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.

In late September 1940, the German-Jewish intellectual, Walter Benjamin, embarked on a dangerous and ultimately ill-fated journey across the Pyrenees to escape the Nazis.

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

George Washington Biggs devoted most of his adult life to causes greater than himself.

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.

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

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.

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

International Peace Day focuses on building a peaceful and prosperous future. The exhibition Remembered Light spotlights the McDonald Peace Windows and how one chaplain’s remembrances of destruction were woven into new, imaginative works of art out of the ruins and devastation of war.

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.

Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, author of The Little Prince and other timeless works of literature, was also a daring French aviator who lost his life in action during World War II.

German troops invading France in the spring of 1940 committed widespread atrocities, especially against Black African colonial troops. One of the worst massacres took place at the town of Chasselay on June 20.