Evacuee claims bill hearings and the first Nisei burials at Arlington

Vol. 26, No. 22, May 29, 1948. 8 pages. View this issue

The Senate hearings on H.R. 3999, the bill to pay Japanese Americans for property lost in the wartime forced removal, led this issue. Interior Department officials Krug and Chapman endorsed it, and former War Relocation Authority head Dillon Myer and John McCloy also testified in support. Edward Ennis described the bill as an affirmation of democratic principles, and JACL headquarters expected early Senate action. Also on the front page, Tosuke Yamasaki reported that Privates Fumitake Nagato and Saburo Tanamachi of the 442nd Regimental Combat Team would be buried at Arlington National Cemetery on June 4.

Columns by Larry Tajiri on the Senate debate over Hawaiian statehood and by Bill Hosokawa on the state of JACL chapters, and a Memorial Day poem by William Kochiyama, fill the commentary pages. Local news includes the crowning of Rose Shiramizu as Miss Denver JACL, chapter meetings in Chicago, Reno and Weiser, and a Hawaii teenager’s three national art awards.

What’s in this issue

Military & Veterans

• First Nisei GIs to Be Buried in Arlington, by By TOSUKE YAMASAKI, page 1. Two Nisei privates of the 442nd Regimental Combat Team, Fumitake Nagato and Saburo Tanamachi, will be interred at Arlington National Cemetery on June 4, the first persons of Japanese ancestry buried there. High-ranking military and civilian officials will attend and serve as honorary pallbearers.
• L.A. Veterans Urge Defeat of Mundt Bill, by P.C. Staff, page 2. The Nisei Veterans Association of Los Angeles asked California’s senators to oppose the Mundt-Nixon bill, arguing it would destroy civil liberties their comrades died to protect. The letter was signed by Sakae Ishihara.
• Property Losses of Evacuees Noted by Myer, Former WRA Head, in Urging Claims Bill, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Dillon Myer testified that inadequate property protection in early evacuation caused significant losses and that no single agency held responsibility. He urged Senate passage of H.R. 3999 even if claims were few.
• Nisei Girl Scientist Cited for Work at Washington State, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Hoyo Migaki, a research faculty member at Washington State College’s veterinary science division, was recognized as a promising young scientist. She co-authored two recent journal articles.
• Memorial Day, 1948, by William Kochiyama, page 5. This poem calls on the veterans of the United Nations, united in spirit rather than by treaty, to speak the language of peace. It frames the war dead as couriers of a shared humanity.

National

• Interior Department Officials Ask Senate to Pass Bill for Payment of Evacuee Losses, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Interior Department heads Krug and Chapman endorsed H.R. 3999 before a Senate Judiciary subcommittee, arguing the nation should compensate Japanese Americans for losses caused by wartime evacuation. They urged creation of a special claims tribunal to decide the claims.
• Nisei Stowaway Suspect Freed In California, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Sagara Miyazaki, a Seattle-born Nisei, was released after being held on suspicion of stowing away on a Pan American Clipper from Tokyo. He showed papers from the U.S. consulate in Yokohama certifying his citizenship.
• McCloy, Head of World Bank, Supports Compensation Bill, by P.C. Staff, page 3. John McCloy defended the evacuation as a military decision while acknowledging its harsh effects on Japanese Americans. He praised the 442nd as among the brightest pages in U.S. military history and said he supported compensation.
• Early Senate Action Seen On Evacuee Bill, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Following Senate Judiciary subcommittee hearings, JACL ADC headquarters anticipated early Senate action on H.R. 3999. The bill already passed the House unanimously and now needs full committee approval.
• Effects of Discrimination on Nisei Told by Senator Chavez, by P.C. Staff, page 5. Senator Dennis Chavez’s address on racial discrimination, reprinted in the Congressional Record, discussed the treatment of Mexican Americans and Japanese Americans during the war. He argued discrimination is un-American and has no ethical basis.
• Des Moines Newspaper Asks Passage of Evacuee Measure, by P.C. Staff, page 5. A Des Moines Register editorial, inserted into the Congressional Record by Senator Brooks, urges prompt Senate passage of the evacuation claims bill. It describes how Japanese Americans lost their property in forced liquidation and calls the bill simple justice.

Community

• Sailor from Ohio Still Hopes to Marry Nisei Sweetheart, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Navy sailor Eugene Hickman defended his romance with Honolulu Nisei Betty Namihara despite his mother’s objections. He said island girls understand American values as well as mainland girls and that the Navy considers the matter personal.
• Kawakita Trial Set to Open in L.A. June 15, by P.C. Staff, page 2. The treason trial of Tomoya Kawakita, accused of mistreating American POWs while serving as an interpreter in a Japanese camp, was postponed to June 15. Prosecutors list about 50 government witnesses.
• Group Sees Play Against Prejudice, by P.C. Staff, page 2. The Chicago Council Against Discrimination held its fifth annual meeting, featuring the play Trial by Fire on race prejudice. Ten Chicago JACL members attended, and Tats Kushida was re-elected to the executive committee.
• Rose Shiramizu Crowned Queen of Denver JACL, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Rose Shiramizu was crowned Miss Denver JACL at the coronation ball on May 22 and will represent the Denver chapter in the national JACL queen contest. Her attendants were also named.
• Nisei in Washington Discuss Diverse Art Fields, Professions, by P.C. Staff, page 6. Four Nisei speakers addressed the Washington JACL on their careers as a lawyer, spectrographer, commercial artist, and design instructor. The all-Nisei program was well attended and showed the range of talent in the community.
• Japanese Visitor Thanks U.S. for Postwar Assistance, by P.C. Staff, page 6. Dr. Iwao Ayusawa, executive director of Japan’s Central Labor Relations Board, praised the United States for its help in Japan’s postwar recovery during a Chicago visit. He predicted eight million Japanese workers would be organized by the end of the year.
• Star Coffee Stays Lead in JACL Bowling League, by P.C. Staff, page 7. Star Coffee Shop held first place in the JACL summer bowling league after taking four points from Terashima Studio. Several teams posted notable series scores in the week’s matches.
• Young Hawaii Nisei Artist Wins Three National Awards, by P.C. Staff, page 7. Sueo Miyagawa, a 17-year-old McKinley High School student in Honolulu, won three prizes in the 1948 Scholastic Art Awards. His paintings are on exhibit at the Carnegie Institute in Pittsburgh.
• Talk on Marriage To Be Heard By Chicago JACL, by P.C. Staff, page 7. Mrs. Ethel Licht Victor of the Association for Family Living will speak to the Chicago JACL on successful marriage today. The June 3 meeting will be held at the Woodrow Wilson room.
• Mt. Olympus JACL Plays Host to Salt Lake Group, by P.C. Staff, page 7. The Mt. Olympus JACL hosted the Salt Lake chapter for its monthly meeting, where national secretary Masao Satow reported on congressional bills affecting Japanese Americans. Yukiko Mori was chosen as the chapter’s queen candidate.
• Yukiko Mori to Be Murray Queen Entry, by P.C. Staff, page 8. Yukiko Mori, a 20-year-old lifelong Murray resident, was selected by the Mt. Olympus JACL as its representative in the national JACL queen contest. She is a former attendant to the Miss Nisei of Utah.
• Snake River JACL Honors Graduates At Banquet, Dance, by P.C. Staff, page 8. The Snake River JACL held its second annual graduation banquet and dance at the Washington hotel in Weiser, attended by over 125 people. Superintendent W. H. Sorenson gave the main address on American liberty and education.
• Rev. Stoker Speaks To Reno JACL, by P.C. Staff, page 8. Rev. T. E. Stoker spoke to the Reno JACL on his experiences with equality through religion at the chapter’s third meeting. The group also planned a community picnic to be run by a new committee.

Commentary

• Evacuee Claims as Affirmation of Democracy, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Former Justice Department official Edward Ennis testified that H.R. 3999 would affirm democratic principles by compensating citizens who bore an unfair burden. He described how the evacuation was justified only by a narrow military necessity determination.
• Minority Rule in Canada, by P.C. Staff, page 4. Citing sociologist Forrest LaViolette, the editorial argues that Canada’s continued restrictions on its Japanese population stem mainly from political pressure in British Columbia. It calls on British Columbia’s politicians to end the discriminatory treatment of this minority.
• Burial at Arlington, by P.C. Staff, page 4. The editorial honors Privates Nagato and Tanamachi and lists the officials participating in their Arlington burial. It presents the ceremony as a demonstration of the Army’s faith in its Nisei soldiers.
• The Senate Debates Statehood, by Larry Tajiri, page 4. Tajiri reports on the Senate defeat of Senator Knowland’s resolution to bring Hawaiian statehood to the floor, which effectively ended statehood for this Congress. He examines how Japanese American voting fears had faded and how the debate shifted toward alleged communist influence in Hawaii.
• JACL on the Local Level, by Bill Hosokawa, page 5. Hosokawa argues that while JACL has succeeded nationally, many local chapters struggle with membership, finances, and participation. He urges the national convention to study how to strengthen local chapters.
• Some Symptoms of Being 35, by Bill Hosokawa, page 5. In a lighthearted column, Hosokawa reflects on the signs of middle age, from slower mornings and lighter sporting schedules to a growing interest in insurance and home ownership. He also notes the Nisei have taken the driver’s seat from the Issei.

Incarceration & Redress

• Legion Filipino Post Supports Judd Proposal, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Filipino Post No. 509 of the American Legion in Illinois passed a resolution supporting H.R. 5004 to remove racial restrictions from naturalization law. The resolution argues that Japanese and Korean residents who proved loyal should share the citizenship recently granted to Filipinos.
• Japanese Aliens Involved In Hawaii Flag-Raising Cases, by P.C. Staff, page 8. Three consecutive years of flag-raising cases on Hawaii’s Big Island involved Japanese aliens displaying the Japanese flag on emperors’ birthdays. The cases are on appeal or pending under a territorial law banning display of an enemy nation’s flag during wartime.

Sports

• Tsukamoto to Face Nakamura with Championship at Stake, by P.C. Staff, page 8. Two Nisei pitchers, Jim Tsukamoto of Sacramento College and Jiro Nakamura of San Mateo JC, will face each other in a double header deciding the Northern California junior college championship. Both have been standout performers this season.

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