Civil rights, Little Tokyo and JACL scholarships in 1963

Vol. 57, No. 3, July 19, 1963. 4 pages. View this issue

Civil rights ran through this four-page issue. William Marutani asked whether “desegregate” was a meaningful goal, and another column urged considered action over gut reaction in response to the demonstrations. Saburo Kido answered an editorial by attorney Loren Miller, and Clifford Uyeda questioned whether demonstrations were the right method. Mike Masaoka explained the public accommodations title of the 1963 Civil Rights Act, and Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy spoke on prejudice against many groups.

There was JACL news too. National JACL planned to honor Rep. George Miller with a scroll, seven winners of the 1963 JACL Scholarship Program were announced, and Detroit began its search for a convention queen. Business owners in Little Tokyo formed a redevelopment association, and Rep. Spark Matsunaga proposed a Medal of Honor Memorial Commission.

What’s in this issue

JACL

• National JACL to Honor Rep. George Miller, page 1. The National JACL will present Congressman George P. Miller with a Scroll of Appreciation at the Northern California-Western Nevada-Idaho District Council banquet on August 4 in Oakland. The honor recognizes his support for civil rights and Japanese American causes.

Community

• Detroit JACL Starts Search for Queen of ’64 Convention, page 1. The Detroit JACL has begun seeking a local girl aged 17 or older to serve as Miss National JACL of 1964, the official hostess of the national convention in Detroit. Ten candidates attended the initial get-acquainted luncheon, and the queen will be selected by a panel of judges and crowned at an October ball.
• Pacific Southwest JACL Credit Union Votes Dissolution, page 1. The Pacific Southwest JACL Credit Union, organized in 1940, voted to dissolve at a board meeting presided over by Saburo Kido. Kido explained that the credit union had lacked borrowers and had fulfilled its function, and a committee was appointed to carry out the dissolution.
• JACL Scholarship Winners Revealed, page 1. Seven Japanese American high school graduates received awards in the 1963 JACL Scholarship Program, announced by committee chairman Dr. Frank Sakamoto. Recipients included Lance Ito, Howard Henjyoji, Amy Muneoka, and four National JACL supplemental scholarship winners.
• Li’l Tokio Redevelopment Assn. Formed to Confront City, page 1. Business and property owners in Little Tokyo organized the Little Tokio Redevelopment Association to prevent Civic Center encroachment and preserve the area for Japanese American enterprise. Bruce Kaji was elected president, and the group will draft a master plan for zoning and traffic.
• Social Editor Named, page 1. Mrs. Lincoln Kanzaki, a social reporter for four years at the Paterson (N.J.) Morning Call, was appointed the paper’s social editor. The brief notes this promotion within the Nisei community.
• Full Moon Festival Scaled Down by St. Louis JACL, page 3. The St. Louis JACL decided against a large Full Moon Festival at the Sheraton-Jefferson, opting instead for a limited one-day event at Grace Methodist Church on October 12. The smaller format is expected to produce a better profit.
• Long Beach-Harbor JACL Planning to Incorporate, page 3. The Long Beach-Harbor District JACL will vote on incorporating the chapter as a non-profit educational and community service organization at its general meeting. Papers have been drafted and require membership ratification.
• Brewery to Experiment in Colorado Rice-Growing, page 4. Coors Brewery is experimenting with growing short-grained rice in Colorado’s Grand Valley and later in the Arkansas Valley. The company hopes to use reclaimed alkaline land unsuitable for ordinary farming.
• Board Credit Union Prize Winners Announced, page 4. Winners of the Utah Central Credit Union savings contest received U.S. Savings Bonds of $200, $100, and $25. Members accumulated substantial new savings during the contest period.
• Contra Costa JACL Picnic and Scholarship Award, page 4. The Contra Costa JACL picnic will be held Sunday at Wildwood Acres in Lafayette with games, races, and entertainment. Eliengale Toki of El Cerrito will receive the chapter scholarship.
• Sequoia JACL Duplicate Bridge Tournament, page 4. The Sequoia JACL hosts a duplicate bridge tournament at the Palo Alto Buddhist Church with refreshments and prizes. Yae Kosiima and Hiroshi Honda are in charge of arrangements.

Military & Veterans

• Nisei Tearfully Accepts Commendation as Navy Communicator, page 1. David Kiyoshi Enomoto, who maintained radio communication in Hawaii after Pearl Harbor and was once suspected by friends of disloyalty, received a Navy commendation certificate at Kahului, Maui. The ceremony was held in Hawaiian style with a luau.
• Medal of Honor Memorial Commission Proposed, page 1. Rep. Spark Matsunaga introduced legislation to establish a Medal of Honor Memorial Commission to plan a permanent memorial displaying a plaque for each recipient. The Congress first instituted the medal in 1861, and there were 2,119 medalists through 1950.
• Russians ‘Shoot’ Nisei Off Vancouver Island, page 1. Nisei fisherman Harold Kimoto of Port Alberni was photographed by a Soviet trawler while trolling a few miles off the British Columbia coast. He believed the Soviet ship may have been used as a dragger based on markings on its side.
• Arlington Services Commemorating Nisei Veterans Reprinted in Congressional Record, by Masao Satow, page 4. Tributes to the Nisei in World War II were inserted into the Congressional Record by twenty-four congressmen. Chapters are being alerted to order reprints for distribution in their communities.

Commentary

• Desegregate and Integrate, by William Marutani, page 1. Marutani questions whether ‘desegregate’ is a meaningful goal, arguing it can imply a static middle ground rather than full integration. He reflects on how language shapes the civil rights debate.
• Racial Characterizations: Pro and Con, page 1. The column observes that favorable generalizations about racial groups are readily accepted while unfavorable ones provoke outrage, even from the groups themselves. It notes both kinds of generalizations rest on race.
• Considered Action vs. Gut Reaction, page 1. The column urges deliberate, considered action rather than emotional reaction in responding to Negro demonstrations for civil rights. It draws on the Nisei’s own experience to argue for disciplined advocacy.
• Is This Our Voice?, by Clifford Uyeda, page 2. A letter writer responds to Howard Imazeki’s column on civil rights, arguing that demonstrations and threats are the wrong method for achieving equality. The writer argues that persuasion through good citizenship is more effective.
• Equal Accommodations Title of Civil Rights Act Explained, by Mike Masaoka, page 3. Washington representative Mike Masaoka explains the public accommodations provisions of Title II of the 1963 Civil Rights Act. He outlines JACL’s support for equal accommodations and its preference for relying on the Fourteenth Amendment.
• Nisei Week Festival Preparations, page 4. Preparations for the Nisei Week Festival include odori practice sessions beginning July 23 at Hirohata Auto Park. Participants are asked to bring fans for the dance program.

National

• Color Not Test for Intolerance, Says Att’y-Gen. Kennedy, page 1. Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy told a Slovak Catholic convention that prejudice affects many groups, including Indians, Puerto Ricans, Mexicans, and people of Japanese, Chinese, and Philippine ancestry. He spoke on the barriers to the freedoms promised by the Declaration of Independence and Constitution.
• White Christians Lack Confidence of Colored Peoples, Says Kitagawa, page 1. Rev. Dalsuke Kitagawa told World Council of Churches representatives that colored peoples have expressed non-confidence in white Christian leadership. He said white Christians say one thing but do another.
• Truman Explains Use of A-Bomb to Student, page 2. Former President Truman answered a Japanese student’s question about dropping the atomic bomb, saying it was to save American and Japanese lives. He said he had given Japan an ultimatum before the bomb was used.
• Shin Nichibei Publisher Responds to Loren Miller on Civil Rights, by Saburo Kido, page 2. Saburo Kido responds to an editorial by Negro attorney Loren Miller criticizing Howard Imazeki’s position on civil rights. Kido recalls Miller’s longstanding support for Japanese American legal battles and reprints Miller’s rebuttal.

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