Women Take Center Stage at Tri-District
Accomplishments, careers and community activism are highlighted as awardees and speakers of the female persuasion show how they are ‘effecting change.’
IRVINE, Calif.—More often than not it’s the stalwart Nisei male that is associated with the JACL but this time around it was the women — doctors, lawyers and community activists alike — who took center stage to bask in the spotlight.
In existence now for 76 years, it’s not often that the JACL focuses an entire three-day weekend to honoring women but that’s exactly what took place at the recent PSW/NCWNP/CC Tri-District conference Sept. 9-11 in the heart of Orange County, Calif. And most felt it was a timely honor.
“A woman’s place is every place but we’ve had to fight to enter those places,” said Ramona Ripston, executive director of the Southern California ACLU who was the Tri-District conference’s opening speaker Sept. 10. “We in this room cannot take those rights for granted. Since our work is never done, our work is never over.”
Ripston, who has served as the executive director of the Southern California ACLU since 1972, is a pioneering figure in the civil rights arena as the first woman to ever hold this position in the ACLU. And over the years she has been encouraged by the number of accomplishments in the women’s rights movement.
In 2005 women all across the country celebrated the 85th anniversary of the women’s right to vote, a right that took centuries to accomplish but was finally realized in 1920. Women have also fought for reproductive rights over the years, rights within the workplace, and a woman is now being considered for the U.S. presidency in 2008.
The women’s rights movement “has transformed this country,” said Ripston, noting that women have helped to shape the cultural landscape and political environment of the United States. “Today, millions of people are now reaping the rewards of our efforts. Let us take pride in how we have changed this country.”
But Ripston believes there is still much more work to be done.
Although a woman may run for the U.S. presidency in 2008, recent polls have indicated that the majority of U.S. voters are unlikely to vote for a female U.S. president. In addition, there are still few women in top political positions — today only 1.8 percent of women hold congressional positions and only one in four women hold state positions. And today, women still earn only 79 cents to ever $1 earned by men.
“We need a new energetic, creative women’s movement today,” said Ripston.
Honoring Women Community Leaders
At the PSW district’s gala dinner Sept. 10, which was held during the conference, three women were honored for their contributions to the community including: Rose Matsui Ochi, Carol Hagihara Kawanami, and Dr. Mary Sakaguchi Oda.
Ochi, the first Asian American woman to hold a position at the assistant attorney general level, recently completed a four-year term as a member of the Los Angeles Police Commission. A former national JACL board member, Ochi also played a pivotal role in the establishment of the Manzanar National Historic Site.
“When you’re involved with community service there’s no need to be recognized … no awards are required. There are rewards in and of itself,” said Ochi. But she added that she is proud to be given the award from JACL “because of its long history of protecting civil rights.”
Kawanami became the first Japanese American woman mayor on the mainland when she was elected in 1980 as the city of Villa Park mayor where she went on to serve for two terms. A charter member of the SELANOCO JACL chapter, she has also served on its board of directors. During the national redress movement Kawanami played a pivotal role when she was able to secure Congressman Bill Dannameyer’s support for redress since the congressman’s district encompassed Villa Park.
As Kawanami accepted her award, she compared the need to have an organization like JACL with the recent responses to the hurricane tragedy in Louisiana. “There’s a very important reason for JACL’s existence … we need to be prepared.” JACL has a “critical first response” position in this country, she said. We need JACL “to be there to protect our best interests.”
At a time when very few women and even fewer JA women were pursuing a career in medicine, Dr. Mary Oda was attending the University of California at Berkeley Medical School. Although her education was interrupted by the WWII internment, she went on to complete her medical degree at Philadelphia’s Woman’s Medical College. And for more than 40 years she has served and continues to serve the San Fernando Valley community of California as a family physician.
“I became a doctor because of prejudice,” said Oda, who offered a humorous tale about a college professor at UCLA telling her that although she was doing well at school, no one would hire her because of “those damn ‘Japs’ in Manchuria.’” “Prejudice made me study harder, work harder,” she said.
Oda went on to have a lengthy medical career, along with several members of her family. Although she grew up during a time of much discrimination, “prejudice was part of life, we accepted it,” she said. But there was also a “strong sense of community,” said Oda, noting that JACL played a large role in that feeling. JACL gave me a “feeling of belonging. That someone was watching out for our interests,” she said.
Serving the JACL Today
In the history of JACL, only two women have ever risen to the coveted position of national president: Lillian Kimura in 1992 and Helen Kawagoe in 1996. Although many more women today have taken on leadership roles in the organization, the majority of the current JACL national board members still remain male.
So it was fitting that two of the current female national board members — Carol Kawamoto, national JACL vice president of planning and development, and Heidi Tanakatsubo, national JACL vice president of public affairs — were the PSWD gala dinner’s keynoters.
Kawamoto gave a personal account of three women in JACL who have helped to influence and inspire her. She credited Grace Uyehara, a tireless redress advocate, for “inspiring me as a young Sansei leader.” She recalled the late Mae Takahashi, former Pacific Citizen editorial board chair, as “focused and professional” and also honored Kawagoe as helping to nurture many of the younger members in the PSW district to take on leadership positions. “Affectionately we call her ‘mom’,” said Kawamoto.
Tanakatsubo focused on the future of JACL, noting that it was now time to allow the youth to take on a larger leadership role in the organization.
“We need to let [the youth] try new things,” she said. “It will help them feel invested in JACL.”
During the Tri-district conference’s awards luncheon Sept. 10, the three districts also honored women from their area who have long served the JACL, especially at the district and chapter levels. This year’s honorees are: Mary Jo Kubota-Arcarese from the NCWNP district, Hiromi Ueha from the PSW district, and Grace Kimoto from the CC district.
Arcarese has worked for a number of years as a special education teacher and most recently as a kindergarten teacher. She is the current co-president of the JACL San Mateo chapter and is also the permanent education chair for the chapter.
“Mary Jo has made a positive impact in the Japanese American community and in the community in general,” said Thaya Mune-Craig, NCWNP governor, who presented the award to Arcarese. She also noted that through her work as a schoolteacher, Arcarese has introduced JA history and culture to her students.
“Our chapter has so many women who have inspired me,” said Arcarese as she accepted the award. “There are many wonderful people in JACL who have been my inspiration.”
Bobbi Hanada, CCDC governor, described awardee Kimoto as “our energizer bunny” and “our cheerleader” as she presented the award to Kimoto for her years of leadership within the district. “We look to her for her leadership and guidance,” said Hanada.
Kimoto was a school teacher for 34 years at the Winton Elementary School and has been a member of the Livingston-Merced JACL chapter since 1948 when she married her husband William Kimoto. She is currently the CCDC’s Pacific Citizen editorial board representative and has served as both a chapter president and district governor.
Alayne Yonemoto, PSWD vice governor, described Ueha as an “inspirational leader” and an “encouraging mentor” as she presented the award to Ueha, PSWD governor. “She is the most dedicated member of JACL,” she said.
Ueha has served JACL at the local, district, and national levels. She is a former SELANOCO JACL chapter president, sits on the PSW district board, and has been a member of the national JACL board as the youth council chair and as the current PSWD governor.
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