The bombing of Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, in an early morning surprise attack did irreparable harm to ostensibly friendly Japanese-American relations, which had been proceeding on a basis of candor and mutual respect. At 6 A.M. on Sunday, December 7, 1941, Vice Admiral Chuichi Nagumo led six carriers, two battleships, three cruisers, and a fleet of destroyers and tanks from the Kuril Islands toward Pearl Harbor, a major American naval headquarters on the southern coast of Oahu in the territory of Hawaii. By 7:50 A.M., the first wave of Japanese bombers had struck battleships and airfields. At 10:00 A.M., a second wave had completed its mission and was jubilantly returning to base. Of the eighteen U.S. ships hit, the Arizona, West Virginia, California, and Nevada sustained the most damage. Over 200 planes were crippled or wrecked, 2,400 people died, 1,300 were wounded, and more than 1,000 were missing. With enemy losses of only 29 planes, 5 submarines, and 100 soldiers, the Japanese had reason to cheer about their advantageous strike. They had seriously crippled naval preparedness by blocking the harbor so that U.S. ships could not retaliate and overtake the Japanese fleet.
The day after the raid, President Franklin Roosevelt read to Congress his proclamation that December 7, 1941, was "a date which will live in infamy." Smarting under critical attack that he had left Pearl Harbor unprotected in order to provoke an attack, Roosevelt overrode Secretary of State Cordell Hull's role and assumed total command of the war effort. Following Roosevelt's impassioned declaration of war against Japan, a Caucasian backlash in racially mixed communities along the western U.S. coastline provoked incidents of name-calling, minor scuffles and rock-throwing, graffiti, hate crimes, boycotting of Asian-owned businesses, and signs saying "Japs, don't let the sun set on you here," "Hiring whites only," and "Buy bonds. Bye-bye Japs."
