Oyama land law case before the Supreme Court, and a plaque for the 442nd

Vol. 25, No. 16, October 25, 1947. 8 pages. View this issue

Two subjects led the news. The Supreme Court heard arguments in the Oyama case on California’s Alien Land law, with Dean Acheson and A. L. Wirin arguing that it denied Fred Oyama, an American citizen, equal protection. Larry Tajiri’s editorial backed Acheson’s view. On the front page, the Japanese American Citizens League announced government approval of a plaque honoring the 442nd Regimental Combat Team for its rescue of the “lost battalion” in the Vosges mountains of France.

Elsewhere, the California Federation for Civic Unity adopted a five-point program against discrimination, and Joe Grant Masaoka charged twelve AFL locals with barring Nisei workers. Bill Hosokawa wrote on Japanese goodwill toward America, and Larry Tajiri on a Nisei appointed to West Point. Sports pages followed Wat Misaka, training with the New York Knickerbockers, and a Salt Lake high school football win. Koji Ariyoshi covered housing and landlords in New York.

What’s in this issue

Military & Veterans

• Government Approval Given JACL Project to Honor Feat of 442nd Infantry Regiment, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Government approval was granted for a JACL-sponsored monument honoring the 442nd Regimental Combat Team’s rescue of the lost battalion in the Vosges mountains of France. The rescue earned the 100th and 3rd battalions the Distinguished Unit Citation.
• Veteran of Japan Occupation Dies in Denver Hospital, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Michi Matoba, son of Mr. and Mrs. Harry Matoba of Denver, died at Fitzsimmons Army Hospital from an illness contracted while serving with the occupation army in Japan in 1945. He is survived by his parents, two brothers and two younger sisters.

National

• California Civic Unity Group Outlines Five-Point Campaign Against Race Discrimination, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The California Federation for Civic Unity adopted a five-point program to combat discrimination against minority groups at its Asilomar meeting. Delegates targeted restrictive covenants, employment and housing discrimination, medical care, and police brutality.
• Review Denied Madokoro by High Tribunal, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The U.S. Supreme Court refused to hear Sannosuke Madokoro’s petition contesting his deportation order. The Circuit Court had held that his 1926 return from Mexico constituted a new illegal entry.
• Japanese Canadians Support Campaign for Fair Employment, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The newly organized Japanese Canadian Citizens’ Association is backing Canadian Jewish Congress efforts to secure fair employment practices legislation. A resolution against employment discrimination has been submitted to the Congress.
• Acheson Challenges Validity of California Alien Land Act, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Dean Acheson argued before the Supreme Court that California’s Alien Land laws unconstitutionally discriminate against American citizens of Japanese ancestry in the Oyama case. He contended the law denied Fred Oyama equal protection in receiving a gift of land from his father.
• Council Fights Move to Bar Non-Caucasians, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The Council for Civic Unity of San Francisco urged homeowners in the Lakeview district to refuse to support a proposal excluding non-Caucasians from the area. Director Edward Howden argued racially restrictive covenants are unconstitutional and do not protect property values.
• Wirin Argues Law Is Race Legislation in Oyama Case, by P.C. Staff, page 1. A. L. Wirin argued before the Supreme Court that the California Alien Land law is race legislation violating the Fourteenth Amendment. Deputy Attorney General Mattoon defended the law, while justices questioned whether a citizen child could legally receive land gifts.
• British Columbia Jails Otsuji on Illegal Arms Charge, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Akihide Otsuji, 19, and a white companion were sentenced to one year at hard labor for illegal firearm possession in British Columbia. Otsuji was also fined $500 for being in the coastal area from which persons of Japanese ancestry remain excluded.
• Twelve AFL Locals Charged With Discrimination Against Japanese American Workers, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Joe Grant Masaoka, regional ADC director, charged twelve AFL locals with denying membership to Nisei in a letter to AFL president William Green. He praised three locals that had remained free of discrimination and asked Green to enforce the national non-discrimination policy locally.
• Rep. Douglas Backs Citizen Rights for Issei, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Rep. Helen Gahagan Douglas promised to support legislation granting naturalization rights to resident Japanese aliens who contributed to American victory in World War II. She made the pledge to a Los Angeles delegation and said she would fight for the bill when Congress reconvenes in January.
• Young Mother Cites Prejudice as Reason for Suicide Attempt, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Mrs. Robert Russell, 25, of Japanese-Caucasian parentage attempted suicide, saying society made her feel like a freak her whole life. She described enduring discrimination in school and difficulty holding jobs, according to the Seattle Times.
• Stranded Nisei Processed for Jobs in Japan, by P.C. Staff, page 2. One hundred American-born Nisei and 59 Canadian-born persons of Japanese ancestry are being reprocessed by Eighth Army headquarters for occupation jobs. Those rehired work as typists, stenographers, labor foremen, and telephone operators.
• Dr. Rachel Sady Joins ADC Staff, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Dr. Rachel Sady, formerly of the WRA analysis staff, was hired by the JACL-ADC as a research worker on naturalization problems. She will edit research materials for a pamphlet on the historical and legal aspects of Japanese naturalization.
• S. Supreme Court Asked to Rule on Fishing Ban, by P.C. Staff, page 3. A. L. Wirin filed a petition asking the U.S. Supreme Court to review a California Supreme Court split decision upholding the denial of commercial fishing licenses to Japanese aliens. The petition was filed for the Southern California Japanese Fishermen’s Association in the Takahashi case.
• CRDU Appeals Fugita Case Verdict to State High Court, by P.C. Staff, page 7. The Northern California Civil Rights Defense Union is appealing a Fresno Superior Court decision finding June Tomoye Fugita and her parents violated the Alien Land Law. The appeal to the State Supreme Court was filed by new counsel alongside her original attorneys.
• Delgadillo Case May Affect Status of Japanese Aliens, by P.C. Staff, page 8. Attorney Fred Okrand argued before the Supreme Court that a seaman’s wartime re-entries into the United States should not be treated as new entries under deportation law. The JACL-ADC warned the ruling could affect many Japanese aliens who travel between Seattle and Alaska canneries.

Community

• Nisei Girl Reigns as Homecoming Queen in Iowa, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Molly Nishiyama of Azusa, California, was crowned queen of Homecoming Day festivities at Cornell College in Mt. Vernon, Iowa. She presided at the homecoming ball following the Cornell-Coe game.
• Large Crowd Welcomes Noted Political Exile in Yokohama, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Ikuo Oyama, Japan’s most noted repatriate, returned to Yokohama after 15 years of political exile in the United States. He was greeted by a large crowd and said he had come home to help shape Japan’s destiny.
• Mayeda Elected Head of Chicago Resettlers Group, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Harry K. Mayeda was named president of the Chicago Resettlers Committee at the group’s annual membership meeting. Thomas Masuda and Tahei Matsunaga were named vice presidents, and an executive board was also seated.
• Third Place in Story Contest, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Mrs. Mary Ban, principal and teacher at Sunny Ridge school in Nampa, Idaho, won third place in the adult division of the Idaho Writer’s League 10th annual contest. Her 4,000-word story was praised by judge Seabert D. Hern of the University of Washington.
• Oriental Americans Will Present Talent Revue in Chicago, by P.C. Staff, page 2. The Chicago Oriental Council will present its Far Eastern Revue on November 8 at the Central Masonic Temple. The program includes a Japanese parasol dance, jiu jitsu exhibition, Korean songs, and a Filipino history sketch.
• Four Los Angeles Cafe Men Sue on Tainted Sauce, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Four Japanese American cafe operators sought $25,000 in damages from the A. E. Staley Manufacturing Company, claiming its soya bean sauce was arsenic-poisoned. They reported nausea, swelling, insomnia, and skin eruptions after using the sauce for a month.
• Nisei Forced Out of Home by Covenant, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Yoshio Shigaki, a Japanese American cleaner, was forced to vacate his newly purchased Gardena home after neighbors enforced a 30-year-old restrictive covenant. The covenant barred non-Caucasian occupancy and had never been revoked.
• State of Utah Wins Praise for Treatment of Evacuees, by P.C. Staff, page 3. University of Utah anthropologist Elmer R. Smith said Utah has a notably low rate of prejudice against Japanese Americans, attributing it to shared religion and limited economic competition. He is conducting a study of Japanese in Utah financed by the Viking Foundation.
• Buddhists To Call Fall Conference on November 9, by P.C. Staff, page 3. The Central California Young Buddhists Association will hold its fall conference in Fresno on November 9 under co-chairmen Fred Nishida and Willy Suda. Committees from several local YBAs have been assigned registration, programs, and entertainment.
• Masaoka Promised Support for ADC Legislative Program, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Mike Masaoka received assurances of support for the ADC legislative program from Chicago’s Republican and Democratic county party chairmen. He noted Illinois holds key committee positions that will influence naturalization and evacuation claims bills.
• Ishikawa Will Speak to Brethren Church’s World Service Group, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Sam Ishikawa, the new Eastern JACL-ADC representative, will speak at a Brethren Church World Service conference in New Windsor, Maryland on November 9. His talk will address the Nisei contribution to achieving and maintaining world peace.
• Naomi Nakano Heads Program Group at Philadelphia YWCA, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Naomi Nakano, a native of Ridley Park, Pennsylvania, was named program director of the Business and Professional Women’s group at the Central YWCA in Philadelphia. She recently returned from an international youth conference held in Oslo, Norway.
• Nisei Forced Out of Home By Covenant (Gardena), by P.C. Staff, page 3. Yoshio Shigaki and his family returned to their former residence after neighbors in Gardena enforced an old racial covenant against their new home. The covenant dated from when the land was used for alfalfa.
• Editorial: Oyama Test Case, by Larry Tajiri, page 4. The editorial argues the California Alien Land law was designed to exclude persons of Japanese ancestry from the state and that it unconstitutionally penalizes citizens like Fred Oyama. It praises Dean Acheson’s argument that the law denies American citizens equal protection.
• The Housing Problem: The Landlords and Us, by Koji Ariyoshi, page 5. Ariyoshi describes how the Japanese American Committee on Rent and Housing in New York helped an Issei tenant resist a landlord’s illegal rent increase. He also recounts Nisei tenants who signed leases under pressure and a Nisei woman who successfully resisted eviction.
• Pacific Southwest Council of JACL Will Hold Meeting, by P.C. Staff, page 8. The Pacific Southwest JACL district council will hold its first annual meeting November 1 in Los Angeles with thirteen chapters sending delegates. Agenda items include ADC legislation, the JACL credit union, and national chapter reports.

Commentary

• For Civic Unity, by P.C. Staff, page 4. The editorial praises the California Federation for Civic Unity for going beyond platitudes to address hospital discrimination and police brutality. It credits the group’s leadership with improving community attitudes toward returning Japanese Americans.
• Nisei and Statehood, by Larry Tajiri, page 4. Tajiri comments on the RKO short film The 49th State, which openly features Hawaii’s multiracial population and the 442nd Combat Team. He notes that Hawaii’s Japanese Americans are now a source of support for statehood rather than an embarrassment.
• A Nisei Goes to West Point, by Larry Tajiri, page 5. Tajiri discusses Senator Elbert Thomas’s appointment of Nisei veteran George Shibata to West Point and the earlier 1858 appointment of Hikizo Hamada. He also traces early Japanese immigration to North America and the first Japanese colonies in California.
• Supreme Court Sidelights: Acheson Hold Anti-Alien Law Restricts Citizen Rights of Japanese Americans, by Washington JACL-ADC Staff, page 5. Washington JACL-ADC staff report on the October 22 oral arguments in the Oyama case before the Supreme Court. They describe the justices’ questions about Fred Oyama’s rights and the state’s weak case.
• Japan Masses Like Americans, by Bill Hosokawa, page 6. Hosokawa reports that Japanese civilians hold the United States in greater affection than at any time since 1923, citing GI kindness and gestures to Japanese veterans. He contrasts this goodwill with the damage done by the 1924 exclusion act.

Sports

• Pro Cager Wat Misaka Training with New York Knickerbockers, by P.C. Staff, page 4. Wat Misaka, the first Nisei in professional basketball, is training with the New York Knickerbockers at Bear Mountain. The former Utah star played at Madison Square Garden in earlier tournaments.
• Sad Sam’s Troubles, by P.C. Staff, page 6. Honolulu fight manager Sad Sam Ichinose’s European boxing venture collapsed amid postponed title bouts, a banned Takeshita bout, and a disputed Marino decision. Ichinose’s fighters returned to England after a failed French trip.
• Substitute Nisei Halfback Stars in Salt Lake Prep Contest, by P.C. Staff, page 7. Tosh Miya, a third-string halfback, scored the winning touchdown for West High in the closing minutes against East High, 12 to 7. He had joined the varsity only the day before the game.

Thank you for exploring the Pacific Citizen archive. The title, introduction and contents on this page were written by an AI model from scans of the printed issue, so they may contain mistakes. If you spot one, we would be grateful if you let us know.