It was 79 years ago today (Dec. 7) when 21-year-old Rudolph “Rudy” Machado Martinez, a Mexican-American sailor with the U.S. Navy, became the first Latino casualty of WWII when he died at Pearl Harbor. Martinez was one of approximately 500,000 Latinos who served their country in WWII.

Martinez, who was raised in San Diego, was stationed at Pearl Harbor in Hawaii when his battleship, the USS Utah, was hit by two Japanese torpedoes. Fifty-eight men, including Martinez, died on the vessel when it sank that day.

Source: Remembering Rudy Martinez, the First Latino Killed in WWII at Pearl Harbor