Robert Toshio Kuroda (November 8, 1922 – October 20, 1944) was a

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, ...

soldier.Kakesako, Gregg K
"Honoring a war hero,"
''Honolulu Star Bulletin.'' August 31, 2003; retrieved 2012-12-7. He was a recipient of the United States military's highest decoration—the

Medal of Honor The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest military decoration and is awarded to recognize American soldiers, sailors, marines, airmen, guardians and coast guardsmen who have distinguished themselves by acts of val ...

—for his actions in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

.US Army Center of Military History
"Medal of Honor Recipients, World War II (G-L)"
retrieved 2012-12-7.

Early life

Robert Kuroda was born in

Aiea, Hawaii Aiea (; haw, ʻAiea, ) is a census-designated place (CDP) located in the City and County of Honolulu, Hawaii, United States. As of the 2010 Census, the CDP had a total population of 9,338. Geography Aiea is located at (21.385900, −1 ...

, the son of immigrants from Japan. He was thus a ''

Nisei is a Japanese-language term used in countries in North America and South America to specify the ethnically Japanese children born in the new country to Japanese-born immigrants (who are called ). The are considered the second generation, ...

'', which means a second generation Japanese-American. Kuroda was trained as an

electrician An electrician is a tradesperson specializing in electrical wiring of buildings, transmission lines, stationary machines, and related equipment. Electricians may be employed in the installation of new electrical components or the maintenance ...

, but he enlisted in the U.S. Army in March 1943, at the age of 20.Bramlett, David A
"Go For Broke Monument, Fifth Anniversary Tribute,"
June 5, 2004; retrieved 2012-12-7.

Soldier

Kuroda joined the Army in March 1943.U.S. National Archives and Records Administration (NARA)
WWII Army Enlistment Record #30104463 (Kuroda, Robert T.)
retrieved 2012-12-7. Kuroda volunteered to join the all-''Nisei'' 442nd Regimental Combat Team. This army unit was mostly made up of Japanese Americans from Hawaii and the mainland. On October 20, 1944, Kuroda was serving as a

staff sergeant Staff sergeant is a rank of non-commissioned officer used in the armed forces of many countries. It is also a police rank in some police services. History of title In origin, certain senior sergeants were assigned to administrative, superv ...

in the

442nd Regimental Combat Team The 442nd Infantry Regiment ( ja, 第442歩兵連隊) was an infantry regiment of the United States Army. The regiment is best known as the most decorated in U.S. military history and as a fighting unit composed almost entirely of second-gene ...

. On that day, near

Bruyères Bruyères () is a commune in the Vosges department in Grand Est in northeastern France. The town built up around a castle built on a hill in the locality in the 6th century. It was the birthplace of Jean Lurçat, in 1892. History In World Wa ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

, he single-handedly attacked two enemy machine gun emplacements before being killed by a

sniper A sniper is a military/paramilitary marksman who engages targets from positions of concealment or at distances exceeding the target's detection capabilities. Snipers generally have specialized training and are equipped with high-precision r ...

. For these actions, he was posthumously awarded the Army's second-highest decoration, the

Distinguished Service Cross The Distinguished Service Cross (D.S.C.) is a military decoration for courage. Different versions exist for different countries. *Distinguished Service Cross (Australia) *Distinguished Service Cross (United Kingdom) *Distinguished Service Cross (U ...

. A 1990s review of service records for Asian Americans who received the Distinguished Service Cross during World War II led to Kuroda's award being upgraded to the Medal of Honor. In a ceremony at the

White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., and has been the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams in ...

on June 21, 2000, his surviving family was presented with his Medal of Honor by President

Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton (né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and again ...

. Twenty-one other Asian Americans also received the medal during the ceremony, all but seven of them posthumously. Kuroda, aged 21 at his death, was buried at the

National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific The National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific (informally known as Punchbowl Cemetery) is a national cemetery located at Punchbowl Crater in Honolulu, Hawaii. It serves as a memorial to honor those men and women who served in the United St ...

Honolulu Honolulu (; ) is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, which is in the Pacific Ocean. It is an unincorporated county seat of the consolidated City and County of Honolulu, situated along the southeast coast of the isla ...

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only stat ...

. In 2021, a French man walking in the forest with a metal detector near Bruyeres, France found Kuroda's high school class ring. After searching for months, the man returned the ring to Kuroda's relatives in 2022.

Medal of Honor citation

Staff Sergeant Kuroda's official Medal of Honor citation reads:

Staff Sergeant Robert T. Kuroda distinguished himself by extraordinary heroism in action, on 20 October 1944, near Bruyeres, France. Leading his men in an advance to destroy snipers and machine gun nests, Staff Sergeant Kuroda encountered heavy fire from enemy soldiers occupying a heavily wooded slope. Unable to pinpoint the hostile machine gun, he boldly made his way through heavy fire to the crest of the ridge. Once he located the machine gun, Staff Sergeant Kuroda advanced to a point within ten yards of the nest and killed three enemy gunners with grenades. He then fired clip after clip of rifle ammunition, killing or wounding at least three of the enemy. As he expended the last of his ammunition, he observed that an American officer had been struck by a burst of fire from a hostile machine gun located on an adjacent hill. Rushing to the officer's assistance, he found that the officer had been killed. Picking up the officer's
submachine gun A submachine gun (SMG) is a magazine-fed, automatic carbine designed to fire handgun cartridges. The term "submachine gun" was coined by John T. Thompson, the inventor of the Thompson submachine gun, to describe its design concept as an autom ...
, Staff Sergeant Kuroda advanced through continuous fire toward a second machine gun emplacement and destroyed the position. As he turned to fire upon additional enemy soldiers, he was killed by a sniper. Staff Sergeant Kuroda's courageous actions and indomitable fighting spirit ensured the destruction of enemy resistance in the sector. Staff Sergeant Kuroda's extraordinary heroism and devotion to duty are in keeping with the highest traditions of military service and reflect great credit on him, his unit, and the United States Army.Gomez-Granger, Julissa. (2008). ''Medal of Honor Recipients: 1979–2008,'
_"Kuroda,_Robert_T.,"_pp._12–13_[PDF_16–17_of_44
/nowiki>.html" ;"title="DF 16–17 of 44"> "Kuroda, Robert T.," pp. 12–13 [PDF 16–17 of 44
/nowiki>">DF 16–17 of 44"> "Kuroda, Robert T.," pp. 12–13 [PDF 16–17 of 44
/nowiki> retrieved 2012-12-7.

Other honors

The USAV SSGT Robert T. Kuroda (LSV-7) is named in his honor.

References

External links

"Army Secretary Lionizes 22 World War II Heroes" at Defense.gov
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kuroda, Robert T. 1922 births 1944 deaths United States Army personnel killed in World War II United States Army Medal of Honor recipients United States Army non-commissioned officers American military personnel of Japanese descent People from Hawaii Recipients of the Distinguished Service Cross (United States) World War II recipients of the Medal of Honor Burials in the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific Deaths by firearm in France