Hello orphans fighting on the Pacific front, I am your peace. What I'm playing for you tonight is "I Can't Resist" by Benny Barker. How do you like it? Do you feel the same way? ,?If all your warships sink, how are you going to get home? These words came from a Japanese woman, but they captivated millions of American troops.

This is the "Tokyo Rose" that was widely spread among the US military during the Pacific War. In fact, this is part of Japan's psychological warfare, hoping to disintegrate the opponent's fighting spirit to the greatest extent through broadcasting. But what's interesting is that instead of feeling war-weary, the American officers and soldiers were fascinated by this sweet voice and insisted on going to Japan to meet this "Tokyo Rose".

So, who is Tokyo Rose?

As part of the psychological warfare of the Japanese army, "Tokyo Rose" was a broadcast team composed of 12 women. However, after the war, the only one who recognized her identity was Ikuko Toguri. She was born in Los Angeles, USA. Her parents are First-generation Japanese immigrant, graduated from UCLA. So, how did she become a propaganda tool for the Japanese army?

In 1941, 25-year-old Ikuko Toguri wanted to pursue a career as a doctor after graduating from college. But because her aunt in Japan was ill, she agreed to visit her sick mother. Unfortunately, the Pacific War broke out, and the United States and Japan became warring parties. As a result, she was trapped in Japan and unable to return to the United States. Survival was the biggest problem she faced.

During the war, Japan implemented a "rationing system", and Ikuko Toguri, an American citizen, was not eligible for rationing. Although some people suggested that she give up her American citizenship, she refused. Because rejection meant never returning to her parents, something she didn't want to do anyway, she identified herself as an American.

Fortunately, there are still some US dollars around, which can be exchanged for daily necessities through the black market, but "sitting back and having nothing" is not the solution after all. A year later, the penniless Ikuko Toguri found a job at Tokyo Radio as an English anchor with a monthly salary of US$6. This was very tempting to her, as she no longer had to worry about survival.

Different from those "bad pronunciation" announcers, Toguri Ikuko's pure American pronunciation and American "conversation" made her voice quickly accepted by the US officers and soldiers on the front line, and I am madly in love with this show, and her carefully selected American music makes the American soldiers in the brutal battle feel like they are home.

No one cares about the fake news she broadcasts. They just want to listen to the sweet voice of the "hometown woman" and then close their eyes and enjoy the music. What the Japanese authorities did not expect was that after hearing her voice, American soldiers expressed their intention to fight in Tokyo. Getting to know this "Tokyo Rose" actually became one of the motivations for them to continue fighting.

What American reporters at that time most wanted to interview was the Emperor and Tokyo Rose.

Japan’s surrender in 1945 was a happy event for Ikuko Toguri. Not only could she return home, but she also became a celebrity in the U.S. military. Reporters rushed to interview her and gave her Its a generous interview fee. For a time, she became the headlines of the media and participated in events everywhere. American soldiers came to her for autographs and souvenirs.

But what people did not expect was that just one month later, Ikuko Toguri was arrested on the charge of "treason" because as an American, she helped the Japanese army conduct psychological warfare. In this way, she became a rare female war criminal in the Far East Military Tribunal and was sentenced to one year in prison. After she was released from prison, she couldn't wait to apply to the consulate to return to the United States.

But she was dissuaded by her husband. Why? It turns out that from the outbreak of the war until the end of the war for a long time, an unprecedented anti-Japanese upsurge set off in the United States. Most Japanese Americans in the United States were treated unfairly. Their property was confiscated, and they were either deported or imprisoned in closed camps.

In particular, Toguri Ikuko’s mother died of illness in such a camp. Returning to China at this time of "turbulence" will definitely not end well. But three years after the war, her child died just after birth, which was a huge blow to her and she decided to return to China no matter what. Coincidentally, domestic media have also called for the extradition and severe punishment of this "traitor".

Toguri Ikuko finally set foot on the road back to her country, but what greeted her was not her relatives and friends, but FBI agents. She was investigated again, and she firmly denied that she had committed "treason". . First, the press release was not written by her. She was just an announcer, and she followed the script out of the most basic professional ethics.

Second, she tried to find some relaxing and pleasant music to play, just to relieve the tension of the US military. More importantly, in the audio tape provided by the court, she could not be heard making any treasonous remarks. In her view, she was also a victim of the war, and finding a job in order to survive was understandable.

The prosecution and defense launched a heated debate over whether Toguri Ikuko had made treasonous remarks. The first trial of the case lasted for a year, during which many US soldiers called on the court to acquit her. Because in the war-torn era, it was "Tokyo Rose" who accompanied them through the loneliest days, not to mention a "fellow" American.

But the Americans could spare the emperor who had committed many crimes, but they could not spare a female traitor.

In 1949, the San Francisco Federal Court sentenced Tokyo Rose Ikuko Toguri and found her guilty of treason. She was sentenced to 10 years in prison and deprived of her U.S. citizenship. In other words, even if she is released after serving her sentence, she will be deported because she does not have U.S. citizenship. Such a result is something she never expected.

Many people can’t figure out why the Americans spared the emperor who had committed many crimes, but not a weak woman? Compared with many Japanese Class A war criminals, the punishment for Ikuko Toguri was severe. In fact, it was reasonable under the circumstances at the time, but a few years later, more people were willing to magnify her "beauty".

First of all, driven by the post-war anti-Japanese upsurge in the United States, many Japanese Americans were implicated. They not only lost their jobs, but also had their personal freedoms restricted and were treated like criminals, not to mention Ikuko Toguri was found guilty. From the perspective of shocking Japanese Americans, her sentence was not too harsh.

Secondly, although Ikuko Toguri pleads not guilty, in fact, she is very clear about the nature of her work. Whether forced or voluntary, it is an iron fact that she helps Japan conduct psychological warfare. Coupled with her sweet voice and American-style conversation, she fascinated a large number of officers and soldiers who had served in the army for three years, and the influence was too bad and bad.

What is even more intolerable is that as an American who helps Japan target his own country, he is actually an out-and-out "traitor" and "traitor". This is what Americans hate most and do not forgive her. the root cause. Moreover, for a large country among the victorious countries, it is a shameless thing. At the very least, it is easy to say but not easy to hear.

As relations between Japan and the United States eased, and Ikuko Toguri performed well in prison, she was released three years early. However, as a stateless person, life is relatively difficult, running a house in Chicago. The gift shop is barely getting by. But Americans, accustomed to healing scars and forgetting pain, suddenly discovered her greatness.

Veterans rushed to tell each other, and they jointly testified that they were wronged, claiming that when they listened to the "Tokyo Rose" program, they did not feel war-weary at all, but instead strengthened their belief in living. In 1977, Ikuko Toguri was pardoned, regained her U.S. citizenship, and was awarded the title of "Patriotic Citizen." This is a huge irony.

Looking back at this period of history, not pursuing the crimes of the Japanese Emperor is a political need; pursuing Toguri Ikko's crimes is more of a need for social impact. There is no "unjust, false and wrongful conviction" because the court It also serves the country. The reason for pardoning her is that people are more willing to recall the beautiful side of Tokyo Rose, and it is also a need.

What do you think? Welcome to leave a message to discuss together.

Reference: "Second World War"

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