Drew Pearson’s attack on the Issei and the US-Japan trade talks

Vol. 65, No. 12, September 22, 1967. 6 pages. View this issue

A columnist’s claim about the Issei drew sharp replies in this six-page issue. Senator Hiram Fong defended Japanese immigrants against Drew Pearson’s charge that Social Security won them over to America, and Mike Masaoka wrote to the Washington Post citing the 442nd and the record of Hawaii volunteers. Masaoka’s Washington newsletter also covered the sixth Joint U.S.-Japan Committee on Trade and Economic Affairs, which ended with both sides pledging to work for liberalized world trade. National JACL President Jerry Enomoto wrote about meeting Congressman John Moss.

Also inside: the Kokufuku documentary, now in the JACL film library, a change in timing for the Dr. Mutsumi Nobe Memorial Scholarship, and Bill Hosokawa’s columns on a Colorado fruit harvest and mushroom season. Alan Kumamoto and Jeffrey Matsui wrote on the direction of JACL chapters, and May Nakano sent a letter to the editor.

What’s in this issue

JACL

• JACL Changes Dr. M. Nobe Scholarship Timing, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The Dr. Mutsumi Nobe Memorial Scholarship for graduate work will now be offered in the fall, with nominations due October 31, 1967. The $500 grant goes to a male student of Japanese American ancestry in biological or physical sciences or engineering.
• Mid-Year Treasurer’s Report, by Yone Satoda, page 6. Treasurer Yone Satoda reports that membership income reached 93.91 percent of the 1967 quota by June 30 and that the national budget is on track. The report notes that the $5 dues increase and expanded programs are key to the year’s finances.

Community

• Car Club Donates to East Los Angeles Fund, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The Mikado Car Club turned over $230 in Nisei Week carnival booth proceeds to the East Los Angeles JACL scholarship fund. Chapter president Ritsuko Kawakami accepted the donation.
• Downtown L.A. JACL to Realign Executive Board Responsibilities, by P.C. Staff, page 4. The Downtown Los Angeles JACL board approved reorganization recommendations creating an executive vice-president position and defining roles for four vice-presidents. Committee chairmen for recognitions and cultural relations were also proposed.
• Sansei Ends Project Pakistan, by P.C. Staff, page 4. Paulette Watanabe, a UC Santa Barbara student, describes her August study in East Pakistan. She observes the cultural and political differences between the two wings of Pakistan and student activism there.
• Chicago Shows Us How, by P.C. Staff, page 4. The writer praises the Chicago host committee for the EDC-MDC Convention, noting its community support, printed programs, and civil rights panel. The article also recognizes the Junior JACL delegates and Ambassadors.

Commentary

• Back Home, by Jerry Enomoto, page 2. National JACL President Jerry Enomoto recounts meeting Congressman John Moss in Sacramento and praises his consistent support for civil rights legislation. He also recognizes Min Yasui’s appointment in Denver and thanks outgoing district governors Kaz Horita and Hiro Mayeda while welcoming Warren Watanabe and Henry Tanaka.
• Washington Newsletter: Joint United States-Japan Meeting, by Mike Masaoka, page 2. Masaoka summarizes the sixth Joint U.S.-Japan Cabinet-ministerial Committee meeting in Washington and its delegations. He quotes Congressman Spark Matsunaga’s remarks on Foreign Minister Takeo Miki and Japan’s Asia-Pacific development program.
• Sen. Fong Defends Issei From Grossly Unfair Attack by Columnist, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Senator Hiram Fong denounced Drew Pearson’s column claiming Issei were won over to America by Social Security, calling it an affront to Japanese immigrants who sent sons to war. Fong also rebutted Pearson’s claims about his son’s marriage to a Nisei woman.
• Harvest Time, by Bill Hosokawa, page 3. Hosokawa describes his family’s struggle to grow peaches and apples in Colorado, finally harvesting a small crop after two fruitless years. He reflects on the gamble of farming in the state’s unpredictable climate.
• Mushroom Time, by Bill Hosokawa, page 3. Hosokawa notes that a dry August hurt Colorado’s mushroom season despite a wet spring. He describes dedicated hunters returning with stunted, wormy harvests.
• Chapter Programs, by Jeffrey Matsui, page 4. Matsui argues JACL chapters should reexamine programming to serve the wider Japanese American community rather than only members. He observes that most chapter activities remain inward-focused despite changed circumstances.
• The Old and the New, by Alan Kumamoto, page 4. Kumamoto urges young members to understand the existing JACL structure and its older leaders before seeking change. He calls for empathy and reasoned, concerted planning rather than unfounded revolution.
• Discrimination in Hawaii, by P.C. Staff, page 6. The editorial summarizes a Honolulu Advertiser series on subtle racial discrimination in Hawaii’s housing, business, churches, and armed forces relations. It notes that complaints of job bias came mostly from haoles, and that Hawaii is often seen as a model of racial harmony.
• Japan on the Move, by P.C. Staff, page 6. The editorial praises Foreign Minister Takeo Miki’s Asia-Pacific economic cooperation concept and Japan’s rising role as a world economic power. It notes Japan’s proposed increase in foreign aid and its counterbalancing role against Communist China.
• Mrs. May Nakano Letter: Distaff Static, by May Nakano, page 6. Mrs. Nakano writes to the editor complaining that the Pacific Citizen features almost exclusively male voices and images. She urges the paper to include thoughtful women’s perspectives.

National

• Mental Health Commission Adds Nisei to Board, by P.C. Staff, page 2. K. Patrick Okura was named to the Joint Commission on Mental Health of Children, which was created by Congress in 1965 to study childhood mental illness. Okura, a past JACL national president, suggested JACL consider mental health as a national humanitarian project.
• U.S.-Japan Trade Inventoried, Seek Liberalization in World Mart, by P.C. Staff, page 2. The sixth Joint U.S.-Japan Committee on Trade and Economic Affairs ended with both sides pledging to work for liberalized world trade. Officials discussed the Kennedy Round tariff reductions and protectionist pressures in the steel and textile industries.

Incarceration & Redress

• Kokufuku Documentary Added to JACL Film Library, by P.C. Staff, page 3. A San Francisco KRON-TV documentary on the evacuation and Nisei comeback, Kokufuku, is now available from JACL headquarters for chapter showings. The film recounts wartime losses and postwar reintegration, featuring commentary from Roger Baldwin and Masao Satow.

Military & Veterans

• JACL Resents Pearson Allegation Impugning Loyalty of U.S. Issei, by Mike Masaoka, page 3. Mike Masaoka wrote to the Washington Post objecting to Drew Pearson’s claim that the Issei lacked loyalty to the United States. He cited the record of Hawaii volunteers, the 442nd, and the absence of Japanese American espionage convictions.
• Albert Bonus, by P.C. Staff, page 6. The column recalls Albert Bonus, a generous non-Japanese supporter of Japanese Americans whose periodic contributions to National JACL sustained the organization during the war years. The writer urges readers to remember those who championed their cause.

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