Introduction America's initial response to the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, was one of disbelief and shock. This attack took place on a Sunday morning and what surprised many people was the fact that a small island nation located on the Asian continent was able to achieve this kind of feat thousands of kilometers from its true homeland. . Much of this shock and disbelief was based primarily on the stereotypical view Americans had of Japanese people – short people with oriental features that seemed exaggerated. That shock turned to anger, which spurred U.S. leaders to act quickly. A day after the attack, President Roosevelt delivered a speech titled "December 7" to the joint session of Congress. “Yesterday, December 7, 1941 – a day that will live in infamy – the United States of America was suddenly and deliberately attacked by the naval and air forces of the Empire of Japan. » This speech was so powerful that it will certainly live in infamy. The Senate's unanimous vote in favor of war was expected, but more importantly, the House vote was not entirely unanimous since a pacifist named Jeannette Rankin voted against the war. His intention was to prove that a good democracy is not supposed to vote unanimously in favor of war. Exactly three days after the attack, Italy and Germany declared war on America, prompting Congress to pass another unanimous resolution fully implicating America in World War II. The Foundations of the War The Pacific War began with resounding Japanese victories. The Japanese arrived in Manila in January 1942. American forces held out until early May, after... middle of newspaper...... Americans who stood with Britain in its hours the darkest and the most beautiful. Random house. ISBN 978-1-58836-982-6. Rhodes, Anthony. Propaganda: The Art of Persuasion: World War II, p257, Chelsea HousePublishers, New York, 1976Sabin, Burritt. "The legacy of war [sic]: the dawn of a tragic era", Japan Times, February 8, 2004 (accessed June 10, 2005). Silent Victory (Philadelphia: Lippincott, 1975) Stokesbury, James L. (1980). A Brief History of World War II. New York: William Morrow and Company, Inc. p. 171. ISBN 0-688-03587-6. Sulzberger, CL, "The Illustrated History of America's World War II Heritage" "The Attack on Pearl Harbor: The White House Responds, 1941", EyeWitness to History, www .eyewitnesstohistory.com (2005). The Japanese Merchant Navy in World War II (Annapolis: United States Naval Institute Press, 1993) Willmott, op. cit.; Peattie and Evans, op. quote.