by Emma Goebel ’21
The Gustavus Adolphus College Departments of Geography, Japanese Studies, and Art & Art History have teamed up to host a film screening of The Registry and have an extended question-and-answer panel with Steve Ozone, one of the filmmakers of the documentary, and Seiki Oshiro, one of the main subjects of the documentary. This event is free and open to the public and will take place on Monday, October 28 at 9 a.m.in Bjorling Recital Hall in the Schaefer Fine Arts Center.
The Registry is a film pertaining to a local chapter of World War II history, where Japanese men were kept out of internment camps in exchange for their help with the military efforts. The Military Intelligence Service (MIS) trained thousands of these Japanese men to help with linguistics during the war from their base at Minnesota’s Camp Savage and Fort Snelling.
The members of the MIS received no military honors and they were not considered veterans of war. Records about the MIS either disappeared or were never recorded in the first place. The Registry uncovers the secrets of the MIS men.
“What I want attendees to consider is that Minnesota part of a much larger picture,” Gustavus geography professor Jesse McClelland said. “These men who were coerced into coming here are now part of Minnesotan history along with the many other stories of immigration in Minnesota.”
All are invited to attend the viewing of The Registry and stay for the question-and-answer portion of the event. The film screening and discussion are made possible in part through Gustavus Lyceum Lecture Series grant.
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