A bill to end the race bar in naturalization, December 1947

Vol. 25, No. 25, December 27, 1947. 8 pages. View this issue

Naturalization was the subject at the top of the 8-page year-end issue. Representative Walter H. Judd introduced a bill on Dec. 19 to remove racial discrimination from American nationality and immigration laws, and it would extend citizenship privileges to otherwise qualified Issei parents of Nisei veterans. Tosuke Yamasaki wrote about the Committee for Equality in Naturalization, a nationwide group of prominent Americans backing the effort. Larry Tajiri looked ahead to 1948 as a year of decision, and Mike Masaoka reviewed the work of the JACL Anti-Discrimination Committee over the past year. Thirteen JACL chapters also backed the plan to adopt the French town of Bruyeres.

The holiday season shaped the columns. Bill Hosokawa wrote about a time for mellowness, Alice Sumida described her daughter’s wish for a doll, and Ariyoshi remembered his mother’s first Christmas in Kona, Hawaii. Profiles included Rev. Jitsuo Morikawa of Chicago, Jack Kawano of Hawaii’s longshoremen, and Tom Kurokawa, a 442nd veteran with a furniture finishing shop in Los Angeles.

What’s in this issue

Incarceration & Redress

• House Gets Bill to Remove Race Ban from Citizenship, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Representative Walter H. Judd introduced legislation on Dec. 19 to remove racial discrimination from American naturalization and immigration laws. The bill would extend citizenship privileges to otherwise qualified Issei parents of Nisei veterans and other Asian groups.
• Prominent Americans Join Effort to Erase Race Bias from Naturalization Law, by TOSUKE YAMASAKI, page 1. The Committee for Equality in Naturalization, a nationwide group of prominent Americans, is working to secure citizenship rights for Issei. The committee seeks legislation ensuring nationality cannot be denied on the basis of race.
• Bruyeres Remembered, by P.C. Staff, page 2. An editorial praises chapter responses to adopting Bruyeres and describes the Nisei memorial dedicated there in October. The town plans to preserve the memorial and keep it decorated.
• Rep. Judd Proposes Naturalization Change, by P.C. Staff, page 8. Representative Judd argued that the bill would help win Far Eastern friendship and support democracy in Japan. He urged prompt House action on the measure.

Community

• JACL Chapters Back Project for Bruyeres, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Thirteen JACL chapters endorsed the national board’s proposal to adopt the French town of Bruyeres and send CARE packages. Several chapters also pledged land or donations toward the project honoring the 442nd.
• Four Nisei Graduate From Nurse Schools, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Four Nisei women were among 42 nurses graduated from Salt Lake hospitals last week. They received diplomas from LDS and St. Mark’s hospitals.
• ADC Fund Drive, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Denver’s local drive for the JACL Anti-Discrimination Committee raised $1,400 for the organization’s work. The contributions supported ongoing anti-discrimination activities.
• Nisei Enterprise: 442nd Veteran Starts New Furniture Finishing Shop, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Tom Kurokawa, a 442nd veteran, founded Cal Spray, a custom furniture finishing firm in Los Angeles that now employs about thirty people. The business has won clients including major retailers and manufacturers.
• CIO’s Jack Kawano Heads Hawaii’s Longshore Workers, by Lawrence Nakatsuka, page 4. Jack Kawano, a Hawaii-born Nisei, became the first Nisei delegate to a national CIO convention and now leads Hawaii’s longshoremen. His career began on sugar plantations and grew through organizing the ILWU in the islands.
• Portrait of a Young Minister: Rev. Morikawa Serves as Pastor of Famed Church in Chicago, by T. W. Tanaka, page 5. Rev. Jitsuo Morikawa became pastor of Chicago’s First Baptist Church after members chose him unanimously to succeed their departing pastor. His path from British Columbia farm boy through wartime relocation to his ministry is traced.
• Robert Horiuchi Tracks Down Quarry With a Pencil, by Bill Hosokawa, page 5. Robert Horiuchi works as a senior auditor for Colorado’s state revenue bureau, tracking tax evaders. His rise from Seattle grocery clerk and wartime evacuee to state civil servant is profiled.
• Cincinnati JACL Installs Kanno as New President, by P.C. Staff, page 6. The Cincinnati JACL installed Tom Kanno as president at a December dance attended by about one hundred people. Other new officers were also sworn in.
• Chicago Chapter Review: Activities During Past Year, by P.C. Staff, page 7. The Chicago JACL reviewed a busy 1947 of speakers, social events, and ADC fundraising. Jack Nakagawa turned over leadership to Mari Sabusawa.
• Kawakita Local Plea to Move Case to Japan Denied, by P.C. Staff, page 8. Judge Ben Harrison denied a motion to transfer the treason trial of Tomoya Kawakita to Japan. Kawakita pleaded not guilty and trial was set for Jan. 27.

Military & Veterans

• CBS Will Dramatize Story of Nisei Veteran in Texas, by P.C. Staff, page 1. CBS will broadcast a dramatization of Sgt. George Otsuka, a 442nd veteran who overcame race prejudice in his Texas hometown. The story will air as part of a special program on Dec. 30.
• Home from Italy, by P.C. Staff, page 2. An editorial marks the end of the American occupation of Italy as the last U.S. forces sailed home, recalling the heavy losses of Japanese American units there. Approximately 500 Japanese Americans of the 100th and 442nd died in the Italian campaign.
• Eight Nisei Veterans Go on Trial in Tokyo Murder Case, by P.C. Staff, page 8. Eight Nisei ex-servicemen employed in occupation jobs went on trial in Tokyo for complicity in a July dance hall killing. Defense counsel argued they were caught in a gang war while prosecutors presented knife evidence.

Commentary

• Restricted Education, by P.C. Staff, page 2. The President’s Commission on Higher Education condemned quota systems and segregation that restrict minority access to education. The editorial notes such practices have also affected Japanese American students.
• Our Civil Rights Now, by P.C. Staff, page 2. An editorial argues that securing civil rights at home matters for America’s standing with the world’s peoples, not merely to answer totalitarian critics. It urges continued progress toward democracy’s promise.
• The Coming Year of Decision, by Larry Tajiri, page 2. Tajiri argues that 1948 will be decisive for Japanese Americans given pending Supreme Court cases and Congressional legislation. He warns that the election year may delay action on racial policy.
• A Time for Mellowness, by Bill Hosokawa, page 3. Hosokawa reflects on the commercialized Christmas season and its brief moments of goodwill, peace, and gift-giving that transcend barriers. He urges readers to carry that spirit beyond the holidays.
• My Mother’s First Christmas, by Ariyoshi, page 3. Ariyoshi recalls growing up in Kona, Hawaii, where Japanese immigrant families adopted Christmas customs from Caucasian employers. A childhood school play and his mother’s reaction to a kissing scene shape his memory of the holiday.
• Susan Wants a Doll, by Alice Sumida, page 3. A parent describes her four-year-old daughter’s eager anticipation of a doll for Christmas. The column reflects on childhood yearning and the joy of gift-giving.
• Mike Writes a Letter, by P.C. Staff, page 3. A parent describes her seven-year-old son’s letter to Santa Claus, showing his lingering belief despite peer skepticism. The sketch captures childhood sophistication and wonder.

Arts & Entertainment

• “Daisy Kenyon” Comments on Escheat Cases, by Iwao Kawakami, page 3. Kawakami reviews a scene in the film Daisy Kenyon in which a fictional attorney takes up the case of a Nisei veteran whose farm was escheated. The film reflects public awareness of California’s alien land laws.

JACL

• The ADC Audits Its Books and Finds the Record Good, by Mike Masaoka, page 4. Masaoka reviews the JACL Anti-Discrimination Committee’s legislative, court, civil rights, and service activities over the past year. He notes the organization’s expanding role despite limited funding.

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