Alien Land Law repeal and a ballot number: Prop. 13

Vol. 42, No. 24, June 15, 1956. 8 pages. View this issue

The repeal of California’s Alien Land Law was the lead story of this eight-page issue. Secretary of State Jordan announced it would appear as Proposition 13 on the November ballot, and the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously to support it. Helen Mineta reported on National JACL Director Masao Satow’s visit to the nation’s capital, and Mike Masaoka followed the evacuation claims bill in the Senate, where the Judiciary Committee released its report. George Inagaki’s column welcomed Larry and Guyo Tajiri to Los Angeles for a testimonial honoring Larry’s decade of service to the paper and JACL.

Elsewhere in the issue are chapter scholarship candidates for the Pvt. Ben Frank Masaoka memorial award, and Jerry Enomoto’s preview of the Sheraton-Palace Hotel for the JACL convention in San Francisco. Bill Hosokawa recalled a story about the 100th Battalion at Cassino, and Eddie Hisaki profiled Montreal pitcher Bill Nishita. Page 6 covers the Nisei Relays, and page 3 lists six Nisei Opportunity Fellowship winners.

What’s in this issue

Commentary

• President’s Corner: Newspaperman’s visit most welcome, by George Inagaki, page 1. George Inagaki recounts the visit of Larry and Guyo Tajiri to Los Angeles and a testimonial luncheon honoring Larry’s decade of service to the Pacific Citizen and JACL. He describes their fishing rivalry and the impressive turnout at the Downtown Los Angeles JACL event.
• From the Frying Pan: 100th’s ‘secret’ weapon, by Bill Hosokawa, page 2. Bill Hosokawa recounts a story told by former Stars and Stripes correspondent Len Smith about the 100th Battalion’s Nisei soldiers who harassed German lines at Cassino by hurling polished C-ration cans. The censors never allowed the story to be published, and Smith never learned who first devised the ploy.
• Very Truly Yours: Gerrymandering, by Harry K. Honda, page 2. Harry Honda discusses California primary results and the practice of gerrymandering as observed by Nisei Republican and Democrat observers in Los Angeles County. He explains the origin of the term and the principles legislative districts should follow.
• Perspectives: Sheraton-Palace preparations for convention, by Jerry Enomoto, page 5. Jerry Enomoto reports on a tour of the Sheraton-Palace Hotel facilities for the 14th Biennial JACL Convention, describing the ballrooms and business session rooms. He also notes growing participation by committee members and the public relations efforts underway.
• Chicago Corner: American Indians, by Smoky H. Sakurada, page 5. Smoky Sakurada summarizes remarks by Rev. Harold Fey describing American Indians as the nation’s most dissatisfied minority, citing historical broken treaties. He also reports on Chicago community news including church meetings and Hawaiian club activities.

National

• Alien Land Law repeal measure set as Prop. 13, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Secretary of State Jordan announced that the repeal of the Alien Land Law will appear as Proposition 13 on the November ballot. Arguments for and against the measure were due to be submitted by the Alien Land Law Committee and opponents respectively.
• Nat’l JACL Director Satow visits Nation’s capital, visits with California congressmen, by Helen Mineta, page 1. National JACL Director Masao Satow toured JACL chapters and met with the D.C. chapter, discussing the upcoming national convention in San Francisco and the alien land law repeal. He also conferred with California congressmen and senators on legislative issues facing JACL.
• Claims bill ready for consideration on Senate floor within two weeks, by Helen Mineta, page 1. Senate Majority Leader Lyndon Johnson told JACL Washington representative Mike Masaoka that the evacuation claims bill would be considered on the Senate floor within two weeks. Masaoka expressed hope that the relatively minor bill would not be overlooked in the closing days of the session.
• Reveal identity of Nisei meeting housing bias in SF area as Richmond-El Cerrito JACL, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The Ajari family of Concord, Calif., faced hostile opposition from neighbors when attempting to purchase a home, as revealed in a letter to the San Francisco Chronicle. Hideo Ajari later found a home elsewhere, and the local Civic Unity council took interest in the case.
• Three strandees seek court ruling, by P.C. Staff, page 8. Three Hawaiian-born Nisei filed suits in federal court seeking judgments that they had not lost U.S. citizenship by serving in Japan’s armed forces or voting in Occupied Japan. The suits argue a provision of the McCarran-Walter Act preserved their right to sue.

Community

• Five fishermen disappear in swollen Idaho river, small craft overturns on tangling with anchor line, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Five Issei and Nisei fishermen disappeared in the swollen Snake River near American Falls, Idaho, after their boat overturned when tangled in an anchor line. Searchers recovered one body while the other four were believed trapped at the river bottom.
• San Diego Nisei wins $14,250 scholarship, by P.C. Staff, page 1. A San Diego High School Nisei was honored as winner of the Los Angeles Examiner Scholastic Sports Association scholarship, worth $14,250 over four years at Pepperdine College. The student had been a sports editor on his school paper and a competitive debater.
• Poultry farmer invited for Japan inspection four, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Sonoma County poultry farmer Malcolm Melville will tour Japan for four months as a guest of the Rural Rehabilitation Association of Tokyo. Local chapter members planned a bon voyage dinner in his honor.
• Select sixth Nisei for UCLA’s Project India, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Mike Yaki, a pre-med sophomore from Norwalk, was chosen as the sixth Nisei UCLA student to join Project India, a summer program sponsored by the University Religious Conference. The article notes the Yaki family’s prior participation and other Nisei UCLA participants.
• Sacramento student leaves for summer India tour, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Carolyn Miyakawa of Sacramento departed with seven other U.S. students for a summer of travel and study in Pakistan, India and Ceylon. She is the eldest daughter of June Miyakawa.
• Placer JACL awards scholarships to two grads, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Hiroaki Morimoto of Placer Union High School and Linda Bond of Lincoln High School each received $50 Placer County JACL scholarships. Morimoto was a student leader and plans to study electrical engineering, while Bond plans to study physics.
• Nisei win Opportunity Fellowships from John Hay Whitney Foundation, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Six Nisei were awarded 1956 Opportunity Fellowships from the John Hay Whitney Foundation to pursue advanced studies in fields including Far Eastern history, medicine, social work and library science. Winners were named from Honolulu, Los Angeles, Seattle, Berkeley, Chicago and elsewhere.
• Repeal of alien land law proposition endorsed by Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, by John Anson Ford, page 3. The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors unanimously adopted a resolution supporting repeal of the 1920 Alien Property Initiative Act, to appear on the November ballot. Supervisor John Anson Ford introduced the resolution at the request of regional director Tats Kushida.
• New York JACL joins Operation Unity for Museum of Immigration, by P.C. Staff, page 3. The New York JACL joined Operation Unity, a national fundraising appeal for the Museum of Immigration planned at the base of the Statue of Liberty. The museum will become part of the Statue of Liberty National Monument and be administered by the National Park Service.
• Eden Township CL picnic plans set, by P.C. Staff, page 4. The Eden Township JACL scheduled a community picnic for July 15 at Redwood Regional Park, combined with its annual fund-raising campaign for national and local JACL projects. Committee members were named to arrange the event.
• Sacramento JACL in campaign for 500 members, by P.C. Staff, page 4. The Sacramento JACL launched an all-out drive to sign up 500 members, with personal contacts and sign-ups through board members. Issei seeking membership were also invited to contact chapter officers.
• San Francisco Auxiliary visits Laguna Honda Home for the Aged, by Ryo Ichikawa, page 4. Twelve members of the San Francisco JACL Auxiliary visited the Laguna Honda Home for the Aged, distributing food, clothing and gifts. The Auxiliary acknowledged those who helped with transportation and cooperation.
• Sacramento JACL selects Susumu Takeda for Masaoka scholarship, by P.C. Staff, page 4. Susumu Takeda was selected as the Sacramento JACL candidate for the 1956 Pvt. Ben Frank Masaoka memorial scholarship. He is also recipient of the Masao Taketa Memorial Scholarship and plans to study engineering at UC.
• Pasadena JACL names scholarship candidate, by P.C. Staff, page 4. Pasadena JACL nominated Donald Okada as its candidate for the 1956 Pvt. Ben Frank Masaoka memorial scholarship. Okada excelled academically and in church youth affairs at Muir High School.
• JACL officials to address first Hi-Co conference of Nisei students, by P.C. Staff, page 5. More than 100 Nisei and Sansei students gathered at Forest Home for the first Hi-Co Conference of Japanese American Youth in Southern California. Keynote speakers included attorney Frank Chuman and Dr. Roy Nishikawa, with discussion groups on leadership and cultural heritage.
• Detroit CL hears national director, by Yoshiko Inouye, page 5. Detroit JACL hosted national director Mas Satow for a general meeting where he presented a report on the National JACL program and convention plans. The chapter also reported on flower arrangement classes, English classes for Issei and war brides, and a television program.
• Report surplus in S.F. float project, by P.C. Staff, page 5. The San Francisco JACL, Nichibei Kai and Northern California Japanese Chamber of Commerce reported a surplus of $1,511.93 from their prize-winning float in the Festival of Progress. The surplus was deposited in a special bank account and will partly fund the community picnic.
• Southwest L.A. member list swells to 900, by P.C. Staff, page 5. The Southwest Los Angeles JACL reached 900 members and was expected to hit its 1000-member goal that month. Membership drive chairman Tom Shimazaki noted the group was competing with San Francisco’s chapter for membership.
• Chicago pushes survey for nursing home as need for aged Issei found, by Smoky H. Sakurada, page 6. Chicago’s Japanese American Service Committee continued studying the need for a nursing home for aged Issei, having found that some Issei were unhappy in existing institutions. The committee sought funding from Japanese American organizations to extend the research.
• Human relations institute schedules Nisei panel, by P.C. Staff, page 6. Tats Kushida was scheduled to lead a panel discussion on problems related to Japanese Americans at the second annual Institute of Human Relations at Whittier College on June 20. Other sessions addressed minority problems affecting Negro, American Indian, Mexican American and Jewish communities.
• Senate judiciary committee releases report on House-passed measure, by Mike Masaoka, page 8. The Senate Judiciary Committee released its report recommending favorable passage of the House evacuation claims bill with one amendment setting a $100,000 maximum for compromise awards. Masaoka expressed hope the Senate would enact the legislation soon.
• Washington newsletter: President’s illness, by Mike Masaoka, page 8. Mike Masaoka analyzes political implications of President Eisenhower’s latest illness, including questions about his candidacy for re-election. He reviews potential Republican and Democratic contenders for the 1956 presidential race.

Military & Veterans

• Eight Nisei graduates honored by Salt Lake JACL, by P.C. Staff, page 2. The Salt Lake JACL honored 35 Nisei high school and college graduates at a dinner, announcing Una Kasai as its candidate for the Pvt. Ben Frank Masaoka memorial scholarship. Graduates from the University of Utah and local high schools were recognized.
• JACLer appointed to staff of President’s Committee on Government Contracts in DC, by Helen Mineta, page 3. John Y. Yoshino, former Chicago director of the Job Opportunities Program of the American Friends Service Committee, was appointed to the staff of the President’s Committee on Government Contracts effective July 16. He will serve as liaison representative on employment discrimination issues.
• Nisei director wins top design competition, by P.C. Staff, page 6. Hisashi Tani, a San Francisco commercial artist, won a first prize in the direct mail design division of the 35th annual New York Art Director’s Club exhibition. The U.S. State Department expressed interest in including the winning work in a traveling exhibit.

Arts & Entertainment

• Fabulous character, by Bob Okazaki, page 3. Bob Okazaki profiles Sadakichi Hartmann, a Nagasaki-born art critic, poet and raconteur, and recounts his brief Hollywood venture in Douglas Fairbanks’ The Thief of Bagdad. The column describes Hartmann’s eccentric later life, including claiming to be an Indian when the FBI came to his shack.

Sports

• Nisei Relays, by P.C. Staff, page 6. The fifth annual JACL Nisei Relays track and field meet at Rancho Cienega drew strong interest from Northern and Central California athletes. Entry deadlines were extended to June 18 and Art Goto was named head starter.
• Bill Nishita blazing trail for Nisei in major league baseball, by Eddie Hisaki, page 6. Pitcher Bill Nishita of the Montreal Royals hoped to win 15 games in his season, having held a 3-2 record at the time of the interview. The article also describes his experiences playing in Japan with the Tokyo Giants.
• Milwaukee Braves eye Hawaiian second-baseman, by P.C. Staff, page 6. Mako Tashima, a Hawaiian second baseman at Coalinga College, drew interest from major league scouts and was signed by the Picture Butte Indians of the Foothills Wheatbelt league. Manager Harry Watson praised his fielding.
• Canadian Nisei swims, by P.C. Staff, page 6. Lloyd Kishino helped Central YMCA of Montreal win the Quebec men’s senior swimming championship by winning the 50-yard freestyle. The short item reports his victory in 26.1 seconds.

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