Smiles all around this week as U.S. Senators unveiled a portrait of the late Senator Daniel Inouye.
Inouye was the first Japanese American elected to both the House and the Senate and represented the state of Hawaii for 49 years. He was the highest-ranking Asian American public official in U.S. history until his death in 2012.
Members of Inouye’s family looked on along with Senate leaders on both sides of the aisle, reported Kaui Now News.
“Over a decade after his passing, Sen. Inouye continues to break barriers. As the first person of color to be included in the U.S. Senate leadership portrait collection, he continues to be a role model and inspiration, reminding us that government functions best when it is representative and reflective of the people it serves,” said Rep. Jill Tokuda.
Artist Kirk Kurokawa of Maui painted the portrait using photographs of the late Senator.
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“Usually I’m able to meet them in person and take my own photographs and come up with the portrait that way,” he said to Hawaii News Now. “This way it was a little bit different. But, you know, because Senator Inouye was a person who has been in the public for so long there’s lots of photos to use for reference of him. So I was lucky to have all of that to work from.”
The Senator served in the 442nd Regimental Combat Team and lost his right arm in battle. He was the recipient of the military’s highest honor, the Medal of Honor. While in Congress, he had the distinction of being the first Chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, member of the Senate Watergate committee, and Chair of the Iran-Contra Investigative Committee.
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Senator Inouye was a badass whether fighting Nazi’s overseas or discrimination in the US, he was relentless in his battles.May he rest in peace.