Bataan Death March 80th Anniversary Event

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Bataan Death March 80th Anniversary Event

April 10, 2022 @ 10:00 am - 1:00 pm

Bataan Death March 80th Anniversary Commemoration at the USS Hornet on April 10 

The USS Hornet Sea, Air & Space Museum, in partnership with the Bataan Legacy Historical Society, the Philippine Scouts Heritage Society and the American Defenders of Bataan and Corregidor Memorial Society, will commemorate the 80th anniversary of the Bataan Death March on Sunday, April 10, 2022, at the USS Hornet in Alameda, CA. The event will begin at 10AM with a panel discussion on the bombing of the hell ships Oryoku Maru and Enoura Maru by Air Group 11 (CVG-11), which was stationed at the USS Hornet (CV-12), followed by a memorial ceremony at 11:30AM. There will also be an exhibition on WWII in the Philippines, the Hell Ships and Air Group 11. The Press is welcome onboard to see the exhibit and attend the event. More materials are available upon request. 

Eighty years ago, on April 9, 1942, approximately 75,000 Filipino and American troops of the U.S. Army Forces in the Far East (USAFFE) were forced to surrender to the Imperial Japanese Army after fighting in the Bataan Peninsula in the Philippines. Despite suffering from massive disease, starvation and fighting without any air support, the USAFFE troops were able to delay the 50-day timetable of the Japanese Army by holding on to Bataan for 99 days. After the Fall of Bataan they were forced to march to their prison camp about 65 miles away under extreme tropical conditions with no provisions for food, water, shelter or medicine. Those who could no longer go on were beaten, bayoneted, shot and some were even beheaded. Thousands died during this march, which became infamously known as the Bataan Death March. It became a rallying cry in the United States as thousands enlisted to join the war. 

This year’s commemoration will bring together Filipino and American descendants of the U.S. Army Forces in the Far East (USAFFE), Air Group 11 and the USS Hornet. Hell ships were unmarked Japanese merchant vessels that transported Japanese troops and civilians, arms, ammunition, raw materials and other reinforcement. They were also used to carry prisoners of war who were crammed in the holds of the ships under intolerable conditions with no provisions for ventilation, toilets, water, etc. More than 126,000 American and Allied POW’s were transported in 156 voyages between January 1942 and July 1945. Many died during the voyage from these infernal conditions. But thousands more died by friendly fire from American and Allied forces. The largest casualty was in the Junyo Maru when 5,620 passengers out of 6,520 died on September 17, 1944, from Java to Sumatra, the majority of whom were Javanese slave laborers whose names have been consigned to oblivion. This event will be the first opportunity that descendants of those who perished on the Oryoku and Enoura Marus and Air Group 11 will be together. 

Master of ceremonies will be Brig. General Steven McLaughlin and Keynote speaker will be Vice Admiral Michael McAllister, Commander of the U.S. Coast Guard, Pacific Area. 

The wonderful Judith Javier Tiu will be singing and Barya Kitchen Food Truck will be outside with great Filipino food.

Membership saves you money! If you attend 2 events per year with your family then you would save money by purchasing a membership! Please see our Membership page for more information: https://uss-hornet.org/support/membership

Details

Date:
April 10, 2022
Time:
10:00 am - 1:00 pm
Event Category:

Venue

USS Hornet Museum

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