1943: California calls for detention while churches and soldiers speak up

Vol. 17, No. 5, August 7, 1943. 8 pages. View this issue

A California assembly interim committee on Japanese problems unanimously urged detention of all persons of Japanese ancestry for the duration of the war, and that story led this 8-page issue. A petition seeking a 1944 ballot initiative on land and watercraft ownership, and American Legion posts asking for study before any return to the coast, added to the pressure. Larry Tajiri’s editorials answered the campaign, and Bill Hosokawa and Saburo Kido wrote columns on resettlement, prejudice and the road ahead.

Other voices took the opposite side. Young Chinese Americans at a Lake Tahoe conference passed a resolution against anti-Japanese hatred, and church groups in Los Angeles, Long Beach and California spoke up for evacuees. Page 3 shows the 442nd Regimental Combat Team training at Camp Shelby. Dillon Myer discussed the segregation of Tule Lake, and Minidoka fire crews and Topaz leaves are covered inside.

What’s in this issue

Incarceration & Redress

• Assembly Group Asks Detention for Evacuees, by P.C. Staff, page 1. A California assembly interim committee on Japanese problems unanimously urged detention of all persons of Japanese ancestry for the duration of the war. Its hearing featured testimony alleging Japanese fishermen had mapped the California coast and claims about negotiated peace efforts.
• Native Sons Recognize Nisei Citizenship Rights in Framing Amendment to U.S. Constitution, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The Native Sons of the Golden West board proposed a constitutional amendment inserting ‘of citizens’ into the Fourteenth Amendment citizenship clause. Grand President Wayne Millington said the change would in no way affect current Japanese American citizens.
• Leupp Not Prison or Concentration Camp, Says Best, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Raymond R. Best, newly appointed Tule Lake project director, said the Leupp isolation center is neither a prison nor a concentration camp. He added that men there are being returned to their projects as their conduct warrants.
• Protests to Warner Brothers on ‘Air Force’ Lies Prove Unavailing, Says JACL Official, by P.C. Staff, page 1. JACL national president Saburo Kido said protests against the Warner Brothers film ‘Air Force’ had failed to correct its false portrayal of Hawaiian Japanese Americans. He cited official findings of no disloyal acts and a Nisei soldier’s role in shooting down a Zero.
• Evacuee Property Problems Considered by Dillon Myer During Los Angeles Visit, by P.C. Staff, page 2. WRA director Dillon Myer called the segregation of pro-Japanese evacuees at Tule Lake a good move and discussed the handling of roughly $200,000,000 in evacuee property. He described the planned movement of 15,000 to 18,000 people to Tule Lake beginning in September.
• Indefinite Leaves From Topaz Hit One Thousand Mark, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Indefinite leaves from the Topaz center reached 1,000 as Matao Tomimatsu received clearance for New York City. He was accompanied by Mikio Hikido.
• Opposes Present Return of Japanese Evacuees to West Coast Areas, by P.C. Staff, page 2. The Los Angeles Church Federation’s executive council called the present return of evacuees to the coast unwise. It urged thoughtful deliberation and said disloyal evacuees can be separated from loyal ones.
• Racial Hatred Should Not Influence Public Action, Church Federation Tells Dies Committee, by P.C. Staff, page 2. The Church Federation of Los Angeles sent a letter to the Dies Committee opposing racial hatred in public policy. The letter reflected church concern for evacuees, many of whom were Christian church members.
• Maxine Davis in ‘Liberty’: Magazine Writer Presents Valid, Lucid Picture of Life in Those ‘Jap Camps’, by Bill Hosokawa, page 5. Bill Hosokawa reviews Maxine Davis’s Liberty article on Poston relocation center, which describes evacuee living conditions and fears about the future. He praises her candid critique of confusing government policy and the denial of work rights.
• Petition Seeks New Restrictions On Evacuees, by P.C. Staff, page 8. The California Citizens Council petition seeks a 1944 ballot initiative extending the exclusion law to bar persons of Japanese ancestry from owning or leasing land and watercraft. It would restrict transactions with those designated as persons of Japanese descent.
• Minidoka Evacuees Praised For Work In Fighting Fires, by P.C. Staff, page 8. Minidoka volunteer fire crews received praise from a U.S. grazing service official for combating southern Idaho range fires. Their training and performance were credited with bringing a deadly fire under control.
• Evacuee Laborers’ Problems Discussed By Officials, by P.C. Staff, page 8. Officials from the WRA, USES, and War Food Administration met in Melba, Idaho, to discuss food, housing, and transportation for twenty evacuee farm workers. Nine Melba farmers sponsored the workers with four-month work guarantees.
• Legion Asks Study Of Evacuee Return Plans By Agencies, by P.C. Staff, page 8. Nineteen American Legion posts in the 16th district called for governmental study before any return of Japanese ancestry persons to the west coast. The resolution was adopted July 26 in Santa Barbara.

National

• Story of the Week: California Chinese Americans Ask Fair Play for U.S. Nisei, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Young Chinese Americans at the Lake Tahoe Christian Youth Conference passed a resolution condemning anti-Japanese racial hatred as un-American. The resolution backed the Committee on American Principles and Fair Play and called for local committees along the Pacific coast.
• Plan Exchange of U.S., Japan Nationals Soon, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Arrangements are underway for another exchange of American and Japanese nationals at Mormugao, Portuguese India. The Gripsholm is expected to transport about 1500 persons, though the exact list and dates were not yet announced.
• Arkansas Legionnaires Seek Deportation of ‘Japanese’ After War, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Arkansas American Legion delegates passed resolutions calling for all Japanese in the United States to be sent to Japan after the war. They also asked for fingerprinting of relocated Japanese Americans and opposed food sales to evacuees near the Jerome and Rohwer camps.
• PC Gets V-Mail Letter From Nisei on New Guinea Front, by P.C. Staff, page 2. S/Sgt. Ralph Kimoto, serving in New Guinea, wrote a V-mail letter asking that the Pacific Citizen be sent to his new address. He also sent greetings to national JACL secretary Mike Masaoka.
• FEPC Ignores Nisei Group, Says Twin Falls Editorial, by P.C. Staff, page 2. The Twin Falls Times-News criticized the President’s Fair Employment Practices Committee for ignoring discrimination against tens of thousands of Japanese Americans. The editorial noted that these citizens were available for needed war work.
• Baptist Group Hits Separate Church Plans, by P.C. Staff, page 2. The Home Missions Council’s committee opposed forming separate Japanese churches for relocated evacuees where none already exist. It recommended that evacuees join and participate in existing churches.
• Mitarai Brothers Convert Sageland Into Productive 150-Acre Truck Garden, by P.C. Staff, page 7. Henry and Ed Mitarai financed a group of evacuee farmers who turned Utah desert sagelands into a 150-acre truck garden. The farmers overcame a cricket infestation and sandstorm before their first harvest.
• Presbyterian Synod Deplores Campaign Against Evacuees, by P.C. Staff, page 8. The Presbyterian Synod of California condemned agitation to detain all Japanese ancestry persons for the war’s duration. It urged churches to sponsor evacuees and colleges to admit Japanese American students.

Military & Veterans

• Gen. Barrows Favors Use of Nisei in Army, by P.C. Staff, page 1. General Barrows told a University of California group that he favored using Japanese Americans in the armed services. He predicted they would make a fine showing.
• Nisei Captain Promoted to Major in Signal Corps, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Captain Robert Saibara, a Texas-born Japanese American signal corps officer at Camp Crowder, was promoted to major. He was the first Japanese American to graduate from the Randolph Field air corps school.
• Wyoming Sends Six Volunteers to Camp Shelby, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Six Heart Mountain volunteers passed their army physicals at Fort Warren, Wyoming. Most had already left for the reception center at Fort Logan, Colorado.
• Japanese Americans Train for Combat Duty Overseas, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Army Signal Corps photos show the 442nd Combat Team training at Camp Shelby, Mississippi. The pictures illustrate obstacle courses, gas training, and daily life for the Japanese American soldiers.
• Japanese American Combat Team News, by P.C. Staff, page 8. Camp Shelby news covers a New Orleans weekend trip by 54 officers and men of the 442nd Infantry and their hospitality visits. It also notes a visit by 30 soldiers to the Jerome center and a planned dance with Arkansas evacuee women.

Commentary

• ‘Air Force’ Gave False Picture of Hawaiian Japanese, Kido Charges, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Saburo Kido condemned the film ‘Air Force’ for reviving false rumors about Hawaii’s Japanese Americans on December 7. He noted the Maui and Hawaiian Nisei volunteers and the record of Japanese American soldiers in the attack.
• Campaign in California, by Larry Tajiri, page 4. The editorial argues that the California legislature’s call to detain all Japanese ancestry persons for the duration is part of an organized anti-democratic campaign. It cites the Sacramento Union’s admission that agitation caused the removal and must continue to keep evacuees out.
• The Nisei at War, by Larry Tajiri, page 4. The editorial praises the Camp Shelby combat team of Japanese American volunteers as proof of nisei loyalty. It argues that racial exclusion from the war effort contradicts democratic principles.
• Rights and Duties, by Larry Tajiri, page 4. The editorial argues that nisei seek full participation in the war as an obligation of citizenship. It criticizes policies that penalize loyal citizens for the potential crimes of a few.
• The ‘Favorite Son’, by Larry Tajiri, page 4. The editorial says Governor Earl Warren disqualified himself as a presidential candidate through his anti-Japanese remarks at the governors’ conference. It labels his exploitation of racist campaigns as unworthy of a democratic candidate.
• Naziism Is a Nasty Word, by Larry Tajiri, page 4. The editorial examines resolutions by west coast civic groups and discriminatory laws in Arkansas and Arizona. It argues these actions amount to Nazi-style persecution even if the word is harsh.
• Sound of An American, by P.C. Staff, page 4. A letter excerpt from the Heart Mountain Sentinel quotes a parent whose son is interned in Manila, rejecting bitterness toward Japanese Americans. The writer hopes the relocated evacuees find success and happiness.
• Vagaries, by P.C. Staff, page 5. A column of news briefs covers evacuee construction work, WAC recruitment of Japanese American women, and a Japanese American shipyard guard. It also notes a California congressional race featuring anti-Japanese platforms.
• Reveal American Tolerance, by Bill Hosokawa, page 5. Bill Hosokawa recounts bus conversations with strangers who expressed sympathy for evacuees and interest in the truth. He concludes that American tolerance suggests resettlement can succeed.
• Release the Loyal, by P.C. Staff, page 5. The Milwaukee Journal editorial calls for release of loyal Japanese Americans from war relocation centers and segregation of the disloyal. It argues loyal citizens should not be supervised like enemies.
• On Segregation, by P.C. Staff, page 5. The Redwood City Tribune supports WRA’s plan to segregate disloyal Japanese at a single center. It argues mixing loyal and disloyal evacuees breeds bitterness and danger.
• Above Race Barriers, by P.C. Staff, page 5. The Honolulu Star-Bulletin praised men of three races who rushed to aid an injured Japanese woman. It presented the episode as evidence of Hawaii’s wartime racial harmony.
• Hints for War Brides: Planning Ahead Will Help Give That ‘At Home’ Feeling Even in a Strange City, by Ann Nisei, page 6. Ann Nisei offers advice for war brides on packing essentials and linens for furnished rooms. She suggests planning carefully to make rented rooms feel like home.
• Caleb Foote, FOR Secretary, Chooses Jail Rather Than Attend Objectors’ Camp, by P.C. Staff, page 6. Caleb Foote, field secretary of the Fellowship of Reconciliation, received a six-month jail sentence for refusing to attend a conscientious objectors’ camp. He argued the camp is part of the war machinery.
• Timely Topics: Saner Attitudes In California, by Saburo Kido, page 7. Saburo Kido notes a shift toward saner attitudes in California, with agitation now limited to keeping Japanese out for the war’s duration. He encourages evacuees to begin planning new lives outside the centers.
• Timely Topics: Nisei Americans And Labor Unions, by Saburo Kido, page 7. Saburo Kido discusses past union hostility toward Japanese workers and recent improvements in union leadership. He urges nisei to seek union membership as the path to integration with fellow workers.

Community

• Church Conference Expresses Good Will Toward Evacuees, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Delegates at a Christian church convention in Long Beach adopted resolutions expressing goodwill toward evacuated Japanese Americans. They also condemned racial prejudice and commended the War Relocation Authority.
• Calling All Chapters!, by Teiko Ishida, page 6. A column announces that national JACL headquarters will circulate over 50 books to chapters, acquired by Larry Tajiri on his eastern trip. It also corrects a misprint that inflated a $50 contribution figure to $50,000.
• Denver Group Will Combat ‘Unfavorable Publicity’ on Evacuees, by P.C. Staff, page 6. The Denver Commission on Resettlement and the Colorado Council of Churches pledged to fight charges that evacuees receive extra rations and high salaries. They responded to recent stories in the Denver Post.
• The Long View Ahead: The Church Steps Forward To Assist in Solving Denver Nisei Recreation Problems, by Mary Oyama, page 7. Mary Oyama reports that the former Japanese Methodist church in Denver is becoming the California Street Community Church under Rev. Taro Goto. She describes its planned community programs for the struggling district and its need for support.
• Former Tulare News Staff Gives $150 to Pacific Citizen, by P.C. Staff, page 8. Former staff of the Tulare News, the assembly center paper, donated $150 in money orders to the Pacific Citizen. They said the gift closed their publication’s accounts and honored the Pacific Citizen as the spiritual father of center papers.

JACL

• Calling All Chapters! / Colorado Calling!, by Joe Masaoka, page 6. Joe Masaoka praises non-Japanese friends who stood by Japanese Americans despite hostility. He describes labor, church, and liberal groups who defended nisei, and an incident of fairness in a parking dispute.

Sports

• Minidoka Evacuees Lose in Bid For Idaho Championship, by P.C. Staff, page 8. The Minidoka evacuee baseball team beat the military police nine 14-1 before losing 7-3 to the Idaho Falls Merchants in a bid for the Idaho semipro title. The Idaho Falls win ended their championship hopes.

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