Vol. 84, No. 3, January 28, 1977. 8 pages. View this issue
President Ford’s pardon of Iva Toguri d’Aquino led the news in this eight-page issue. Attorney Wayne Collins said it was the first full and unconditional pardon for a treason conviction. Clifford Uyeda of the Committee for Iva Toguri and Sen. Hayakawa responded, and the editorial page looked at the pardon alongside President Carter’s pardon of draft resisters. The front page also reported the verdict in the Wendy Yoshimura trial in Oakland, with Lee Ruttle covering the reaction from her supporters on page 3.
The paper also mourned Edison Uno. Bill Marutani wrote about his column, and a letter from the Orange County JACL honored his work on redress. Other pages carried news of vandalism at the Topaz monument, an eviction date for the JACL and Pacific Citizen offices, and Bill Hosokawa’s column on Moses Lake. Lee Ruttle reviewed a Yoshiko Uchida children’s book, and Jean Sanders profiled jazz musician Toshiko Akiyoshi.
What’s in this issue
National
- Ford Pardons Iva Toguri, First Treason Case Voided, by P.C. Staff, page 1. President Ford granted a full and unconditional pardon to Iva Toguri d’Aquino, known as Tokyo Rose, on Jan. 19. Attorney Wayne Collins said it was the first such pardon in U.S. history for a treason conviction.
- Law Strips Issei of $87,000 in Property, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Onatsu Akiyama and her husband were classified as enemy aliens under the Trading with the Enemy Act because they returned to Japan three months too early, losing about $87,000 in property. The JACL is being asked to help determine how many other Japanese Americans were affected.
- Suburban Zoning Upheld by Court, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The Supreme Court ruled 5-3 that a nearly all-white Chicago suburb’s zoning restrictions were not unconstitutional without proof of discriminatory intent. In a separate order, the court struck down a New York law requiring private contractors on government jobs to hire citizens over aliens.
- Press Lauds Carter’s Appointment of Patsy Mink, But Asian/Pacific Americans Criticize Exclusion, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Former Rep. Patsy Mink was nominated as assistant secretary of state for ocean and environmental affairs, and Hawaii newspapers praised the appointment. However, a coalition including the JACL criticized President-elect Carter for failing to appoint Asian Pacific Americans to his administration as promised.
- Ford Pardons Tokyo Rose (continued), by P.C. Staff, page 3. JACL acting director Donald Hayashi and Sen. Hayakawa praised the pardon, and Dr. Clifford Uyeda called it a correction of a major miscarriage of justice. Iva Toguri, now 60 and living in Chicago, said she maintained her innocence from the beginning.
- Tamura Among 7 to Probe Judge’s Job Competence, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Appellate judge Stephen K. Tamura was selected by lot to serve on a seven-man tribunal deciding whether state supreme court justice Marshall McComb should be removed for senility. Tamura is an active Orange County JACL member.
Incarceration & Redress
- Wendy Yoshimura Found Guilty on Three Counts, by Lee Ruttle, page 1. A jury in Oakland found Wendy Yoshimura guilty on three counts of the indictment after nine days of deliberation, with a mistrial declared on the fourth count. Judge Pulich denied the prosecutor’s request to remand her and set sentencing for Feb. 24.
- Vandals Strike at Topaz Monument, by P.C. Staff, page 1. A marker dedicating the Topaz WWII Japanese relocation site was vandalized with rifle holes and one large plaque was torn from the monument. The sheriff’s department is offering a reward for information leading to an arrest.
- Yoshimura Trial Continued: Supporters Stunned, by Lee Ruttle, page 3. Spectators and friends of Wendy Yoshimura were stunned after the jury verdict, and the defense said it would appeal on the basis of judicial errors. Prosecutor Horner said the verdict proved the judicial system works, and a juror said she was pressured into the guilty verdict.
Community
- Merit Savings Assets Up Sharply, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Merit Savings reported record assets of $43,624,320 as of Dec. 31, 1976, and record new customer deposits of $8,039,530. The institution financed 276 homes and apartments in Los Angeles and Orange counties.
- Buddhist Retreat Center Dedicated, by P.C. Staff, page 2. The retreat center adjacent to the San Luis Obispo Buddhist Temple was dedicated Dec. 19 by Bishop Kenryu Tsuji. The first of several planned cabins was built by Harry Shimamoto and temple volunteers.
- Eviction Date for JACL-PC Offices Extended to May 31, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Tenants of the Sun Hotel next door face eviction Feb. 28 as the CRA clears the site for the New Otani Hotel. JACL and Pacific Citizen offices in the adjacent Sun Building may remain through May 31 pending interim facilities.
- San Mateo JACL Granted $9,000 to Work With Asian Immigrants, by P.C. Staff, page 7. The San Mateo Community Foundation awarded the San Mateo JACL a $9,000 grant to continue its work with Tongan and Vietnamese immigrants. The grant was among the largest of eight distributed by the foundation.
Commentary
- Camp Newspapers Go on Display, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Newspapers published by evacuees in WRA relocation centers are on display at Cal State Northridge’s Oviatt Library through Feb. 15. The exhibit is titled The Great Betrayal and includes material on the camps.
- Presidential Pardons, by P.C. Staff, page 4. The editorial welcomes the pardon of Iva Toguri d’Aquino and notes JACL’s earlier cautious stance during her trial. It also discusses President Carter’s controversial pardon of draft resisters and recalls the case of Tomoya Kawakita.
- Hosokawa Column Derogatory Terms, by George Herman, page 4. A reader praises Bill Hosokawa’s column on how Pacific Citizen readers are perceived and calls for human unity in the nuclear age. The letter urges people to set aside grudges and value shared humanity over differences.
- Japlish Letter, by John V. Wilcox, page 4. A letter responds to a previous reader’s objection to the term Japlish, comparing it to Finglish and arguing immigrant groups commonly blend their languages with English. The writer notes the parallel between Jap and Finn as terms.
- From the Frying Pan: Moses Lake Country, by Bill Hosokawa, page 4. Hosokawa recounts how Harry Masto considered settling Japanese Americans at Moses Lake during the 1942 evacuation, a plan that never materialized. Masto later built a successful farming and shipping business there, which he credits in part to the evacuation experience.
- Chiaroscuro: Muscle Lacking Where It Counts, by Chiye Tomihiro, page 5. The Chicago JACL president argues that Asian Americans are highly educated yet underrepresented in corporate management, showing a lack of economic and political muscle. She urges strong JACL chapters and broader membership to build solidarity.
Obituaries
- Edison Uno, by Ken Hayashi, page 4. A letter from the Orange County JACL honors Edison Uno’s courage and accomplishments in human rights, including his work on redress and the Iva Toguri pardon. The writer calls for a true activist leader to succeed him as national JACL director.
- In Appreciation, by Rosalind K. Uno, page 4. The Uno family thanks everyone who sent expressions of love, concern, and sympathy following Edison Uno’s death on Dec. 24, 1976. They express gratitude for the support they have received during this difficult time.
- East Wind: R.I.P. Minority of One, by Bill Marutani, page 5. Bill Marutani reflects on the death of Edison Uno, whose column Minority of One he had long read. He describes Uno as a rare person of integrity who quietly pressed others to face moral issues.
Arts & Entertainment
- Yoshiko Uchida’s 19th Book, by Lee Ruttle, page 5. Lee Ruttle reviews Yoshiko Uchida’s children’s book The Rooster Who Understood Japanese, a simply told story about a girl who solves a neighbor’s problem with a crowing rooster. The reviewer praises the illustrations and the way the book introduces Japanese customs.
- PC’s People: Toshiko Akiyoshi, by Jean Sanders, page 8. Jazz musician Toshiko Akiyoshi is profiled as the first woman in jazz history to compose and arrange an entire library of music and lead her own band. The piece notes her album Long Yellow Road won jazz album of the year and discusses her reception among Japanese Americans.
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