The 1948 JACL election and the Salt Lake City convention

Vol. 27, No. 10, September 4, 1948. 8 pages. View this issue

Hito Okada was reelected national president of the Japanese American Citizens League in the first election by popular vote in the organization’s twenty-year history, with mail ballots sent to 6,500 members. Masao Satow announced the results, and several vice-presidential races were very close. In Salt Lake City, hundreds of members registered on the first day of the 10th biennial convention, and Fifty-two of the 63 JACL chapters sent official delegates. Hawaii was represented for the first time by Katsuro Miho and Shigeo Yoshida.

Elsewhere in the issue, the Kawakita treason verdict drew news coverage and editorials, and Min Yasui, Bill Hosokawa and Togo Tanaka wrote columns. A federal judge ruled on renunciations of citizenship at Tule Lake, and California signed disclaimers in two Alien Land Law cases. Hawaii’s war dead, including men of the 442nd Regimental Combat Team, returned to Honolulu.

What’s in this issue

JACL

• Hito Okada Reelected JACL President in First Popular Election, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Hito Okada was reelected national president of the JACL in the first election by popular vote in the organization’s twenty-year history, with mail ballots sent to 6,500 members. Several vice-presidential races were extremely close, and Masao Satow announced the results.
• Tenth Biennial JACL Meeting Gets Underway in Salt Lake City, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Hundreds of JACL members registered at the Hotel Utah on the first day of the 10th biennial convention, a five-day meeting that will set the organization’s course for the next two years. Official delegates will attend national council meetings while booster delegates enjoy tournaments and social events.
• Hawaii Delegates Attend Meet in Salt Lake City, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Hawaii was represented for the first time at a national JACL convention by official delegates Katsuro Miho and Shigeo Yoshida. Miho is a Honolulu attorney and former leader of the Honolulu Emergency Service Committee.
• Canadian Citizens Send Greetings to JACL Convention, by P.C. Staff, page 2. George Tanaka of the National Japanese Canadian Citizens Association sent a telegram of greetings to convention chairman Shigeki Ushio. The message pledged cooperation between the JCCA and the JACL.
• The Issei and the JACL, by P.C. Staff, page 4. This editorial notes that the 1948 convention marks the first time Issei and Nisei jointly address problems of mutual concern, reflecting Nisei recognition that their issues are tied to the parent generation. It frames naturalization rights as the central issue confronting Japanese Americans.

Community

• California Signs Disclaimers in Two Nisei Cases, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The State of California signed disclaimer actions renouncing further claims on two properties owned by Japanese Americans, the first such decisions favoring Japanese American owners under the Alien Land Law. The suits were filed through CRDU attorneys James Purcell and William Ferriter.
• 52 JACL Chapters Send Delegates to Convention, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Fifty-two of the 63 JACL chapters sent official delegates to the 10th biennial convention in Salt Lake City, with Harvey Aki and Kiyo Tomiyasu of the New England chapter traveling the farthest. Twelve chapters reported they would not be represented.
• Ogden JACL Crowns Miss Saltair at Beach Party, by P.C. Staff, page 3. The Ogden JACL held a preconvention rally and beach party at Sunset Beach, where Tada Sato was crowned Miss Saltair. The event included swimming, games, and a weiner roast.
• Finds Los Angeles Beehive of Real Estate Activity, by Togo Tanaka, page 5. Togo Tanaka reports on the Los Angeles real estate boom, noting that Japanese Americans have gained access to housing after the Supreme Court struck down racial restrictive covenants. He observes that thousands of Nisei are now homeowners and landlords.
• Marian Kono Named Buddhist Queen, by P.C. Staff, page 6. Marian Kono of Seattle, representing the Pacific Northwest Young Buddhists Association, was crowned queen of the Buddhist Golden Jubilee celebration in San Francisco. Supervisor George Christopher presented her with the grand prize trophy.
• Denver Red Cross Seeks Father of Dead War Veteran, by P.C. Staff, page 7. The Denver Red Cross is trying to locate Yoichi Otani, father of S/Sgt. Kazuo Otani, killed in Italy, to determine his wishes regarding reburial before the Salonica cemetery closes. Family members are asked to contact Pauline Hart.
• Denver Girl Returns from Citizenship Encampment, by P.C. Staff, page 7. Mami Katagiri of Henderson, Colo., returned from a ten-day citizenship encampment at Fieldston school in New York, sponsored by the Denver JACL. The program included visits to United Nations headquarters and a House Un-American Activities hearing.
• Nisei Makes Pollen Count for Denver Hay Fever Victims, by P.C. Staff, page 8. Jim Koshi, a milk sanitarian for the Denver City Health Department, makes the daily official pollen count for the city’s hay fever sufferers. The count is taken each morning on a slide placed on the roof of Denver General Hospital.
• San Jose Nine Defeats Florin for Loop Title, by P.C. Staff, page 8. The San Jose Zebras won the 1948 Northern California Nisei baseball league championship by defeating Florin A.C. 6 to 1 in the second game of the series, after winning the first 8 to 2. Two home runs by George Hinaga and Art Kitahara powered the attack.

National

• Kawakita Convicted on Eight Counts in Treason Trial, by P.C. Staff, page 1. A Federal jury in Los Angeles convicted Tomoya Kawakita of eight of thirteen treason counts stemming from his wartime work as an interpreter at a Japanese POW camp. The defense said Kawakita would seek a new trial and a directed acquittal.
• Federal Court Jury Reaches Verdict as Deadlock Broken After Eight Days, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The jury in the Kawakita case deadlocked for eight days amid reports of personal animosity between jurors, including a foreman who was replaced. Judge William Mathes refused to discharge the jury and urged them to keep deliberating.
• Myer Notes Discrimination Against Nisei Group on Wane, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Messages of greeting to the JACL convention from Dillon Myer, Roger Baldwin, and Congressmen including Walter Judd praised progress on evacuation claims, alien land law, and naturalization legislation. Myer and Baldwin both credited the JACL with helping secure these gains.
• Mrs. d’Aquino Sails on Army Ship for San Francisco Trial, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Iva Toguri d’Aquino sailed from Yokohama aboard the U.S. Army transport General Hodges to face treason charges in San Francisco for alleged propaganda broadcasts over Radio Tokyo. She maintained she had done nothing treasonable during her employment there.
• National VFW Urges Citizen Rights for Issei, by P.C. Staff, page 3. The Veterans of Foreign Wars national encampment passed a resolution urging naturalization rights for legally resident aliens of Japanese ancestry and other ineligible aliens. The resolution praised the wartime conduct of resident Japanese Americans.
• Issei Naturalization Proposal Approved by Legion Committee, by P.C. Staff, page 3. The resolutions committee of the California American Legion approved a resolution supporting naturalization of resident Japanese aliens and other ineligible legal residents. The measure, sponsored by Roy Ashizawa of the Townsend Harris post, moved to the convention floor.
• Japanese Court Affirms U.S. Citizenship of Stranded Nisei, by P.C. Staff, page 6. A Tokyo court ruled that the wartime Japanese naturalization of Frances Tsuneishi was invalid, and the State Department then issued her a U.S. passport. Attorney A. L. Wirin said the decision could help other stranded Nisei.
• Ninth Circuit Court Ruling Seen on Validity of Renunciations of Citizenship at Tule Lake, by P.C. Staff, page 7. Judge William Mathes ruled that three Tule Lake renunciants were subjected to coercion and that their renunciations were not voluntary, ordering their rights restored. The test case, handled by the ACLU, could affect approximately 5,000 renunciants.
• Senate Immigration Group Sets Naturalization Hearings, by P.C. Staff, page 8. Staff members of the Senate Subcommittee on Immigration and Naturalization will tour nine western cities, including Chicago, Salt Lake City, and Los Angeles, to gather public attitudes on immigration and naturalization issues, including the Judd bill. The tour begins September 6.

Military & Veterans

• Honors for Hawaii’s War Dead, by P.C. Staff, page 3. The U.S. Army ship Dalton Victory arrived in Honolulu with 78 Hawaiian war dead, mostly Japanese Americans from the 442nd Regimental Combat Team, prompting a period of territorial mourning. Memorial services at Iolani Palace were addressed by Governor Ingram Stainback and the American Legion commander.
• Stranded Nisei Accepted by Army Air Force Unit, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Tamio Kato, 26, who returned to San Francisco from Japan, enlisted in the Army Air Force and is now in training at San Antonio, Texas. He will later be assigned to an air force base.
• Hood River Community to Honor Nisei Hero Frank Hachiya, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Sgt. Frank Hachiya, killed on Leyte in January 1945 after a volunteer scouting mission, will be reburied in Hood River, Oregon, with military and civic honors. The Mid-Columbia JACL is organizing the ceremonies, which are intended to help erase memories of wartime discrimination.
• Buddhists Pay Tribute to Nisei War Dead, by P.C. Staff, page 6. Buddhist leaders held mass memorial rites at Golden Gate National Cemetery in San Bruno on Aug. 22 to honor Japanese American war dead, attended by about 400 people. Speakers included representatives of General Mark Clark, Jewish War Veterans, and the JACL Northern California District.

Obituaries

• Final Rites Held for Gyozo Ohtaki, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Funeral services were held in Minneapolis for Gyozo Ohtaki, 72, formerly of Bainbridge Island, who had served as a Japanese language instructor there. He is survived by his wife, two sons, a daughter, and a brother in Japan.
• Priscilla Yasuda Weds Wallace Nagao, by P.C. Staff, page 8. Priscilla Yasuda, a former WAC who served at Eisenhower’s Frankfurt headquarters after V-E day, married Wallace T. Nagao in Salt Lake City on Sept. 2. The announcement notes her service in Europe.

Commentary

• Nisei and the Kawakita Case, by P.C. Staff, page 4. The editorial reflects on the Kawakita treason trial, describing his conduct as a disgrace that should not reflect on the wartime record of the 30,000 Japanese American soldiers. It argues that the verdict also raises the question of whether other stranded Nisei who were forced into Japan’s war effort should be allowed to return.
• It’s Dewey for Me, by Min Yasui, page 4. Denver attorney Min Yasui argues for voting Republican in 1948, citing Thomas Dewey’s administrative record in New York and criticizing the expansion of executive power under the Roosevelt and Truman administrations. He rejects Wallace and Thomas while acknowledging Truman’s defense of Nisei rights.
• Betrayal From the West, by P.C. Staff, page 5. The columnist describes an editor’s request for a story on Tokyo Rose and reflects on the Nisei who went to Japan in the 1930s after facing job discrimination on the West Coast. He argues that the notoriety of such trials damages the reputation of all Nisei.
• Roads More Like Highways, by Bill Hosokawa, page 5. Bill Hosokawa describes a 2,000-mile automobile trip through Wyoming and Utah, noting that roads and motel accommodations have improved since the war. He also recounts the practical need for water bags on desert crossings.
• Unenforceable, by P.C. Staff, page 5. A Seattle court ruled unenforceable a clause in Amelia Meltzer’s will that cut off children who married outside the Hebrew race. The judge said no such race exists and that the clause violated public policy.

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.