Shogun’s author and a debate over intermarriage and culture

Vol. 84, No. 15, April 22, 1977. 8 pages. View this issue

Author James Clavell was announced as the Saturday luncheon speaker for the third biennial JACL Tri-District Conference in Reno, where he would explain how he wrote his bestseller “Shogun.” Karl Nobuyuki, the newly appointed national JACL executive director, was also set to attend the conference. Other front-page news covered the Heiwa Terrace senior apartments in Chicago, site preparation for the Japanese American Cultural and Community Center in Los Angeles, and Santa Ana Councilman Harry Yamamoto’s re-election.

The opinion pages carried a lively exchange on intermarriage and heritage, with letters from Ivy Makabe Down, Valerie Ooka Pang and Reid D. Allen. Columns by Bill Hosokawa, Joe Oyama, Jon Inouye and Shoko Masunaga followed. Elsewhere, Rich Okabe wrote about the JAYs youth program, and the issue reported on the first quarterly dividends from the JACL Credit Union and on a young woman entering the U.S. Naval Academy.

What’s in this issue

Community

• Tri-District to Hear Author of ‘Shogun’, by P.C. Staff, page 1. James Clavell was announced as the Saturday luncheon speaker for the third biennial JACL Tri-District Conference in Reno. He will discuss how he wrote his bestselling novel ‘Shogun.’
• Heiwa Terrace Needs Funds, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The Japanese American Service Committee is raising funds for Heiwa Terrace, a 200-unit senior apartment complex in Chicago. As of March 18, $92,921.10 had been raised toward a goal of up to $150,000.
• $2.5 Million JACCC Building Site Prepared, by P.C. Staff, page 1. A parking lot in Los Angeles is being prepared for groundbreaking on the first building of the $9-million Japanese American Cultural and Community Center complex. The five-story building is expected to become the nerve center for Southern California’s Japanese community.
• Santa Ana Nisei Councilman Stays, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Santa Ana City Councilman Harry Yamamoto was re-elected in the April 5 primaries. He had earlier lost a county supervisor race last November.
• First Sansei Lass at Annapolis, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Elizabeth Sternaman of Huntington Beach became one of the first women admitted to the U.S. Naval Academy, class of 1980. She describes the demanding plebe year and her plans to serve in the Navy.

JACL

• Nobuyuki: JACL Must Affect Not Only Nikkei But Everyone, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Karl Nobuyuki, appointed national JACL executive director, is attending the Tri-District Conference to meet members and staff. He describes his goal of pulling the organization together and conveying JACL’s human rights work to the wider public.
• JACL Credit Union Posts First Quarterly Dividends, by P.C. Staff, page 2. The National JACL Credit Union paid quarterly dividends for the first time, exceeding $40,000. Treasurer-manager Al Oshita and president Tak Ushio discussed the credit union’s growing services.

Commentary

• Asian Studies, by Ivy Makabe Down, page 4. Ivy Makabe Down responds to Barry Saiki’s article on intermarriage by urging Nisei to teach Japanese cultural heritage and push schools for Asian studies courses. She argues that JACL should actively press for these programs rather than lament intermarriage.
• Ethnic Disaster, by Valerie Ooka Pang, page 4. Valerie Ooka Pang criticizes Jon Inouye’s view that interracial marriage will lead to extinction of Japanese Americans as racist. She urges parents to share Japanese American culture with their children.
• Peopling a Nation, by Reid D. Allen, page 4. Reid Allen argues that immigrants should embrace the new country’s culture while preserving their heritage, and that families can build bridges between cultures. He writes that a diverse world family of nations benefits from such understanding.
• In Cambodia, by P.C. Reader (name not stated), page 4. A letter writer notes that the new book ‘Murder of a Gentle Land’ describes the slaughter of over a million Cambodians. The writer observes that few people they polled were aware of the genocide.
• Bilingual/Bicultural, by Betty Kukita Perry, page 4. Betty Kukita Perry criticizes bilingual programs in public schools, arguing they force children to lose English proficiency and waste resources. She questions whether lawmakers understand the consequences.
• Just About Youth, by Rich Okabe, page 4. Rich Okabe, interim national youth director, recounts how the JAYs program shaped his identity and leadership as a young Japanese American. He defends the continued value of JAYs despite doubts about its relevance today.
• West Wind: Built-in Antennas, by Joe Oyama, page 5. Joe Oyama recounts surviving prejudice in the 1920s and 1930s and argues that Nisei developed sharp instincts for detecting hidden bias. He responds to actor Richard Jordon’s racial slur about the Japanese on television.
• Plain Speaking: Let’s Talk ‘Fingliska’, by Bill Hosokawa, page 5. Bill Hosokawa discusses his use of the term ‘Japlish’ and the reaction it provoked from readers. He then draws parallels between Finnish American and Japanese American immigrant speech, both borrowing English words and pronouncing them in their native way.
• For Today & Tomorrow: The Carter Administration, by Jon Inouye, page 5. Jon Inouye assesses the early Carter administration as offering ‘guarded optimism,’ noting disappointment over few Asian Americans in top posts but hope from candidates being considered. He also describes tensions between Congress and the President over water projects and the tax rebate.
• The Nisei and the Sansei, by Shoko Masunaga, page 5. Shoko Masunaga reflects on the Nisei generation’s legacy of hardship and achievement, noting that the Nisei are aging and the Sansei are their inheritors. She argues that bridging generational communication is essential.

Obituaries

• Ed Takahashi, by P.C. Staff, page 6. Spokane JACL mourned the accidental death of Ed Takahashi, 36, a past president and ten-year board member. He had served on several civic committees including the school district and police department.

Military & Veterans

• Gen. Herron Defended Hawaii’s Japanese Community During WW2, by P.C. Staff, page 8. Retired Lt. Gen. Charles D. Herron celebrated his 100th birthday in Honolulu. He was credited with defending Hawaii’s Japanese American community during World War II when California Nikkei were being incarcerated.

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