Open housing laws, civil rights and a new Nisei judge

Vol. 57, No. 17, October 25, 1963. 4 pages. View this issue

Fair housing and civil rights ran through much of this four-page issue. Pacific Citizen reported that Tacoma’s open housing law was ruled subject to a referendum, that Seattle’s proposed ordinance was headed to its City Council, and that seven complaints were filed in the first month of California’s Rumford Fair Housing Act. The front page also announced Governor Edmund Brown’s appointment of JACL member Mamoru Sakuma as a Sacramento municipal judge, the third Nisei he named to the bench. A New York Times editorial on the civil rights bill appeared on page 4.

Saburo Kido wrote about the farm labor question and braceros, and Larry Tajiri’s Vagaries column surveyed Americans of Japanese ancestry in opera. Pat Okura asked chapters to elect officers early, and Detroit named Marilyn Nagano its 1964 national JACL convention queen. Other items covered Jack Soo in Flower Drum Song and the film Crimson Kimono, set in Little Tokyo.

What’s in this issue

Community

• Gov. Brown Names Sakuma New Sacramento Judge, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Gov. Edmund Brown appointed attorney Mamoru Sakuma, a JACL member, to a newly created municipal judgeship in Sacramento. Sakuma is the third Nisei appointed to the bench by the governor in recent years.
• Sumitomo Bank Files for Eighth Office in Anaheim, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Sumitomo Bank of California filed an application for a branch in Anaheim, its fourth in Southern California. The bank also reported passing $111 million in total assets.
• Chicago Jr. JACL Elects Diane Yamada as 1964 President, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Diane Yamada was voted president of the Chicago Jr. JACL at its October 4 meeting. The new cabinet will be installed at the Chicago inaugural banquet November 30.
• Dayton JACL Float Wins Second Prize in Columbus Day Parade, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The Dayton JACL float, featuring a large red torii and girls in kimono, won second place among more than 200 entries in the annual Columbus Day parade. Richard Hance, float chairman, was commended for his work.
• Christmas Cheer Campaign Set to Start in Los Angeles, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Los Angeles area JACL chapters will sponsor the 16th annual Christmas Cheer drive with a goal of $3,000. Donations are tax deductible and can be sent to the JACL office.
• L.A. School Board to Evaluate ‘The Golden Road’, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The Los Angeles City Board of Education will form an evaluation committee to decide whether Reisenberg’s book The Golden Road, which contains anti-Nisei material from DeWitt’s report, should be made available to students. The book was first raised with National JACL late last year.
• Los Angeles Japanese Language School Group Proposes Cultural College, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Trustees of the Los Angeles Japanese Language School Unified System approved plans for a Japanese language and cultural college. Masaharu Mitani was named director with Dr. Yasumitsu Suginachi as dean.
• Nisei Campaign to Re-elect Judge Clarence Linn, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Dr. Terry Hayashi announced an American Committee for the reelection of Judge Clarence A. Linn with 23 prominent supporters. Judge Linn is the only bench officer with a Nisei court reporter on his staff.
• Guild Savings and Loan Association Chartered in Sacramento, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Guild Savings and Loan Association, the fourth mainland thrift under Japanese American control, was chartered in Sacramento and will open within six months. Attorney Dest Itano heads the directors.
• Real Estate Transactions Negotiated by Florin JACLer George Takehara, by P.C. Staff, page 3. George Takehara, a consultant with Lindsey and Co., negotiated real estate transactions totaling $1,825,000 in the Sacramento area. The deals included acreage sales, an FHA apartment complex, and a clay product plant.
• Placer County JACL Goodwill Dinner Plans, by P.C. Staff, page 4. Placer County JACL’s 23rd annual goodwill dinner will feature National President Okura and a cocktail hour, with Japanese dancers providing entertainment. Chapter president Harry Kawabata appointed committee chairmen.
• Akatombo Chorus Recital Postponed, by P.C. Staff, page 4. The Akatombo Chorus recital sponsored by East Los Angeles JACL, originally set for November 2, was rescheduled to December or January. The chorus is rehearsing with the San Francisco Opera Company.

National

• Tacoma Open Housing Law Ruled Subject to Referendum, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Pierce County Judge John P. D. Cochran ruled Tacoma’s open housing ordinance must go to a public vote because the City Council did not make it an emergency measure. The NAACP plans to appeal the decision to the state supreme court.
• Seattle’s Open Housing Ordinance Heads to City Council, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Seattle’s proposed open housing ordinance was scheduled for council hearing, with debate over whether it would carry an emergency clause. Opponents including the Seattle Real Estate Board and Apartment Operators Association were noted.
• New Michigan Constitution Supersedes Local Anti-Bias Housing Laws, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Michigan Attorney General Frank Kelley ruled that cities no longer have authority to pass civil rights ordinances, nullifying Ann Arbor’s fair housing law. The new state constitution reserves civil rights enforcement to the state.
• California Housing Law Draws Seven Complaints, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Seven complaints were filed under the Rumford Fair Housing Act in its first month, all by Negro applicants. The Fair Employment Practices Commission also received 60 employment discrimination complaints in the same period.
• Rights of Marchers Upheld Second Time by U.S. Supreme Court, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The Supreme Court overturned breach of the peace convictions of 373 Negro students arrested in an Orangeburg, South Carolina march. The Court ruled the convictions violated constitutional rights of assembly and petition.
• Nisei Pastor Believes Intermarriage Is Solution to Racial Problem, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Rev. W. M. Shinto of Evergreen Baptist Church argued at a Southern California Baptist symposium that intermarriage would be the ideal solution to racial problems. He also urged merging ethnic conventions and dropping ethnic labels from churches.

Military & Veterans

• Seattle Nisei Wins Biggest Suggestion Award by Army Group, by P.C. Staff, page 1. William K. Endo, traffic manager at the Seattle Army Transportation Corps Terminal, received a $1,265 award for a suggestion that saves the Army over $213,000 a year. It is the largest suggestion award ever made in the command’s Pacific area.

Commentary

• Problems Facing Farmers Dependent Upon Braceros Detailed, by Saburo Kido, page 1. Kido argues that domestic labor is not a practical replacement for braceros because seasonal farm work involves extreme heat and instability. He cites California figures showing braceros harvest large shares of major crops.
• Okura to Address Placer County Goodwill Dinner, by Roy Yoshida, page 1. National JACL President Patrick Okura will speak at Placer County JACL’s 23rd annual goodwill dinner in Penryn. Chairmen and committees for the event were also announced.
• Early Elections Asked for Chapter Officers, by Pat Okura, page 1. National President Pat Okura urges chapters to elect new officers before year’s end so they can take over in January. He argues early elections improve efficiency and reduce early-year lulls.
• Observation: Braceros and the Farm Labor Question, by Saburo Kido, page 2. Kido responds to farmer complaints about Pacific Citizen coverage of Rep. Matsunaga’s bracero statements, noting prominence does not equal endorsement. He argues that domestic labor is unreliable and that Issei farm workers once faced the same transitions.
• Vagaries: In the World of Opera, by Larry Tajiri, page 3. Tajiri surveys Americans of Japanese ancestry who have performed in opera, from Tamaki Miura to Toshiko Kanagawa, and notes few young Nisei singers now prominent. He observes that opera casting has opened to talent regardless of race.
• How Strong a Civil Rights Law?, by New York Times, page 4. The editorial, reprinted in the Pacific Citizen, critiques the Attorney General’s narrower civil rights bill proposals. It argues the bill should be strengthened with fair employment and public accommodations provisions rather than weakened.

JACL

• Marilyn Nagano Chosen 1964 National JACL Convention Queen, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Marilyn Nagano of Detroit was crowned queen of the 18th biennial National JACL Convention to be hosted by Detroit in July 1964. Attendants Sarah Shirane and Shirley Kinoshita were also named.

Incarceration & Redress

• U.S. Government Will Pay Property Claims From Pearl Harbor Bombing, by Larry Tajiri, page 3. Sen. Daniel Inouye said existing law allows federal payment of property damage claims arising from the Pearl Harbor attack, with filings accepted through July 1964. Civilian deaths and injuries in Honolulu were recounted through survivor accounts.

Arts & Entertainment

• Jack Soo Continues as Sammy Fong in Flower Drum Song, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Jack Soo has played Sammy Fong in Flower Drum Song at the Thunderbird Hotel in Las Vegas for 67 weeks and the run continues into November. He is also being sought for television pilots and was signed as a guest star on Red Skelton’s show.
• Crimson Kimono Released to Television, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Samuel Fuller’s 1959 film Crimson Kimono, set in Los Angeles’ Little Tokyo, is now airing on television across the country. It introduced James Shigeta as a Nisei detective investigating a murder.

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