Paul T. Bannai’s election to the California Assembly

Vol. 77, No. 1, July 6, 1973. 4 pages. View this issue

Voters in Los Angeles County’s 67th Assembly District elected Gardena councilman Paul T. Bannai in the June 26 special election, making him the first Japanese American elected to the California legislature, according to the front page. Nearby, Gov. Reagan named Robert M. Takasugi, a former National JACL legal counsel, to the East Los Angeles bench. Sen. Hiram Fong and Rep. Spark Matsunaga each took up Social Security credit for non-citizens held in WRA camps during World War II.

On page 2, the JACL interim board session covered the proposed $250,000 JACL Building in San Francisco’s Nihonmachi, and Harry K. Honda’s Editor’s Desk commented on it. Edison Uno was reinstated to his old job at UC-San Francisco. Page 3 carries Bill Hosokawa on post-war Japanese poetry, plus a review of Pale Ink, a book on early Asian voyages to the Americas.

What’s in this issue

Community

• Paul T. Bannai elected first Japanese American to California Legislature, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Gardena councilman Paul T. Bannai (R) won the June 26 special election for the 67th Assembly District, becoming the first Japanese American elected to the California legislature. He took office days later and traveled to Honolulu for the Nisei veterans reunion.
• Hon Aramaki named volunteer worker for Utah JACL chapters, by Tom Sutow, page 1. Salt Lake and Mt. Olympus JACL chapters jointly worked on developing an Asian American Center, with Hon Aramaki appointed as a UYA volunteer. Funds were secured through a federal grant to support community programming in Utah.
• Takasugi named to East Los Angeles bench, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Gov. Reagan appointed Robert M. Takasugi, a former National JACL legal counsel, to the municipal bench of the East Los Angeles judicial district. He succeeds Judge Myer B. Marion, who retired July 10.
• UC-San Francisco Medical School reinstates Edison Uno to old job, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Edison Uno, a controversial social reformer dismissed from a UCSF housing post, was reinstated with back pay after a personnel hearing panel recommended it unanimously. His dismissal had followed criticisms he made of the housing office.
• Asian American studies conference set July 6-8, by P.C. Staff, page 2. A conference on Asian American studies will bring together students, educators and community members for workshops and speakers. Mayor Sig Mineta is slated to welcome participants.
• Bill Hosokawa: Post-war Japanese poetry and avant-garde lyrics, by Bill Hosokawa, page 3. Hosokawa reviews a collection of post-war Japanese poetry translated into English, discussing the challenges of rendering visual and phonetic elements. He highlights the editors’ choices in selecting poems.
• Mosayoshi Ito, Sacramento physician, arrested for illegally prescribing drugs, by P.C. Staff, page 3. A Sacramento physician was indicted for illegally prescribing drugs to narcotics addicts and related misdemeanors. The investigation followed a grand jury inquiry into prescribing practices.
• Pale Ink: book argues Buddhist priest visited Americas centuries ago, by P.C. Staff, page 3. A review of Henriette Mertz’s book Pale Ink, which argues that Chinese explorers reached North America long before Columbus. The reviewer notes the scholarly skepticism the claims have faced.

National

• Social Security amends policy on WRA credits for non-citizen residents of WW2 camps, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Sen. Hiram Fong announced that non-citizen Japanese adults interned in WRA camps will be eligible for Social Security credits under a new administration policy. Fong had introduced a bill to amend the law after learning non-citizens were excluded.
• Matsunaga bill seeks Social Security equity, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Rep. Spark Matsunaga introduced legislation in the House to extend Social Security credit to Japanese American internees of WWII. The bill was introduced June 27 and would correct a gap affecting non-citizen internees.

JACL

• JACL Board approves guidelines for developing proposals to secure outside funding, by P.C. Staff, page 1. At its June 23 interim session in San Francisco, the National JACL Board adopted guidelines governing future external funding proposals, following community criticism of the Gerontology Project. The guidelines emphasize community participation and clear review procedures.
• Interim board session: JACL Building plans and public relations commission, by P.C. Staff, page 2. The National JACL interim board approved plans for a PR commission and advanced the $250,000 JACL Building project in San Francisco’s Nihonmachi. Board members also discussed boycotting Hilton hotels and building chapter support.

Commentary

• Editor’s Desk: Interim board session, by Harry K. Honda, page 2. The editorial praises the Board for responding to community questions with clear guidelines and suggests they be made standing rules in the JACL Constitution. It also comments on the Hilton boycott debate and the proposed JACL Building.
• Alien roundup, page 2. A letter writer condemns recent immigration raids on Chicano, Latino and Asian communities and draws parallels to the WWII incarceration of Japanese Americans. The writer urges vigilance against violations of civil rights.
• Letter from a reader on the aftermath of Pearl Harbor, page 2. A reader recalls how friends were arrested and held without trial after Pearl Harbor, stressing that due process was violated. The letter argues that the injustice was a betrayal of American ideals.

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