Lecture 20: "Liberating" Guam

Question 1

What was the Malesso (Merizo) Martyrs Monument about?

Answer 1

It was about the well known native Chamorros who were killed during WWII.

Question 2

What was the Chagui’an Massacre Site about?

Answer 2

It was about a newly found massacre site of Chamorros who were killed after helping the Japanese carry ammo during WWII.

Question 3

What is the canonical historiography of “Liberation” for Guam?

Answer 3

• Uncle Sam, Please Come Back to Guam
• Written by Pedro Taitingfong Rosario (Tun Pete Siboyas), est 1942

Question 4

When was the start of reoccupation (invasion) of the US military on Guam?

Answer 4

July 21, 1944

Question 5

Did the Chamorros have big casualties from the war?

Answer 5

Yes

Question 6

Did the American troops have big casualties from the war?

Answer 6

No

Question 7

Who, where, and when did the US military troops enter Guam?

Answer 7

*Third Marine Division
*Asan beach, July 21
*Final surrender, Yigo, August 12

Question 8

Where were Chamorros moved to when the US troops entered Guam?

Answer 8

From Concentration Camps to Refugee Camps

Question 9

What was the Refugee camps on Guam about?

Answer 9

• Agat, Asan, Manenggon
• Some lived there for > 1 year
• Food
• Medical attention

Question 10

What was the health on the Chamorros during WWII?

Answer 10

Rampant malnutrition
* Forced labor on Japanese farms
* Japanese confiscations of foods

Question 11

What was the land like after WWII on Guam?

Answer 11

Environmental Devastation
*Islandwide: 80% of structures destroyed
*Asan, Piti, and Agat – not one home left standing

Hagåtña: near-total destruction
*Prewar population (1941): 10,005
*Postwar population (1950): 760

Sumay, Prewar population: 1,997
Postwar population: 0, “Big Navy”

Question 12

How did WWII ended?

Answer 12

• 1945, August 6 & 9: Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombings [from Tinian]
• 1945, August 15: Japan surrenders

Question 13

Did the US military population grow on Guam?

Answer 13

Yes
*200,000 US military personnel
*21 bases

Question 14

Did the US military do Condemnation of land on Guam?

Answer 14

Yes
*Condemnation of lands for military use (including recreation)
*At peak, ~82% of land
*75% of farmlands
*Adjacent fishing grounds

Question 15

What happened to the natives of Guam when they lost their lands?

Answer 15

Villages lost/ limited
Loss of Homes
Break up of “family compounds” (family units)

Question 16

How was the loss of land on Guam affected the economic standing for the natives?

Answer 16

• Lancho / ranch losses:
  *Family
  *Health
• Land as wealth – Economic sustainability