Vol. 36, No. 23, June 5, 1953. 8 pages. View this issue
A San Francisco public housing rule was the main story of the week. Applicants had to swear that neither they nor their families ever belonged to groups on the Attorney General’s subversive list, which still named 21 defunct prewar Japanese organizations. Harry Ishimaru of JACL’s Northern California office protested. Haruo Ishimaru also reported that Assembly Bill 2059, which would have given aged Issei state old age assistance, died in committee. Lawrence Nakatsuka wrote about a naturalization ceremony in Honolulu where Issei took the oath of citizenship.
Elsewhere, Mike Masaoka wrote twice about the coming 442nd Regimental Combat Team reunion in Honolulu and the spirit of Go For Broke. John Griffin began a series on Hawaii’s Japanese language schools, and Tamotsu Murayama wrote on Japan’s banking and industrial groups. Citizenship classes in New York, Portland and Menlo Park were covered, and the Washington JACL decorated Nisei graves at Arlington. Harry K. Honda closed the issue with his column.
What’s in this issue
JACL
- Roscribed List Used as Bar in Public Housing, by P.C. Staff, page 1. San Francisco public housing applicants must swear they never belonged to organizations on the Attorney General’s subversive list, including 21 defunct prewar Japanese groups. Harry Ishimaru, JACL Northern California regional director, protested the restriction as an example of the danger of keeping defunct prewar Japanese organizations on the list.
- IDC Meets in Governor’s Office, by P.C. Staff, page 4. The Intermountain District Council met in the Utah Governor’s board room, where the Secretary of State welcomed the group and expressed regret at National Headquarters’ departure. Farewell gifts were presented to national office staff at a dinner attended by representatives of National President Inagaki.
National
- Inside Story: Bill to Give Aged Issei Assistance Defeated in Committee, by Haruo Ishimaru, page 1. Assembly Bill 2059, which would have given aged Issei state old age assistance, died in the Ways and Means Committee after opposition over its estimated $5.6 million cost. Efforts to amend the bill to cover only aliens ineligible for citizenship faltered when another speaker argued for aid to all aliens, and disloyalty concerns further doomed the measure.
- Seattle Congressman Asks Repeal of Mongolian Labor Prohibition, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Rep. Thomas M. Pelly of Washington proposed a bill to remove the 1902 prohibition on employing Mongolian labor in federal irrigation projects. The JACL Washington office endorsed the repeal, noting the provision has not been enforced for decades but remains the last such prohibition in federal or state law.
- Early Action on Postwar Japanese Voting Bill Urged, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Mike Masaoka urged Sen. Arthur Watkins to act quickly on his bill restoring citizenship to Nisei who lost it by voting in postwar Japanese elections. The bill, introduced at JACL request, would provide expedited naturalization similar to legislation already approved for Italian Americans.
Incarceration & Redress
- Day in Court: Reporter Witnesses Swear-In Ceremony of 40 Hawaii Issei, by Lawrence Nakatsuka, page 1. Lawrence Nakatsuka describes a May 28 naturalization ceremony in Honolulu federal court where 77 petitioners, including 48 newly eligible under the Walter-McCarran Act, took the oath of allegiance. The moving ceremony featured a 100th Battalion color guard, student-made leis, and emotional testimonies from new citizens.
Community
- 50 Issei Graduate from New York Citizenship Class, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Fifty future Issei citizens received certificates at graduation ceremonies for the second class sponsored by the Joint Committee on Issei Naturalization in New York. Instructors and a recently naturalized citizen offered words of encouragement.
- 134 Portlanders Study Citizenship, by P.C. Staff, page 1. 134 Portland Issei received certificates for completing an Americanization course sponsored by the Portland Nikkeijinkai at Couch School auditorium. Speakers encouraged them to persist toward citizenship, and a recently naturalized student shared his experiences.
- Washington JACL Decorates Arlington Graves of Nisei Heroes, by P.C. Staff, page 4. The Washington JACL chapter honored Nisei war dead at Arlington National Cemetery on Memorial Day with wreaths at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and decorations at the graves of 20 Nisei soldiers. Ira Shimasaki led the committee, and participants included Yoko Sumida and Ensign Takeshi Yoshihara.
- Flowering Cherry Donated to Menlo High by Issei Students, by P.C. Staff, page 4. Fifty-eight Issei students in the Menlo-Atherton Adult Evening School Americanization class presented twenty flowering cherry trees to the school. Sequoia JACL co-sponsored the class, and the students will care for the trees through their first critical year.
Military & Veterans
- 442nd Reunion, by Mike Masaoka, page 2. Mike Masaoka previews the first 442nd Regimental Combat Team reunion and tenth anniversary in Honolulu, calling the unit’s record the most important factor in Japanese American loyalty and goodwill. He urges veterans to attend and to rededicate themselves to the spirit of Go For Broke.
- Oakland Attorney Donates Watsonville Honorarium, by P.C. Staff, page 4. Oakland attorney Mas Yonemura donated to the Northern California-Western Nevada District Council the honorarium he received from the Watsonville JACL chapter. He had represented veteran James Yoshida, who was discriminated against by a Watsonville barber, and obtained an apology.
Commentary
- Washington Newsletter, by Mike Masaoka, page 2. Masaoka argues the 442nd’s record has been more responsible than any other factor for the corrective legislation Japanese Americans gained in the past seven years. He urges veterans to attend the Honolulu reunion, calling it an opportunity to renew wartime bonds.
- Topics, by Tamotsu Murayama, page 3. Murayama describes how the American occupation dismantled the Zaibatsu and how major Japanese banking and industrial groups such as Mitsubishi, Sumitomo, and Mitsui are now reorganizing. He notes that small businesses struggle under competition, fueling the Zaibatsu’s revival.
- Very Truly Yours, by Harry K. Honda, page 8. Honda reflects on the dangers of the Attorney General’s subversive organization list and on the need to protest it before the deadline. He also draws on Chet Huntley’s commentary about wrongful suspicion of the 23 returned American soldiers and the wartime treatment of Japanese Americans.
In-Depth
- Japanese Language Schools Reopened: Good or Bad?, by John Griffin, page 3. Part I of a series by John Griffin of the Honolulu Star-Bulletin traces the history of Hawaii’s Japanese language schools, which were closed in 1941 but have reopened with nearly 11,000 students. The article recounts decades of controversy over the schools and sets up the question of whether they are beneficial.
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