Title II repeal at the House Rules Committee, and a Supreme Court citizenship ruling

Vol. 72, No. 15, April 16, 1971. 6 pages. View this issue

Efforts to repeal Title II of the Internal Security Act, the emergency detention law, ran through this six-page issue. Mike Masaoka reported that HR 234 had reached a showdown in the House Rules Committee, while a separate story covered the House Judiciary Committee’s unanimous vote and another summarized the majority and minority reports on HR 820. Another front-page story reported a 5-4 Supreme Court ruling that Congress may expatriate people who acquired citizenship abroad through citizen parents, which may affect Japan-born children of American citizens. National JACL President Raymond Uno wrote the “Here and There” column.

Elsewhere, Bill Hosokawa wrote about spring and sparrows in “From the Frying Pan,” and Bill Marutani argued for a Bar Association position on the Indochina war. Liz Uno wrote about the Calley conviction, and Lawson Fusao Inada answered a review of his poetry collection Before the War. Community news included funding for Seattle’s “Pride & Shame” exhibit and a planned art show from the relocation centers.

What’s in this issue

Commentary

• Here and There, by Raymond Uno, page 1. National JACL President Raymond Uno recounts local JACL members’ children’s success at a science fair and his travels and personal reflections. He also comments on politics, jogging, and the pollution of air travel.
• Title II repeal at showdown stage, by Mike Masaoka, page 2. Mike Masaoka reports that the Title II repeal bill has reached a showdown in the House Rules Committee, where Rep. H. Allen Smith’s vote may be decisive. He also introduces David Ushio as JACL’s new Washington assistant representative.
• From the Frying Pan, by Bill Hosokawa, page 3. Bill Hosokawa reflects on a week of heavy news and dissent, finding relief in spring gardening, fishing prospects, and the sparrows at his backyard pool. He concludes that it is pleasant to be irrelevant and unconcerned for a little while.
• Echoes of the Past, by Jim Henry, page 3. Jim Henry discusses the pronunciation and naming confusion of Tokyo’s Yamanote Line, which was once miscalled Yamate by foreigners during the U.S. occupation. He recounts how the name and its ticketing problems have caused amusing trouble for travelers.
• Calley conviction, by Liz Uno, page 5. Liz Uno condemns public support for Lt. William Calley after his conviction for murdering Vietnamese civilians, calling it an expression of racism that devalues Asian lives. She warns that such attitudes threaten Asian Americans at home as well.
• ‘Before the War’, by Lawson Fusao Inada, page 5. Poet Lawson Fusao Inada criticizes the reviewer Allan Beekman for failing to engage with his poetry collection Before the War, which he says addresses love, death, and injustice. He argues Japanese American books deserve fair and thorough coverage.
• Minnesotan sounds off!, by Jack John Takemoto, page 5. Jack John Takemoto argues that Japanese Americans remain quiet about discrimination and stereotypes despite high education levels. He urges the community to break stereotypes and speak up about their own experience in America.
• East Wind: Indochina War, by Bill Marutani, page 6. Bill Marutani, writing to Philadelphia lawyers, argues that the Bar Association should take a public position on American military involvement in Indochina. He contends the war violates constitutional war powers and the United Nations Charter.

National

• Yamashita statue in Singapore advocated, page 1. A Singapore Herald reader advocated erecting a statue to the late General Tomoyuki Yamashita for his role in Singapore’s liberation from Britain. The writer acknowledged Japanese atrocities while arguing Yamashita’s conquest would have been hailed as a triumph had he been American.
• Japan-born children of GIs lose opportunity for U.S. citizenship, page 1. The Supreme Court ruled 5-4 that Congress may expatriate persons who acquired citizenship abroad through citizen parents if they did not reside in the U.S. for five years before age 28. The decision may affect thousands of Japan-born children of American citizens, and JACL has long fought involuntary citizenship losses.
• Washington State Legislature airs private club liquor rights, page 1. Washington’s legislature is debating whether to end a 16.8 percent liquor discount for private clubs that exclude blacks. A state anti-bias board argues the discount is a racially discriminatory subsidy, and a federal lawsuit challenges it on Fourteenth Amendment grounds.
• Nixon nominates Korean American lawyer to U.S. appellate court, 9th Cir., page 1. President Nixon recommended Honolulu attorney Herbert Y.C. Choy for the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, which would make him the first Hawaii judge on that court. Choy was the first attorney of Korean ancestry in the United States and previously served as Hawaii’s Attorney General.
• New York City has its first Chinese commissioner, page 1. Chicago-born Chinese American lawyer Irving Sheu Kee Chin was installed on Mayor Lindsay’s human rights commission, the first person of Chinese descent to serve as a city commissioner in New York. Chin outlined Chinatown’s needs, including English instruction and a separate school district.
• Supreme court declines real estate license case, page 1. The U.S. Supreme Court declined to decide whether state real estate licensing boards must discipline salesmen who racially discriminate in showing property. The Wisconsin courts had ruled the board lacked power to revoke licenses for racial bias.
• Judiciary OKs HR 234, jurisdiction issue looms next in Rules decision, page 1. The House Judiciary Committee unanimously reported HR 234 to repeal Title II of the Internal Security Act of 1950, the emergency detention law. The bill’s next hurdle is the House Rules Committee, and JACL’s Washington office credited Chairmen Kastenmeier and Celler for the expedited action.
• San Francisco teachers’ strike appears racist, page 1. The Asian American Education Task Force opposed the San Francisco teachers’ strike as having racist undertones. The task force believes the strike reflects opposition to school board cuts in administrators, even though no minority administrator was demoted.
• Trust Territory official, page 1. Richard I. Miyamoto, a Hawaii island attorney, accepted a position as attorney for the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands. The brief item reports his appointment.
• Arena Stage denies racial bias in firing Nisei, page 1. Clifford Arashi was dismissed from the role of Su C in Arena Stage’s production of ‘Pueblo,’ and has filed a racial discrimination charge. Arena Stage denies bias, stating Arashi did not meet the role’s requirements, while George Takei urged the use of Asian actors from Los Angeles.
• Repeal Title II campaign: Judiciary OKs HR 234, page 2. HR 234, the bipartisan bill to repeal Title II of the Internal Security Act, was amended to bar detention of citizens except under an Act of Congress. The Judiciary Committee’s report says the Emergency Detention Act serves no useful purpose and engenders fear among citizens.
• Early congressional action to end Indochina war seen by Matsunaga, page 2. Rep. Spark Matsunaga expressed confidence Congress will act to end American military involvement in Southeast Asia, possibly by the end of the year. He cited the House Democratic Caucus resolution calling for withdrawal from Vietnam and release of prisoners.
• Asian caucus rejects Baptist Church stance, page 2. Asian members of the American Baptist Convention petitioned headquarters for funds for an Asian American Baptist Ethnic Strategy Convocation. They reject the denomination’s post-WWII assimilation stance, which they say caused loss of identity.
• 7 Orientals held in mass arrest, page 2. Los Angeles police arrested 38 people, including seven Orientals, in a mass arrest at Dorsey High School on drug and weapons charges. Police said the Yellow Brotherhood has been effective in curbing drug abuse among Asian American students there.
• ‘Title II’ campaign: HR 820 majority, minority reports, page 3. The House Internal Security Committee’s majority report urged amending rather than repealing Title II, while the minority views by Drinan and Pepper call for total repeal. The minority argued the Emergency Detention Act is unconstitutional and threatens free political association.

Community

• Portland Nisei initiated by Longview Elks Lodge, page 1. George Tsugawa of Kirkland, Wash., a Portland JACL 1000 Clubber, was initiated into the Longview Elks Lodge. The brief item reports the membership milestone.
• ‘Pride & Shame’ exhibit gets funds, page 1. The Seattle JACL’s ‘Pride & Shame’ exhibit on the 1942 evacuation received a National Endowment for the Humanities grant to travel through the Northwest. The exhibit drew nearly 35,000 viewers last summer at the Seattle Museum of History.
• Asian administrator sought to serve as Seattle Community College president, page 1. The Seattle JACL is helping recruit Asian candidates for the presidency of Seattle Community College’s central campus after the resignation of Dr. William Moore. The chapter outlined professional requirements and said the Asian community was asked to nominate qualified individuals.
• Bay Area Asians picket Crusade, page 1. The United Asian Community picketed the United Bay Area Crusade’s president, arguing Asians receive only three percent of Crusade funds despite comprising 16 percent of the city’s population. The group says the Crusade is white-controlled and wants its own voice in its decisions.
• Sumitomo exhibit set for San Jose, page 2. Historical artifacts from Northern California’s Japanese community are being sought for a Sumitomo Bank exhibit at the San Jose Historical Museum’s new Kelley Park home. The exhibit will celebrate the bank’s anniversary and run for half a year starting in July.
• Relocation camp art show planned for Sac’to fete, page 2. The 13th biennial Japanese Art and Flower Festival at the Crocker Art Gallery will include a special exhibit of art from the relocation centers. Organizers are seeking wartime camp artwork for the first local showing.
• Berkeley elections and school front capsules, page 2. Radical candidates swept Berkeley’s April 6 city elections, and Asian American candidates Ron Lau and James Loui were unsuccessful. The capsule also reports school personnel news and Robert Izumo’s passing of Tokyo University’s entrance exam.

Arts & Entertainment

• Music capsules: Fujikawa, Matsumoto, Takahashi, Akiyama, page 2. Mayumi Fujikawa made her American debut with the Philadelphia Orchestra, and soprano Shigemi Matsumoto received praise for her role in San Francisco’s ‘Don Pasquale.’ Other items note composer Yuji Takahashi’s premiere and conductor Kazuyoshi Akiyama’s Vancouver contract.

Obituaries

• Deaths: Gleno L. Hata and Harold C. Horiuchi, page 2. Army 1st Lt. Gleno L. Hata of Gardena was reported killed in action in Southeast Asia. Harold C. Horiuchi of Silver Spring, Md., who was active in the Washington JACL since 1946, died March 19.

In-Depth

• Japanese Americans: The Untold Story (rebuttal), page 4. The Riverside JACL Civil Rights Committee rebuts Stanford AASA’s critical reviews of the book Japanese Americans: The Untold Story. The rebuttal argues the critics are unfairly attacking Japanese American authors and questions the consistency of their standards.

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