested battles.