Hood River erases 16 Nisei soldiers’ names from a war memorial

Vol. 19, No. 23, December 9, 1944. 4 pages. View this issue

The Hood River, Oregon, American Legion post removed the names of 16 Japanese American soldiers from its county war memorial, and the story ran across the paper. P.C. Staff reported Commander Jess Edington’s explanation on the front page. Larry Tajiri and Bill Hosokawa answered the decision in their columns, and Hosokawa wrote that the soldiers’ service would strengthen their resolve for democracy at home. The paper also covered the JACL National Conference in Salt Lake City, where delegates voted to open membership to all Americans regardless of race. Joe Grant Masaoka reported on it.

Elsewhere in these four pages are casualty reports from the 442nd Regimental Combat Team’s fighting in France, a profile of the 100th Battalion in the Infantry Journal, and T/Sgt. Ben Kuroki’s assignment to fly in the Pacific. Other stories followed the return of Japanese Americans to the West Coast, Gordon K. Hirabayashi’s sentence, and remarks by ACLU director Roger N. Baldwin.

What’s in this issue

Community

  • American Legion Post in Hood River Erases Names of 16 Nisei Soldiers from County War Memorial, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The Hood River, Oregon, American Legion post removed the names of 16 Japanese American soldiers from its county war memorial, following a vote by members two months earlier. Commander Jess Edington said the action was aimed at preventing violence should Japanese Americans return to the county.
  • Anonymous Threats Reported to Portland Church Official, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Dr. Portland Council of Churches official received threatening letters calling for opposition to the return of Japanese Americans, according to a United Press report. The church official responded that the constitutional right of return should be upheld.
  • Improvement of West Coast Attitudes Toward Evacuees Told at JACL Conference, by Joe Grant Masaoka, page 1. Delegates to the JACL National Conference in Salt Lake City heard that resentment toward Japanese Americans was fading on the West Coast, except in Oregon. The conference passed resolutions on citizenship, wartime services, and evacuee protections, and approved opening membership to all Americans regardless of race.
  • Victory Committee to Elect Officers, by P.C. Staff, page 3. The Nisei Victory Committee of Salt Lake City planned to elect new officers at a December 11 meeting. It also announced a sports dance on December 22 at the YWCA.

Military & Veterans

  • Loyal Issei Veteran Returns Home, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Tadayuki Todah, a naturalized citizen of Japanese ancestry, returned to Los Angeles with Army approval after an injunction suit brought by attorney A. L. Wirin for the ACLU. Another petitioner, Mary Duco of Terminal Island, was also reported back in California.
  • Four Nisei Win Gold Bars at Fort Benning OCS, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Four more Japanese American soldiers graduated from Officers Candidate School at Fort Benning, Georgia. Officials indicated many other Japanese Americans were in OCS training.
  • Sgt. Kuroki Wins Chance to Fly in Pacific, by P.C. Staff, page 1. T/Sgt. Ben Kuroki, a veteran of 30 heavy bombing missions over Europe, was granted assignment to combat duty in the Pacific. He said he hoped to fly a bomber over Tokyo.
  • Six Western Nisei Reported Killed, Eleven Wounded in Action on French Front, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Six Japanese American soldiers were reported killed and eleven wounded in action on the western front in France, with one missing, according to next of kin reports. The casualties were believed to have occurred during fighting in the Vosges mountains.
  • GI Newspaper Devotes Section to Nisei Troops, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The Beachhead News devoted its November 12 issue to the Japanese American Combat Team in France, quoting Lt. Col. Virgil Miller calling the unit the best outfit in the U.S. Army. The article described the team’s combat record, including the rescue of the lost battalion.
  • War Department Announces Seven Hawaiians Wounded, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The War Department identified seven soldiers of Japanese ancestry from Hawaii wounded in action in the Mediterranean area. Their names and next of kin were listed.
  • Selma Enterprise Condemns News Furore Over Evacuees, by P.C. Staff, page 3. The Selma Enterprise editorialized that publicity over the return of a few Japanese Americans to California smacked of Hitlerism. It argued that military restrictions alone governed returns and that the reaction was out of proportion.
  • Killed in Action: Tech. Sgt. Takaaki Okazaki, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Tech. Sgt. Takaaki Okazaki of Salt Lake City was killed in action in France on November 7. He had previously been wounded in Italy on July 4 and is survived by five sisters and a brother.
  • Infantry Journal Features Article on 100th Battalion, by P.C. Staff, page 3. The Infantry Journal’s December issue featured an eight-page article on the 100th Infantry Battalion of Japanese Americans from Hawaii. The article, by Lt. Col. James J. Gillespie and Captain Lauren E. McBride, describes a November 1943 action near the Volturno in Italy.
  • Wounded Veteran Returns to Topaz, by P.C. Staff, page 4. Sgt. Bill Ishida, Topaz’s first World War II veteran, arrived to visit his family following his medical discharge. He had been seriously wounded in action in Italy with the 442nd Infantry.

Commentary

  • Official Publication Editorial: New JACL Policy, by P.C. Staff, page 2. The JACL national conference voted to amend its constitution to allow enrollment of all Americans regardless of race as active members. The editorial said the change reflects the widened scope of JACL work and the shared struggle of minority groups.
  • Three Years After, by P.C. Staff, page 2. On the third anniversary of Pearl Harbor, Japanese Americans marked the day with increased war bond purchases and participation in the sixth bond drive. The editorial argues that Nisei loyalty has been repeatedly demonstrated despite earlier rumors of disloyalty.
  • The Des Moines Register: A Shameful Exception, by Larry Tajiri, page 2. Larry Tajiri condemns the Hood River American Legion post for erasing the names of 16 Japanese American soldiers from its war memorial. He notes that Japanese American soldiers have since earned respect, citing an editorial in the Des Moines Register that praised their valor.
  • A Post-War Job for Nisei, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Ramon Lavalle argued in PM that postwar Japan’s democratic reeducation requires removing feudal institutions and past leaders, and suggested Japanese Americans could assist. The article examines competing American views on postwar Japan and the lack of concrete training programs for Nisei.
  • From the Frying Pan: Apples and Legionnaires, by Bill Hosokawa, page 2. Bill Hosokawa criticizes the Hood River American Legion post for removing the names of 16 Nisei soldiers, many of whom had grown up with the Legionnaires’ sons. He argues the action resembles Axis racial thinking and that the soldiers’ service will strengthen their resolve for democracy at home.

Incarceration & Redress

  • Hirabayashi Found Guilty, Sentenced on Draft Charge, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Gordon K. Hirabayashi, a figure in the Supreme Court case on curfew orders, was found guilty of failing to report to a conscientious objector camp. He was sentenced to one year in a federal road camp by a Spokane federal judge.
  • Military Reported Satisfied With WRA Loyalty Procedure, by P.C. Staff, page 3. The Los Angeles Times reported that military authorities were satisfied with the War Relocation Authority’s loyalty screening of evacuees. California congressmen were assured barriers to return had not been lowered, while WRA director Dillon Myer denied it had authority over where citizens could live.
  • ACLU Director Urges Naturalization for Loyal Issei, by P.C. Staff, page 4. Roger N. Baldwin, ACLU executive director, told a Salt Lake City luncheon that treatment of minority groups must be squared with the Bill of Rights. He called for eventual naturalization of loyal Japanese aliens, asking whether fathers of Japanese American soldiers should be sent back to Japan.
  • 1,100 Have Returned to Pacific Coast Area, ACLU Director Says, by P.C. Staff, page 4. Roger N. Baldwin predicted evacuees would return to the West Coast on an individual permit basis without too much trouble, though isolated discrimination was likely. He reported that 1,100 had already returned to California and expected a Supreme Court decision to shape further returns.
  • Four Topaz Draft Evaders Ask for Expatriation, by P.C. Staff, page 4. Four draft resisters from the Topaz relocation center who requested expatriation were sent to a federal prison camp in Tucson, Arizona, to await the end of the war and deportation. Deputy U.S. Marshal John Babcock confirmed the transfer.

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