Vol. 56, No. 6, February 8, 1963. 4 pages. View this issue
The JACL’s national leadership was preparing for the year ahead in this four-page issue. The Interim Board previewed its Los Angeles meeting agenda, which covered the 1963 convention in Detroit, the Japanese History Project and Pacific Citizen issues. Mike Masaoka’s Washington Newsletter reported on the Senate’s cloture vote and Senator Daniel K. Inouye’s maiden speech defending minority protections. Page 2 carried Masaoka’s speech on a minority’s obligation to democracy, and Inouye’s own account of serving with the 100th Battalion and the 442nd Regimental Combat Team.
Civil rights news ran through the issue. JACL joined other groups urging Maryland lawmakers to pass fair employment and public accommodations bills, and two Maryland delegates planned to repeal interracial marriage prohibitions. Bill Hosokawa’s column looked at widening opportunities for Nisei, and Senator Hiram Fong sought separate immigration quotas for the Ryukyus. Chapter news included the San Diego and Marysville installations and San Jose’s Chapter of the Year honor.
What’s in this issue
JACL
- Interim board meeting agenda in L.A. disclosed, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The National JACL Interim Board previewed its agenda for a meeting in Los Angeles, covering the 1963 convention in Detroit, the Japanese History Project, and Pacific Citizen issues. The agenda also addresses staff and regional office matters.
- Marysville JACL installs Roger Tokunaga as head, by P.C. Staff, page 4. Roger Tokunaga was installed as president of the Marysville JACL along with his board. The installation event featured the chapter’s 1963 officers and program plans.
National
- Anti-Defamation League celebrates 50th anniversary; D. Schary named natl chmn., by P.C. Staff, page 1. Dore Schary, remembered for the film Battleground for Broke, was elected chairman of the Anti-Defamation League at its 50th annual meeting. The ADL, founded in 1913, was described as working to protect civil rights and combat bigotry.
- JACL urges Maryland state legislature to pass FEPC and public accommodations bills; may pass House, by P.C. Staff, page 1. JACL joined more than two dozen organizations urging the Maryland House Judiciary Committee to favorably report fair employment and integrated public accommodations bills. The JACL letter argued that discrimination harms Japanese American and foreign relations interests.
- Fong seeks separate quota for Ryukyus, elimination of Asia-Pacific triangle, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Senator Hiram Fong introduced measures to give the Ryukyu Islands and Trust Territory separate immigration quotas. He also proposed reforming the Asia-Pacific triangle quota that discriminates against Asian immigrants.
Community
- B. Asakawa heads San Diego chapter, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Bruce Asakawa was installed as 1963 president of the San Diego JACL, succeeding Harry Kawamoto. Around 150 people attended the installation at the Town and Country Motel.
- Young artist Lloyd Takino wins Hallmark Gold Key, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Lloyd Takino, a student at Western Hills High in Cincinnati, was awarded the Hallmark Gold Key for a landscape painting. He is the first Nisei among the top five selected from roughly 3,800 entries in southern Ohio and northern Kentucky.
- Dr. Roy Teshima re-elected head of Chicago Credit Union, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Dr. Roy Teshima was re-elected president of the Chicago JACL Credit Union at its annual meeting. Other officers were also named for the 1963 term.
- Yasui named to second term on city commission, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Min Yasui was reappointed to a second three-year term on Denver’s Commission on Community Relations by Mayor Dick Batterton. He was first appointed in 1959.
- Foreign language class in grade school rapped, by P.C. Staff, page 3. A California bill, SB 292, would eliminate a 1961 program requiring foreign language instruction in elementary schools. Its author argued the program would burden school districts.
- San Jose-NC-WNDC chapter of the year, by James Murakami, page 4. The San Jose JACL was named the NC-WN District Council’s 1962 Chapter of the Year under chairman Dr. Tom Taketa. The chapter exceeded its membership quota and conducted an active program of community and health insurance activities.
Commentary
- Sen. Inouye’s maiden speech defends his views on cloture, by Mike Masaoka, page 1. Masaoka’s Washington Newsletter reports that the Senate voted to table the constitutional question on cloture, effectively blocking civil rights rule changes until 1965. Senator Inouye’s maiden speech defended minority protections in Senate debate.
- Unlimited horizons, by Bill Hosokawa, page 3. Hosokawa’s column reflects on expanding economic opportunities for Nisei and cites examples of professional success. He notes that Nisei achievement has increasingly depended on ability rather than prejudice.
Military & Veterans
- Anti-miscegenation bills introduced, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Two Maryland Republican delegates announced plans to introduce bills repealing the state’s interracial marriage prohibitions. The Washington, D.C. JACL Chapter expressed support and requested copies of the bills.
- Masaoka speech: a minority’s obligation to democracy, by Mike Masaoka, page 2. Masaoka’s text argues that minority rights are essential to democracy and warns against destroying Senate minority protections. He quotes Hamilton and Tocqueville on majority rule and minority safeguards.
- Inouye tells of WWII service and the 100th Battalion and 442nd, by Daniel K. Inouye, page 2. Senator Inouye recounts his wartime experience, including being mistaken for an enemy and his service with the 100th Battalion and 442nd Regimental Combat Team. He concludes that Nisei must build on the sacrifices of those who fought.
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