Issei citizenship, evacuation claims and a Nisei airline captain

Vol. 33, No. 4, August 4, 1951. 8 pages. View this issue

Roy H. Umaki of Honolulu, the first Nisei to qualify as captain on a scheduled U.S. airline, led the front page. Beside him, the news turned to the rights of Japanese immigrants. A Peruvian Japanese family appealed to the Board of Immigration Appeals to stay in the country, with JACL ADC counsel Edward Ennis arguing their case. The Senate Judiciary Committee approved a compromise plan to speed up evacuation claims, and Representative Walter Judd put a Reader’s Digest article on Issei citizenship into the Congressional Record.

Larry Tajiri wrote about the changing South, and Elmer R. Smith traced the history of racist ideas in an essay on page 5. Mary Oyama’s column weighed human values against property values. Maurice Zolotow retold the story of Earl Finch, the Mississippi merchant who befriended soldiers of the 100th Battalion and the 442nd. Four pages of sports and community news close the issue, including Ford Konno’s two national swimming titles and Michiko Sunahara’s Los Angeles concert for the JACL ADC drive.

What’s in this issue

Military & Veterans

• First Nisei Qualifies as Pilot on U.S. Scheduled Airline, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Roy H. Umaki of Honolulu became the first Nisei to qualify as captain on a scheduled U.S. airline, flying for TPA Aloha Airlines. He was born in Hawaii, served as an Army lieutenant in World War II, and has logged over 5,400 flying hours.
• Family Learns Son is Prisoner in North Korea, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The Takahara family of New York was told by the Defense Department that an enemy broadcast reported Lt. Sam Takahara, previously listed as missing in action, is a prisoner of war. The report had not been officially confirmed.
• Report Three Nisei Wounded in Korean War, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The Department of Defense notified the JACL ADC that three Nisei soldiers were wounded in Korea. The casualties include Corporal Mamoru Shishido, Private First Class Takashi Shoda, and Private First Class Kenny K. Takaki.
• Nisei Officer Hurt in Attempt to Aid GIs, by P.C. Staff, page 2. First Lt. Reginald Hiroyuki Koseki of Los Angeles was seriously wounded in Korea after exposing himself to enemy fire to get aid for his wounded men. He is recuperating at the Army Hospital in Camp Cooke.
• Spokane Pays Tribute to Famous 442nd, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Civic and military officials joined local veterans of the 442nd Combat Team at a Spokane premiere of the MGM film Go for Broke! The ceremony honored fourteen Spokane-area Nisei soldiers who died in World War II.
• Godfather to a Regiment: Story of Earl Finch Told in Article in Monitor, by Maurice Zolotow, page 4. A Christian Science Monitor article describes Earl Finch, a Hattiesburg, Mississippi merchant who befriended Nisei soldiers of the 100th Battalion and 442nd combat team during training. Finch hosted them, arranged dances and parties, and continued advocating for Nisei rights after the war.

National

• Japanese Peruvians Appeal for Right to Stay in U.S., by P.C. Staff, page 1. The Board of Immigration Appeals is considering a petition from a Peruvian Japanese family seeking to remain permanently in the United States. JACL ADC counsel Edward Ennis argued that denying them suspension of deportation while granting it to Latin American Germans would be unfair.
• Additional Contributions from Georgia, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Two Georgia Issei, Butsuyen and Ichiro Omaye, made additional contributions to the JACL ADC, as reported by regional director Min Yasui. Georgia Governor Talmadge also sent letters to senators endorsing the Issei naturalization bill.
• Civil Liberties Union Hails Progress in Restoration of U.S. Rights to Renunciants, by P.C. Staff, page 8. The ACLU annual report praised court rulings and government action restoring citizenship to Nisei who renounced it under duress during World War II. It also credited the JACL with speeding evacuation claim settlements and criticized the McCarran Act.
• Senate Committee Approves Stays for Twelve Japanese, by P.C. Staff, page 8. The Senate Judiciary Committee favorably reported a bill suspending deportation for twelve Japanese individuals. The bill was ordered placed on the Senate Calendar.
• Kawano Tells House Group About Hawaiian Communists, by P.C. Staff, page 8. Jack H. Kawano, former head of the Hawaii longshoremen’s union, testified before the House Un-American Activities Committee about Communist Party operations in Hawaii. He named 46 Hawaiian residents as party members.
• ILWU Statement Raps Testimony Given by Nisei Dock Worker, by P.C. Staff, page 8. ILWU officers, including several Nisei union leaders, denounced Jack Kawano’s testimony as a fabricated attack on the union. They said the release timing was designed to help employers.
• Honolulu Newsletter: Refusal of Some Bars to Serve Negroes Makes News, by Lawrence Nakatsuka, page 8. A Honolulu labor council protested reports that several bars refused service to Negroes, including Korean war veterans. The council took the complaint to the county liquor commission, governor, and mayor.

Community

• Sculpture Award, by P.C. Staff, page 1. George Tsutakawa, an art instructor at the University of Washington, won first place in the sculpture division of the Pacific Northwest Arts and Crafts Association fair in Bellevue.
• Mountain Plains Area Gives $6000 to JACL-ADC, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The Mountain Plains JACL regional office raised $5,978.50 for the JACL-ADC over eight months of voluntary operation. The 19-state area remains $2,000 short of its quota set at the 1950 JACL convention.
• Appoint Tanaka to Planning Post, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Floyd Tanaka was appointed city planning engineer for Colorado Springs. He is a 1951 graduate of the University of Denver’s school of architecture.
• Santa Maria JACL Sponsors Booth, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The Santa Maria Valley JACL chapter ran a display booth at the annual fair featuring Japanese artwork and a portrait of PFC Sadao Munemori. Volunteers served tea and sembei to visitors.
• Church Group Asks Review of Issei Treatment in State, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Southern California church leaders passed resolutions at the Disciples of Christ convention urging review of state laws that discriminate against Issei, including alien land restrictions and old-age pension exclusions. A resolution also called for ending immigration and naturalization restrictions based on race.
• Seattle Mayor Renames Jackson St. Area, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Seattle Mayor William P. Devin designated the Jackson Street area as the International Center during Seafair celebrations. Miss Lilyan Mar was crowned International Queen at the event.
• Seattle JACL Makes Profit at Fair Booth, by P.C. Staff, page 3. The Seattle JACL souvenir booth at the Japanese Trade Fair at the University of Washington grossed about $3,500 and earned a profit of $825 for the chapter. Chairman Kengo Nogaki thanked the volunteers who staffed the booth.
• Chicago Girls Plan Michigan Outing, by P.C. Staff, page 7. Chicago Nisei girls’ clubs planned a joint weekend outing at Forest Beach Camp in Michigan on August 18-19. Activities include swimming, hiking, dancing, and other recreation.
• Utah Dentist Moves to San Leandro, by P.C. Staff, page 7. Dr. Frank Saito announced he is moving his dental practice from Brigham City, Utah to San Leandro, California. He had practiced in Utah since 1944 and was active in civic and dental organizations there.
• Capacity Audience Attends Sunahara Concert in L.A., by P.C. Staff, page 7. More than 700 Issei and Nisei attended the United States concert debut of Japanese soprano Michiko Sunahara in Los Angeles on July 28. The concert benefited the JACL ADC financial drive.
• NCYPCC to Hold 22nd Meeting, by P.C. Staff, page 8. The 22nd annual Northern California Young People’s Christian Conference will be held at Asilomar from August 20 to 26 under the theme Seeking the Way. Registration information and committee leaders are listed.
• Select Fifteen Candidates in Queen Contest, by P.C. Staff, page 8. Fifteen semi-finalists were selected in the Los Angeles Nisei Festival Queen contest based on popular ballots. Sadako Higa led the voting, and the queen will be crowned at the Nisei Week Coronation Ball on August 18.

Incarceration & Redress

• Japanese Writer Plans Book About Nisei War Hero, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Takashi Kimura, a Japanese writer who authored a book on the 442nd Combat Team, arrived in Los Angeles to research the life of Pfc. Sadao Munemori. Kimura hopes to publish his book on Munemori, the only Nisei Medal of Honor recipient, by the end of the year.
• Senate Judiciary Committee Approves Compromise Plan for Paying Evacuee Claims, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The Senate Judiciary Committee favorably reported the Celler Bill, which lets the Attorney General settle smaller evacuation claims at up to three-fourths of the amount. The JACL ADC supports the measure as a way to speed up the stalled evacuation claims program.
• Committee Report Supports Compromise Settlement Idea, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The Senate Judiciary Committee unanimously approved a measure allowing compromise settlement of evacuation claims. The committee noted that claims filed far exceeded expectations and stressed the need for expeditious processing.
• Rep. Judd Inserts Digest’s Article on Issei Citizenship into Congressional Record, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Representative Walter Judd inserted a Reader’s Digest article calling for an end to race-based immigration and naturalization restrictions into the Congressional Record. The article highlights the plight of Mrs. Nawa Munemori and the discriminatory treatment of Japanese Americans.

Commentary

• Digest Article Put in Congress Record, by P.C. Staff, page 2. This continuation of the Reader’s Digest article argues that Asian exclusion laws harm American foreign relations and that the Japanese American 442nd deserved citizenship for its sacrifices. It calls for repealing race-based naturalization restrictions.
• The New South, by Larry Tajiri, page 4. Tajiri examines how the South is experiencing a social revolution in race relations, citing the Fisk University race relations institute. He notes that changes in the region may be occurring faster than elsewhere in the country.
• Ben Kuroki, Country Editor, by P.C. Staff, page 4. This column profiles Ben Kuroki, a Nebraska-born Nisei veteran who became a country newspaper editor and gave speeches on civil rights. It describes his commitment to democracy and his efforts to publicize Japanese American rights.
• Editorials: Japanese Farm Workers, by P.C. Staff, page 4. The editorial warns against a State Department proposal to import Japanese farm labor, drawing parallels to the exploitation of Mexican farm workers and earlier Asian laborers. It calls for extreme caution given the history of discrimination tied to imported cheap labor.
• Editorials: Strange and Frightening Talk, by P.C. Staff, page 4. The editorial criticizes columnist Bruce Barton for recommending Lothrop Stoddard’s racist 1920 book The Rising Tide of Color as a guide for policymakers. It argues that such thinking is outdated and out of step with modern efforts toward racial brotherhood.
• Q&A on Racial Discrimination, by P.C. Staff, page 4. This brief Q&A quotes UN delegate Mrs. Edith Sampson on whether economics is the real cause of racial discrimination. Her answer suggests prejudice is the underlying issue regardless of economic motives.
• Nisei Experimental Group and Ben Kuroki Notes, by P.C. Staff, page 4. This column reflects on Ben Kuroki’s career and his speeches about Nisei rights. It also notes civil rights efforts in Los Angeles and Nebraska community life.
• Background to Racism, by Elmer R. Smith, page 5. This essay traces the historical roots of racism from Gobineau through Chamberlain, Grant, and Stoddard. It argues that modern racist rhetoric recycles discredited pre-scientific ideas of racial superiority.
• The Human Values, by Mary Oyama, page 6. Oyama praises leaders who ended racial barriers at recreation facilities and argues that human values should outweigh property values. She offers a practical test for judging prejudice based on whether words or actions are true, kind, necessary, American, and Christian.

Sports

• Denver Has Solid Claim on Regional Title, by P.C. Staff, page 6. Denver’s Nisei baseball team won the JAAU tournament in Ogden, Utah, defeating Bear River Valley for the Rocky Mountain title. Pitcher Dick Kitamura pitched the victory in the finals.
• Red Sox May Be Strongest Nisei Ball Club, by P.C. Staff, page 6. The Hawaii Red Sox, reinforced by four top Nisei players, prepared to tour Japan to play college and non-professional teams. The roster includes players who may remain in Japan to play professional baseball.
• Nancy Ito Leads Team to State Title, by P.C. Staff, page 6. Nancy Ito of Denver, an 18-year-old shortstop, went four-for-four to lead the Denver Industrial Bankerettes to the Colorado Class A girls softball championship. Teammate Sue Maruyama also starred in another Colorado state championship.
• Sequoia Bowlers Still Hot in Bay Area, by P.C. Staff, page 6. Dixon Ikeda bowled a 696 three-game series in Nisei Mixed Fours league play in San Francisco. The article also notes Nisei bowling and baseball achievements across the Bay Area and in Japan.
• Fresno Wins Eight Games on Hawaiian Tour, by P.C. Staff, page 7. The Fresno State College Bulldogs returned from a Hawaii tour having won eight games and lost two. They avenged their earlier losses and will face the Fresno Nisei All-Stars in a benefit game.
• Ford Konno Wins Two National Swimming Championships, by P.C. Staff, page 7. Hawaiian Nisei swimmer Ford Konno won the 800 and 1500-meter freestyle events at the National AAU outdoor championships in Detroit. Evelyn Kawamoto also won the 300-meter medley for the third straight year.

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