only U.S. citizen convicted of treason pardoned

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Today in History - Jan. 19

In 1977, in one of his last acts of office, President Gerald Ford pardoned Iva Toguri D'Aquino, an American who had made wartime broadcasts for Japan.

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[BattleshipTexas]

Battleship's Dad: I never heard this woman or her program. I certainly heard Tokyo Rose many times. She would tell about US ships being sunk by name. Several times I would be steaming alongside one of the ships that supposedly had been sunk or see them undamaged in port.. This lady may not have been culpable, but Tokyo Rose surely was. Actually taunting and talking about the war being hopeless for America.

 

[LurkerintheDark]

Were treason laws different then? I would have thought that enough exculpatory evidence and witnesses would have been available for her to make a vigorous defense. Or was it racism because she was part Japanese? That was, sadly, a part of our national character then. Less so, now, maybe?

I'm glad she lived long enough to see her name cleared and to be formally honored by those who might have had the most reason to hate her if she had really been another Tokyo Rose.

 

[zzzz]

How she came to be known as Tokyo Rose:

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[SubliminalHorn]

Neat history. Thanks for bringing this to our attention.