Nisei war dead, a Supreme Court fishing case and the ADC fund drive

Vol. 26, No. 13, March 27, 1948. 8 pages. View this issue

Two Japanese American soldiers, T/5 Herbert M. Fukui and Cpl. Tokuo Nitta, were among eight men killed when an Army C-47 crashed into an isolated peak in Washington on March 21. The remains of Nisei war dead from France were also due to arrive in New York in early April, and the JACL asked families to notify its Arlington Cemetery committee about reburial plans. In Washington, H.R. 5955 would extend the deadline for entry of Japanese wives of American servicemen. The Supreme Court set arguments for April 19-23 in the Takahashi fishing case.

Chapters reported on the Anti-Discrimination Committee fund drive, with Alameda, San Mateo and Ventura each going over their goals. Eiji Tanabe wrote on the history of Japanese American fishermen in California, and Larry Tajiri told the story of John Fujii. Editorials took up the extension of restrictions on Japanese Canadians and the aged and indigent in Tulare County. Grace Tanigawa was sworn in as a Navy nurse in Minneapolis.

What’s in this issue

Military & Veterans

• Two Japanese American GIs among Eight Who Perished after Army Transport Crash, by P.C. Staff, page 1. T/5 Herbert M. Fukui and Cpl. Tokuo Nitta were among eight men killed when a C-47 transport crashed into an isolated Washington peak on March 21. Two survivors, Maj. John B. Harding and Pfc. John M. Belmonte, walked for help and were found by a logger.
• Bodies of First Nisei War Dead to Arrive from France, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The remains of Nisei soldiers from California and Utah will arrive in New York aboard the Robert F. Burns and USAT John L. McCarley in early April. The JACL Committee for Arlington Cemetery asked next of kin to notify it promptly about reburial arrangements.
• Eastern JACL Seeks to Draft Hito Okada for Second Term, by P.C. Staff, page 3. The Eastern District JACL Council urged Hito Okada’s re-election as national JACL president and passed resolutions on ADC offices, convention delegates, and transportation costs. The council also bid to hold the next national convention in New York City.

National

• House Gets Bill to Extend Deadline in GI Brides Act, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Delegate Joseph R. Farrington introduced H.R. 5955 to extend the deadline for entry of Japanese alien wives of American servicemen to Dec. 3, 1949. The JACL Anti-Discrimination Committee endorsed the bill, which would benefit Nisei veterans and occupation personnel in Japan.
• Report Prominent Citizens Support Deportation Delay, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Several Southern California leaders wrote to Senators Downey and Knowland supporting HR 3566, which would give the Attorney General discretion to stay deportation of aliens ineligible to citizenship. The bill was before a Senate Judiciary subcommittee.
• California Court Sets Aside Land Law Verdict, by P.C. Staff, page 1. A San Diego Superior Court judge set aside a default judgment and dismissed an Alien Land Law action against the Nippon Company. The dismissal followed the U.S. Supreme Court’s Oyama decision.
• Nisei Girl Elected by Des Moines Club, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Miyeko Katayama was elected president of the Sub-Deb club at North High School in Des Moines. The item is brief.
• Nisei Girl Named 1948 Queen by Kansas College Students, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Ellen Oda was crowned Southwestern College’s Queen of 1948 by popular student vote. She is a sophomore majoring in public school music.
• U.S. Supreme Court to Hear Oral Arguments in Takahashi Case During Week of April 19, by P.C. Staff, page 2. The Supreme Court agreed to review the Takahashi challenge to California’s law barring alien Japanese from commercial fishing, with arguments set for April 19-23. The JACL asked the Justice Department to participate actively in the oral arguments.
• Japanese Canadian Exclusion from Pacific Coast Area Extended for One More Year, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Canada’s House of Commons extended wartime restrictions on Japanese Canadians for another year, defeating a CCF motion to end them 73 to 23. Critics including David Croll called the controls racist and inconsistent with democratic treatment.

Incarceration & Redress

• Congress Delays Hearings on Naturalization, Claims Bills, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Congressional attention to the international situation postponed House hearings on the Judd naturalization bill and the Senate consideration of evacuation claims measure H.R. 3999. The ADC said the hearings would likely be rescheduled for later in April.

Community

• Nevada Citizens Back Program of JACL-ADC, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Joe Grant Masaoka toured Nevada asking prominent citizens to support naturalization rights for Issei Purple Heart and Gold Star parents and a deportation stay bill. Contacts included religious leaders, editors, and officials connected to Senator McCarran.
• Alameda Doubles ADC Fund Quota, by P.C. Staff, page 2. The Alameda JACL-ADC committee raised $582.50 in its first fund drive, almost double its $300 quota. The chapter had only recently been reactivated.
• Japanese War Brides in Denver Grateful for Visits, Presents, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Japanese war brides hospitalized at Fitzsimmons general hospital thanked the Denver JACL and community for gifts and letters. Saburo Tani visited them with specially prepared Japanese foods.
• A. W. Naegle Talks to Idaho Chapter, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Civic leader A. W. Naegle spoke to the Idaho Falls JACL on civic responsibilities. He condemned discrimination against minorities, arguing that oppression of one minority threatens all.
• Coachella Installs JACL Cabinet, by P.C. Staff, page 3. The Coachella JACL installed its new officers at a banquet March 17, with ADC regional representative Eiji Tanabe administering the oath. Tom Sakai was installed as president.
• War Dead Memorial to Conclude State Bussei Conference, by P.C. Staff, page 7. The California Young Buddhist League will hold a memorial service for war dead at Elysian Park March 28 to conclude its statewide convention. Speakers include District Attorney Burton Fitts and the drum and bugle corps will participate.
• NICC Officials Meet to Plan Conference, by P.C. Staff, page 7. Cabinet members of the Nisei Intermountain Collegiate Conference met to plan the third annual conference in Denver April 16-18. Preregistration was to be completed by April 1.
• Samuel Bernstein Will Be Speaker at Chicago JACL Meet, by P.C. Staff, page 7. Samuel C. Bernstein, author of the Illinois Unemployment Compensation Act, will speak at the Chicago JACL’s April 15 meeting. His talk will address unemployment compensation generally.
• Intermountain JACL Chapters Meet Quotas, by P.C. Staff, page 7. All Intermountain District JACL chapters met their ADC campaign quotas, according to the March 20 council meeting in Boise. Membership increased by 10 to 15 percent during the past year.
• Membership Social Held in Cleveland, by P.C. Staff, page 7. The Cleveland JACL held a membership social at Calvary Presbyterian church to introduce new members to chapter activities. Over 70 people attended and committee chairmen were announced.
• Intermountain Nisei Set Church Conference, by P.C. Staff, page 7. The first postwar Intermountain Christian Youth Conference will be held April 10-11 in Ogden. Dr. Hugh Vernon White will be the main speaker.
• Tule Renunciant Files Suit to Recover Rights, by P.C. Staff, page 7. Toshiye Nishida, who renounced her citizenship at Tule Lake in 1945 and went to Japan, filed suit in federal court to recover it. The suit claims her renunciation resulted from fear created by pro-Japanese pressure groups.
• First Nisei Girl Sworn In as Navy Nurse in Minneapolis, by P.C. Staff, page 8. Grace Tanigawa became the first Nisei woman in the United States sworn in as a Navy nurse, at Minneapolis on March 22. The Rev. Daisuke Kitagawa helped expedite her appointment after orders were delayed.
• Frank Chuman Wins Urban League Award for Citizenship, by P.C. Staff, page 8. Frank Chuman, chairman of the Pacific Southwest JACL district council, received a citizenship award from the Los Angeles Urban League. The presentation took place at the Vernon branch public library on March 15.
• Nisei Elected to Head Local PTA Group, by P.C. Staff, page 8. Mrs. Arthur Takemoto was elected president of the Nora Sterry PTA in Los Angeles, one of the few Nisei women to hold such a post. She also serves as fifth vice president of the Emerson PTA.
• San Mateo JACL Goes Over Top in ADC Fund Campaign, by P.C. Staff, page 8. The San Mateo County JACL raised more than its $2,000 quota in its ADC fund campaign, conducted door to door over two weeks. The chapter’s next activity will be a membership sign-up.
• ADC Seeks to Obtain Rehiring of Stockton Issei Workers, by P.C. Staff, page 8. The San Francisco JACL-ADC office worked to resolve the firing of seven Issei hotel workers in Stockton who were denied union membership for not being citizens. An appeal may be made to the international union office.
• Ventura Contributes Large Sum to ADC, by P.C. Staff, page 8. The Ventura JACL raised $1,543 for the ADC through a house-to-house campaign with county-wide support. Members and solicitors of the drive committee conducted the canvass.
• Cincinnati JACL Doubles Chapter Membership Roll, by P.C. Staff, page 8. The Cincinnati JACL doubled its 1947 membership to 72 members, according to first vice president Kaye Watanabe. At a March 19 meeting, students spoke on Hawaii’s political, economic and social problems.

Commentary

• Hawaii’s Japanese American Veterans Plan Community Rites to Honor Returned War Dead, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Hawaii Nisei veterans organized a community-wide project to honor war dead whose bodies are expected to return from Italy and France. Plans are tentative, and a civilian committee will be formed with military aid.
• A Myth Deflated, by P.C. Staff, page 4. The editorial praises Senator Guy Cordon’s report refuting the myth of Japanese American racial bloc voting in Hawaii. It argues that statehood should proceed now that the House has passed it.
• Restrictions in Canada, by P.C. Staff, page 4. The editorial condemns Canada’s extension of wartime controls on Japanese Canadians, which it attributes to pressure from British Columbia racists. It recounts the House debate in which the CCF resolution was defeated.
• Evacuation By-Product, by P.C. Staff, page 4. The editorial addresses the problem of aged and indigent Japanese Americans in Tulare County after the closing of the relocation centers. It argues that deportation is cruel and that the state and federal government bear responsibility.
• Mises, by Larry Tajiri, page 4. Tajiri recounts the life of John Fujii, a Japanese-born journalist raised in California who became a Japanese propaganda figure in Singapore. The column portrays him as a victim of naturalization exclusion and circumstance.
• From the Frying Pan: The People on the First Floor, by P.C. Staff, page 6. The columnist recalls neighborly relations with an Italian immigrant family who shared food and tended a vacant lot. The piece contrasts that warmth with the quieter, less communal life of the current neighborhood.
• Old Country Arts Neglected, by P.C. Staff, page 6. The column argues that Nisei neglected Japanese culinary arts and praises the Seattle JACL for sponsoring a Japanese cookery course. It urges other chapters to offer similar classes before older practitioners pass on.
• The Sentinel’s Nisei Pinups, by Bonnie Mechau, page 6. Bonnie Mechau recalls how the Heart Mountain Sentinel produced a pinup layout of Nisei women in swimsuits for soldiers. The item responds to a Frying Pan note about a cheesecake contest at the JACL convention.
• Minority Week, by P.C. Staff, page 6. A column of brief items condemns the southern regional school plan as a segregation device and notes Mississippi’s changed voting literacy test. It also quotes prominent figures on discrimination and a racially restrictive covenant ruling in Santa Monica.
• Dentist and Physician Professional Notices, by P.C. Staff, page 6. Professional notice listings for dentists and physicians. Not editorial content.
• Mother of Nisei Hero Unable to Be Citizen, Congress Told, by P.C. Staff, page 7. Representative Walter Judd urged House consideration of naturalization reform, citing the mother of Medal of Honor winner Sadao Munemori as ineligible for citizenship. He introduced H.R. 5004 to correct Far East immigration inequities.

In-Depth

• Japanese Fishermen Have Made Important Contributions to Progress of Industry, by Eiji Tanabe, page 5. Tanabe traces the history of Japanese American fishing in Northern and Southern California from the 1890s onward. He describes how anti-Japanese fishing legislation grew and how canneries defended the fishermen’s rights.

Sports

• Meifu, Shiba Hit High Games in Salt Lake, by P.C. Staff, page 7. George Meifu and Bob Shiba posted high games of 262 and 259 in the Salt Lake JACL bowling league March 22. Their performances helped OK Cafe and Hibbard Drug win their matches.

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