A little before 8 a.m. on Sunday, December 7, 1941, hundreds of Japanese planes made a surprise attack on Pearl Harbor in Hawaii. The attack was launched from aircraft carriers and destroyed or damaged about 20 American naval ships including eight battleships. More than 300 aircraft were also destroyed or badly damaged.
The official American death toll was 2,403, including 2,008 Navy person, 218 Army, 109 Marines and 68 civilians. Of the dead, 1,177 were from the USS Arizona. That ship’s wreckage now serves as the main memorial of the attack. In addition to those 2,403 that were killed, 1,143 were wounded.
World War II began on September 1, 1939 after Germany invaded Poland. Until that Sunday in December, the U.S. had been reluctant to join World War II, although we provided extensive assistance to the United Kingdom that was virtually the only source of resistance to the Nazis in Europe. The attack on Pearl Harbor reversed that reluctance in a day — Congress issued a declaration of war on December 8, 1941.
Congress designated December 7 as National Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day in August of 1994. Today, due to the coronavirus, the Pearl Harbor Visitor Center will be closed to the public, but a small gathering of veterans will honor the occasion.
79 years ago, President Franklin D. Roosevelt proclaimed, “December 7,1941 — a date which will live in infamy.” This is another one of those days we should never forget….
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