Ghosts of Honolulu: A Japanese Spy, A Japanese American Spy Hunter, and the Untold Story of Pearl Harbor

A Japanese term for those of Japanese ancestry born in Japan who immigrating to the United States, Canada, or South America. In Hawaii, the government subsidized the immigration of many Japanese for labor in the sugar plantations. The economy in Japan was unfavorable and many laborers chose to immigrate for work. They were ineligible for American citizenship, though their children the Nisei, born in Hawaii, were US citizens at birth.

A Japanese term for those of Japanese ancestry born in the United States or Canada to at least one Nisei parent. The term translates directly as third generation.

A Japanese term for those of Japanese ancestry born in the United States who study in Japan but return to live in the United States after receiving their education.

A class of prestigious warriors in the social structure of Japan between the 12th century and 19th century. Individual warriors were called bushi, from which the term bushido emerged.

A Japanese term for the moral code of the samurai. The word translates to “Way of the Warrior,” with bushi being the Japanese word for warrior. The term survived the Samurai era and came to symbolize a fierce loyalty to the nation of Japan during WWII.

A secure room where Douglas Wada and a select few translated classified documents sourced from around the American intelligence community in Hawaii.

A catchall phrase commonly used during the pre-war era under the Roosevelt administration to signify how the government would deal with those of Japanese ancestry in the United States in the event of war with Japan. The ultimate solution taken by the Roosevelt administration was the forced incarceration of Japanese citizens and residents in the mainland (especially the West Coast) and the declaration of martial law in Hawaii.

A list of Japanese and Japanese Americans to be picked up (arrested) in the event of war with Japan. The lists included any suspected spies, sympathizers, or prominent community leaders of questionable loyalty. These lists were used after Pearl Harbor to detain hundreds of people of Japanese descent in Hawaii and the entire staff of the Japanese consulate.

Martial Law is the shuttering of civilian government and services in favor of military rule. Martial law is often accompanied by the suppression of civil liberties, habeas corpus, and due process.

A Latin term which means “show the body,” used in the legal arena to refer to the need to bring the accused before a court of law, rather than detention or incarceration without due process.

Formed in 1939, this code-breaking group located in “the dungeon” of the Administrative Building in Pearl Harbor, is tasked with deciphering messages from the Japanese consulate, among other sources. They are ultimately credited with breaking the code that allowed for the US Navy attack at Midway.

Japanese nationalist organization that began in 1901 with the goal of keeping Russia out of Asia. The group turned to organized crime and was well known for helping fuel the rise of nationalism in Japan in the 1930s, including such tactics as murdering politicians who did not endorse a nationalist message. In later years, the society formed international branches to promote Japan’s expansionism. In the United States, members of Black Dragon worked with the African American community in Chicago to undermine draft recruitment efforts (161).