The push to repeal Title II and the debate over Bill Hosokawa’s book title

Vol. 69, No. 12, September 19, 1969. 6 pages. View this issue

The campaign to repeal Title II of the Internal Security Act, the law that allowed detention camps, ran through this six-page issue. Culver City councilmen voted 4-1 to urge repeal, the Pasadena Human Relations Committee voted 6-2 for it, and the Denver Post ran an editorial in support. Rep. John Moss told the Sacramento chapter that Congress would pass repeal. JACL National President Jerry Enomoto wrote about Moss and about gathering Issei Story data for the Centennial.

The argument over the title of Bill Hosokawa’s book on Japanese in America continued, with Hosokawa calling a boycott threat censorship and Harry K. Honda defending the author’s right to choose. Also here: Mike Masaoka’s remembrance of Senator Everett Dirksen, a JACL survey of civil service job bias, youth representation in JACL, and Harry Takagi’s note on the Rohwer cemetery memorial dedication set for November 30.

What’s in this issue

Community

• Perspectives, by By JERRY ENOMOTO, page 1. JACL National President Jerry Enomoto urges chapters to submit Issei Story data for the Centennial and praises Rep. John Moss’s voting record. He reminds chapters of the September 1 deadline while noting Haruo Ishimaru is still accepting submissions.
• Japan Day Planned for San Diego’s 200th, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The House of Japan will present a Japan Day celebration on September 21 at the House of Pacific Relations in Balboa Park. The program includes kabuki and folk dances, koto and samisen performances, and exhibits on flower arrangement and bonsai.
• Bank of Tokyo Opens Mid-Peninsula Branch, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Ichiro Matsudaira, board chairman of the Bank of Tokyo, officiated at the opening of the bank’s Mid-Peninsula office in Los Altos. The branch at 4600 El Camino Real is the tenth in the statewide banking organization.
• Pulse on the Chapters: Rep. Moss Tells Sacramento JACLers Congress Will Pass Title II Repeal, by P.C. Staff, page 4. Rep. John Moss told the Sacramento JACL chapter that Congress will pass repeal of the Emergency Detention Act and discussed Okinawa reversion and school desegregation. He expressed opposition to the act as violating constitutional due process.
• You’ve Come a Long Way, Baby, by Patti Dohzen, page 4. Patti Dohzen reflects on the progress of women’s rights since women gained the vote, while noting that attitudes toward equality have lagged. She describes how Asian women’s workshops have raised awareness but not produced firm results.
• Greater Representation Sought for Youth in JACL, by Alan Kumamoto, page 4. The National Youth Commission met and proposed expanded youth representation on JACL boards, a year-round Youth Field Program, and voting rights for District Youth Commissioners. The proposals aim to give youth greater responsibility within JACL.
• SF Recreation Park Commission Slights Chinatown, by P.C. Staff, page 4. A San Francisco Chinatown resident filed suit to block a $9 million recreation bond issue, alleging the city discriminates against Chinatown in park allocation. The complaint says Chinatown has far less recreational land per person than the rest of the city.

National

• Culver City in Support of Title II Repeal, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Culver City councilmen voted 4-1 to urge Congress to repeal Title II of the Internal Security Act after hearing Dr. Harold Harada of the Human Relations Commission speak in favor. Councilman Richard Pachtman noted similar resolutions adopted in San Francisco and Los Angeles.
• Nixon-Sato Talks on ‘Quiet American’ Controversy; Okinawa Due Nov. 19, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Prime Minister Eisaku Sato will visit President Nixon November 19-21 to decide a possible date for Okinawa’s reversion to Japan, according to Foreign Minister Kiichi Aichi. Aichi said Japan hopes to regain Okinawa free of nuclear weapons.
• Denver Post Editorial for Title II Repeal, Urges Hearings, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The Denver Post editorially supported repeal of Title II (Emergency Detention Act) and called for public hearings. The editorial noted the JACL campaign and the 1968 House Un-American Activities Committee recommendation to use the camps again.
• Job Discrimination, Especially in Promotion of Nisei, JACL Survey, by P.C. Staff, page 2. JACL initiated a survey of local, county and state civil service hiring and promotion practices affecting Japanese Americans, according to national civil rights coordinator Raymond Uno. The effort follows a U.S. Commission on Civil Rights report finding that minority groups lacked equal job opportunities in government.
• Title II Aimed at ‘Red’ Conspiracy Says Pasadenan, by Larry Palmer, page 3. The Pasadena Human Relations Committee voted 6-2 to recommend repeal of Title II of the Internal Security Act after a JACL presentation. Dr. Bob Suzuki, chairman of the PSWDC Ad Hoc Committee, argued the act allowed imprisonment without proof of guilt.
• Jobs and Bias: Nisei Quiet, by Lyn Shepard, page 3. A Christian Science Monitor series reports that Japanese Americans in California face subtle job bias, particularly at promotion time, though complaints are rarely filed. JACL’s Masao Satow and others suspect racial barriers remain in executive advancement.
• Editorial: Bar Detention Camps, by P.C. Staff, page 3. The Denver Post editorial urges Congress to repeal the Internal Security Act provisions authorizing detention camps. It notes that camps were prepared in several states from 1952 to 1958 and that the JACL bill has broad congressional support.

Commentary

• Boycott Threat Called Censorship, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Bill Hosokawa rejected an August JACL Ethnic Concern Committee threat to boycott his book unless its ‘Quiet American’ title was changed, calling it censorship. The controversy over the title of his 100-year history of Japanese in America continues.
• Washington Newsletter: Senator Everett Dirksen, by Mike Masaoka, page 2. Mike Masaoka remembers Senator Everett Dirksen, who died September 7, as a skilled legislative leader whose key role in passing the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and nuclear test ban treaty was notable. Masaoka also recounts Dirksen’s sympathetic but sometimes opposing record on JACL legislative priorities.
• From the Frying Pan: Detention Camps, by Bill Hosokawa, page 3. Bill Hosokawa responds to a reader’s letter defending the wartime evacuation by recounting a claim of pre-war Japanese American sabotage. He argues that such claims are baseless and that Earl Warren’s logic was flawed.
• Rohwer Cemetery Memorial to Be Dedicated Nov. 30, by Harry Takagi, page 6. The Rohwer, Arkansas cemetery-memorial dedication was rescheduled to November 30, 1969, with participation by public officials and screenings of Go For Broke. Takagi suggests JACL representation at the ceremony.
• Editorial: Free Speech and the Hosokawa Title, by Harry K. Honda, page 6. The editorial defends the right of author and publisher to choose the title of Hosokawa’s book while acknowledging the community’s objections. It invokes the First Amendment and Milton’s Areopagitica to argue against censorship.
• Letter: Dealt a Winner!, by Shig Wakamatsu, page 6. Shig Wakamatsu, chairman of the JACL Japanese History Project Committee, corrects a press report that the committee demanded the ‘Quiet Americans’ title. He states the committee only recommended a course of action.
• Letter: Kitano Book, by Frank K. Kawase, page 6. Frank Kawase recommends Harry Kitano’s book on Japanese American subculture, citing its discussion of enryo and related cultural concepts. He says the book helped him understand his own behavior.
• Accent on Youth: Support Resources, by Alan Kumamoto, page 6. Alan Kumamoto reflects on a busy summer of youth program activities and the growing awareness among Asian Americans of their role in society. He emphasizes the importance of community support resources for youth.

Sports

• Bowling: Thumb First or Finger First?, by Gary Yamauchi, page 5. Gary Yamauchi compares the thumb-first and finger-first methods of inserting fingers into a bowling ball. He argues bowlers should experiment with grip and understand how each approach affects their game.

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