A Nisei hero in Korea, plus the 1950 JACL legislative push

Vol. 31, No. 21, November 25, 1950. 8 pages. View this issue

The war in Korea shaped the news in this eight-page issue. Corporal James J. Kawamura of Eleele, Kauai, was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross after killing or wounding 41 North Koreans with his BAR. Teiki Miyashiro of Kauai lost two sons in the fighting, and Cpl. Jack C. Arakawa, a 442nd machine-gunner, described his captors refusing to believe he was a Nisei soldier. On the legislative side, the JACL Anti-Discrimination Committee pressed for the Walter Resolution and Hawaii statehood in the lame duck session, and Hawaii voters backed statehood by about three to one.

Elsewhere, Larry Tajiri wrote about the making of the film Go for Broke, and the paper covered the Alien Land law cases in California. Reports on flood losses among Japanese American families, the stranded Nisei in Japan, and the JACL’s Salt Lake City convention fill the inside pages, with columns by Bill Hosokawa and Mike Masaoka.

What’s in this issue

Military & Veterans

• Corporal James J. Kawamura Awarded Distinguished Service Cross for Heroism in Korea, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Cpl. James J. Kawamura of Eleele, Kauai, was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross for killing or wounding 41 North Koreans with his BAR during combat in Korea. Fellow soldiers described how he drew enemy fire and held his position until the attack was broken.
• Kauai’s Miyashiros Lose Two Sons in UN War in Korea, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Teiki Miyashiro of Kauai has lost two sons in Korea, one killed in combat and another listed as missing in action. A third son is serving with the U.S. Army at the front.
• North Koreans Don’t Believe in Nisei, Says GI, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Cpl. Jack C. Arakawa, a 442nd machine-gunner reported killed early in the Korean War, returned to Hawaii after escaping captivity. He said his North Korean captors refused to believe he was an American soldier of Japanese ancestry.
• Appoint Suyehira to National VFW Post, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Henry Suyehira of Emmett, Idaho, was appointed national aide-de-camp of the Veterans of Foreign Wars. He is chairman of the Boise Valley JACL veterans committee and is active in several civic organizations.
• Two Nisei GIs Win Bronze Star Clusters, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Oak leaf clusters to the Army Bronze Star were awarded to Cpl. Hisashi Wada of Denver and Pfc. Kiyoshi Haimoto of Honolulu, both of the 24th Division in Korea. The awards recognize their service in the Korean War.
• Thankful Korean Students, by P.C. Staff, page 6. The author describes meeting Korean students in the area and telling them about the destruction of their hometowns during the Korean War. One student with a family in Korea has received no word from them since the war began.

National

• Walter Resolution Passage Heads JACL ADC’s Agenda for Coming Lame Duck Session, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The JACL Anti-Discrimination Committee is pushing for reintroduction of the Walter Resolution to eliminate race as a bar to naturalization, and for Senate approval of Hawaii statehood. The measures are expected to be taken up in the lame duck session of Congress.
• Alien Land Statute Under Attack in Masaoka, Fujii Cases, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The California Supreme Court is expected to hear arguments in test cases that have invalidated the state’s Alien Land law. Lower courts ruled the law unconstitutional under the 14th Amendment and the United Nations Charter.
• Administration May Seek Modification of McCarran Act, by I. H. Gordon, page 2. The administration reportedly plans to seek an amendment to the McCarran Act that would let former totalitarians enter the United States if they renounce their beliefs. Observers expect the amendment could pass while other provisions of the law remain unchanged.
• Hawaiians Vote Three to One for Statehood, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Hawaii voters approved statehood by roughly three to one in a special election on a proposed state constitution. The constitution was sent to Washington for congressional review, and territorial leaders planned to urge Senate action.
• Remind Aliens of Registration Under New Law, by P.C. Staff, page 3. The JACL Anti-Discrimination Committee reminded aliens that they must file address reports between January 1 and 10, 1951, under the McCarran Act. Penalties include fines up to $100 or 30 days imprisonment for failing to file.

JACL

• Report San Jose Building Offered for JACL Headquarters, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The United Citizens League of Santa Clara County offered its building as a national JACL headquarters. A Northern California district council resolution requested moving headquarters from Salt Lake City back to the San Francisco area.
• JACL Salt Lake Conference Sets Future Operations and Board, by P.C. Staff, page 4. The eighth national JACL convention in Salt Lake City adopted the theme Your Place in America Tomorrow Will Be What You Make It Today. Delegates passed a membership amendment allowing any American citizen to join and expanded the organization’s civil rights and educational programs.
• Santa Barbarans Elect Woman as JACL President, by P.C. Staff, page 8. The Santa Barbara JACL elected Mrs. Lillian Nakaji as its first woman president at its November 18 elections. The chapter also named other officers and members-at-large for 1951.

Incarceration & Redress

• Slocan Again Ghost Town as Evacuees Leave, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Slocan City in British Columbia, which housed 3,000 Japanese Canadians during the war, has nearly emptied as residents relocated or returned to the coast. Only 33 families and 21 single men remained at this week’s count.
• Tacoma Nisei Girl May Become Star in U.S. Films in Japan, by P.C. Staff, page 3. June Reiko Otani, a Tacoma native stranded in Japan since 1941, has a featured role in the American-produced film Tokyo File 212 and has been cast in The Invisible Worm. Both films were shot in Japan by American companies.
• Strandees Regain Citizenship Despite Participation in 1946 Japanese General Election, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Federal Judge Charles C. Cavanah restored American citizenship to three Nisei strandees who had voted in Japanese elections. He ruled that voting under coercion and occupation did not show disloyalty and that Japan under U.S. occupation is not a foreign state.
• Acceleration of Evacuation Claims Processing Forecast, by P.C. Staff, page 3. The Justice Department’s evacuation claims office will use affidavits to speed claim hearings, as claimants are often unprepared for questioning. Jacobs also noted that claims for property owned by deceased parents must be handled through estate administrators.

Community

• Idaho Nisei Conducts Research Into Hail Damage of Potatoes, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Frank Takatori of Parma, Idaho, is researching hail damage on potato plants by simulating hailstorms at different growth stages. Potato growers and insurance firms are interested in the findings, which are supported by a Pacific Hail Conference grant.
• Alice Watanabe Named Queen by Coast District YBA, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Alice Watanabe, a 17-year-old senior at Monterey High School, was crowned queen of the Coast District Young Buddhists Association. Sho Araki was elected YBA chairman, succeeding Otis Kadani.
• Farms Inundated in Alvarado Area, by P.C. Staff, page 2. A dike break on Peterson Slough flooded about 2,000 acres of farmland near Newark-Irvington, including farms of Japanese American families. Several families affected by the Alvarado flooding are named, and the Central California JACL monitored the situation.
• Japanese Americans Among Victims of Coast Area Floods, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Heavy flooding in the San Joaquin Valley caused severe losses to crops, property and stock, forcing hundreds to flee. Japanese American families in the Sanger lowlands were affected, and the Central California JACL tracked residents during the flood.
• Ask Survey of Losses in Coast Disaster, by P.C. Staff, page 2. The JACL launched a survey of flood damage suffered by persons of Japanese ancestry in northern and central California and western Nevada. The survey will also determine whether local relief funds are sufficient or whether a new relief drive is needed.
• Mainland Nisei Joins Hawaii U. Research, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Nao Sekiguchi was appointed to the University of Hawaii College of Agriculture experiment station to research the chemistry and vitamin values of foods used in Hawaii. She holds a master’s degree from the University of Chicago.
• Report Fisherman Lost in Gale Off British Columbia, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Eiichi Miyazabu, a veteran fisherman, is believed drowned near Lasqueti Island after his gill-netter was found wrecked during a storm. He is the third Japanese Canadian fisherman lost since returning to the industry in 1948.
• Dr. Roy Nishikawa Will Join Intergroup Panel on Civil Rights, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Dr. Roy M. Nishikawa, JACL national treasurer, will speak for the Nisei on a Los Angeles panel on human relations and civil rights. The public discussion is sponsored by the 28th Street YMCA.
• Note Denver’s Strides Toward Equal Status for Minorities, by P.C. Staff, page 3. A Denver Post and ACLU survey found that racial discrimination persists in Denver, especially in housing and employment, though major gains have been made. The Denver JACL contributed to a joint statement noting improvements in public employment.
• Select Candidates for Offices of Downtown Chapter, by P.C. Staff, page 3. The nominations committee of the Downtown Los Angeles JACL chapter named candidates for its 1951 cabinet. Ballots were mailed to members with a November 30 return deadline.
• Early Response from Chapters Reported for Holiday Issue, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Several JACL chapters have already sent holiday edition advertising, some at two or three times their 1949 quotas. Hito Okada, holiday edition business manager, urged chapters to finish advertising drives by the end of the month.
• Study Chick Sexing Techniques, by P.C. Staff, page 7. Mrs. Rosario Sison Sandejas, wife of a Philippine poultry association vice-president, arrived in Lansdale, Pennsylvania to study chick sexing techniques. She was greeted by American Chick Sexing Association president S. John Nitta.
• Your Social Security: Some Issei in Japan Receive Old-Age Payments from U.S., by Charles H. Shreve, page 8. Shreve explains that Social Security payments are sent to retired workers and survivors living in Japan, with citizenship not required for eligibility. He introduces the amended law, which raised benefits roughly 50 to 100 percent for current beneficiaries.

Arts & Entertainment

• Yoshiko Yamaguchi Wins Lead in Broadway Musical Show, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Japanese film star Yoshiko (Shirley) Yamaguchi won the leading feminine role in the Broadway musical Messer Marco Polo, expected to open in New York around Washington’s Birthday. It will be her first professional engagement in the United States.
• Metro Makes a Picture: Go for Broke, by Larry Tajiri, page 4. MGM completed eight weeks of shooting on Go for Broke, its film about the Japanese American Combat Team starring Van Johnson. The article explains the editing, scoring and preview process and notes that Nisei veterans were cast to play their own roles.
• Ruby Yoshino Scores Triumph in Song Recital, by P.C. Staff, page 7. Nisei soprano Ruby Yoshino gave a sold-out recital at Kimball Hall in Chicago to strong reviews from local critics. Critics praised her voice’s range and tonal quality, and she performed works including Beethoven and newly written modern songs.

Commentary

• The Stranded Nisei, by P.C. Staff, page 4. Several thousand Nisei stranded in Japan claim American citizenship but are barred from returning because of votes in Japanese elections or service in the Japanese army. Recent rulings by Judge Charles Cavanah recognized coercion as a factor and suggested the State Department consider a blanket procedure.
• United Nations Day, by P.C. Staff, page 4. President Truman proclaimed December 10 as United Nations Human Rights Day, marking the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The editorial argues several articles could challenge discriminatory laws such as the California Alien Land Act and restrictive covenants.
• Persecution?, by P.C. Staff, page 4. Negro publications and the NAACP reported large-scale courts-martial of Negro soldiers in Korea, with some sentenced to life imprisonment. The NAACP said it would investigate and defend any servicemen who appeared to be victims of discrimination.
• Bookshelves … Dusting, by Bill Hosokawa, page 6. Hosokawa reviews James Farrell’s trilogy Studs Lonigan, examining its Realist approach and the role of Catholicism and sexuality in the story. He argues the book’s message about the emptiness of religion and cynicism remains relevant in 1950.
• A Lot to Be Thankful About, by Mike Masaoka, page 6. Masaoka reflects on Thanksgiving, noting that his family has much to be thankful for while others are fighting in Korea. He recounts a conversation with his children about history and the cars of their youth.

Obituaries

• Veteran Dies, by P.C. Staff, page 7. Tokuji Nitta, 34, a former first lieutenant in the U.S. Army occupation forces in Japan, died of a heart attack at a Milwaukee veterans hospital. Funeral rites were scheduled in Watsonville, California.

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