Hawaii’s new Sansei GOP chairman and the Bakke case

Vol. 85, No. 10, September 2, 1977. 8 pages. View this issue

Carl K. Mirikitani, a 29-year-old Honolulu Sansei attorney, led the news when he was elected chairman of the Hawaii Republican Party, defeating Lee Gray 272-95 and becoming the youngest state GOP chairman in the nation. Also on the front page were the Justice Department’s expected stop short of full support for the University of California in the Allan Bakke case, with JACL signing a brief in total support of the university, and a California Assembly resolution proposing that twelve World War II sites be named National Historic Places. A $40,000 CETA grant for the Fresno Issei Service Center rounded out page one.

Inside this eight-page issue are columns by Bill Hosokawa and Sachi Seko, letters from Ben Matsumoto and Karl G. Yoneda, and the four 1977 JACL graduate scholarship winners. Other pages cover an NBC-TV series on Nikkei, a Seattle retirement seminar, and National Director Karl Nobuyuki’s visits to Peninsula chapters.

What’s in this issue

Community

• Hawaii GOP Picks Sansei State Chairman, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Carl K. Mirikitani, 29, a Honolulu Sansei attorney, was elected chairman of the Hawaii Republican Party, defeating businessman Lee Gray 272-95 at the May 29 convention. He becomes the youngest state GOP chairman in the nation, though the party faces an uphill battle against the Democrats.
• JACL Issei Center Receives $40,000 in CETA Funds, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The Fresno Issei Service Center, renamed to serve Nisei in their 60s and the disabled, received a $40,000 CETA grant to hire a full-time bilingual staff. The funds will support services for elderly Japanese in Fresno City and County.
• Cordova Board Tries to Censure Chairman, by Paul Mapes, page 1. A Folsom-Cordova school board effort to censure chairman Dave Marty over remarks favoring Christian-only religious instruction failed 3-2. The board later passed a nondiscrimination policy on a confused vote that was delayed for county counsel review.
• Gardeners Fight Water Use Plan, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Professional maintenance gardeners in Pasadena protested a proposed no-watering ordinance between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. that would mirror Los Angeles rules. The article is incomplete in the OCR text.
• Retirement Seminar in Seattle, by P.C. Staff, page 2. The Nikkei Community Retirement Coalition will hold a six-week seminar in Seattle on financial and legal aspects of retirement starting Sept. 6. Faculty and program topics include wills, annuities, Social Security, and Medicare.
• Discover Some Issei Unaware of Supplemental Security Income, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Fresno Nikkei Service Center reports many Issei are unaware of Supplemental Security Income, a federal program for needy elderly and disabled people. The article explains eligibility rules and the documents needed to apply.
• Spokane to Host PNW Meet, by P.C. Staff, page 2. The Pacific Northwest District Council will convene Sept. 10-11 in Spokane, with a potluck supper and a luncheon speech by National Director Karl Nobuyuki. Reparations discussion and committee reports are on the agenda.
• JACL-Blue Shield Explains Insurance Premium Delay, by P.C. Staff, page 2. JACL/California Blue Shield subscribers will receive their October quarterly dues notice at the end of September rather than the first of the month. The delay is due to contract renegotiation for a plan starting Oct. 1, 1977.
• Forum Called for Fresno Rest Home, by P.C. Staff, page 2. The Fresno JACL will hold a forum on Sept. 18 to discuss creating a community-sponsored rest home or retirement complex. Residents of the Fresno-Madera area are invited to attend a smorgasbord dinner beforehand.
• NBC-TV Series on Nikkei Scheduled in Four Cities, by P.C. Staff, page 3. A half-hour NBC-TV series, Japanese Americans: The Way We Are, moderated by JACL Midwest director Tom Hibino, will air in Washington D.C., Cleveland, New York, and Los Angeles in fall 1977. The series covers identity, culture, elderly issues, and the camps.
• Hayakawa Gets One Nod from ADA, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Americans for Democratic Action rated Sen. S.I. Hayakawa at 50% on civil rights and civil liberties for consistently opposing amendments restricting federal abortion funding. The article is brief.
• Mirikitani Continued: Hawaii GOP Chairman’s Plans, by P.C. Staff, page 3. New Hawaii GOP chairman Carl Mirikitani conceded past party mistakes and pledged to revitalize the party with meetings in all 27 representative districts. Columnist Mark Anderson notes his ancestry may help the GOP’s image but voters need bread-and-butter answers.
• Seabrook Sansei V.P. at Chase Manhattan, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Seiki Murono, born in Crystal City, Texas, was named a vice president of The Chase Manhattan Bank, serving in the Commercial Lending Group. He joined the bank in 1969 and holds degrees from Franklin and Marshall and American University.
• Calendar: Upcoming Events, by P.C. Staff, page 6. Chapters list upcoming events including barbecues, a cruise, a fashion show, the East Los Angeles scholarship ball, and Salt Lake’s Monte Carlo Night. Also noted is a Senior Citizens Appreciation Day in West Los Angeles.
• Nobuyuki Visits Four Peninsula Chapters, by P.C. Staff, page 7. National Director Karl Nobuyuki spoke to San Mateo, San Jose, Sequoia, and West Valley JACL chapters in Palo Alto on Aug. 9 about administration, services, and programs. He also raised concerns about the Japan-American Friendship Act trust fund.
• No. Calif. Volleyball Meet, by P.C. Staff, page 7. Marin County JACL will host the first NC-WNDC Volleyball Tournament on Sept. 11 at Terra Linda High School, with entries from a dozen chapters. The event is a friendly tournament intended to build district fellowship.

National

• Hawaii Nikkei ‘Interested’ in White House Call to FCC, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Hawaii cabinet member Wayne Minami has expressed interest in a possible White House appointment to the Federal Communications Commission, according to Sen. Daniel Inouye. His work lowering Hawaii-Mainland telephone rates may have drawn attention to him.
• Justice Dept. to Stop Short of Total U.C. Support vs. Bakke, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The Justice Department is expected to avoid fully backing the University of California in the Allan Bakke case before the Supreme Court. The JACL, meanwhile, has signed an amicus brief in total support of the university’s position.
• Cal. Assembly OKs Resolution Citing WCCA Centers, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The California State Assembly adopted a resolution co-authored by Assemblyman Mike Roos proposing that twelve WWII detention sites be designated National Historic Places. The resolution acknowledges the mass evacuation of Japanese Americans as significant in U.S. history.
• Test Census Added to Cover Chinatown in Lower Manhattan, by P.C. Staff, page 2. The Census Bureau announced a 1978 test census in lower Manhattan, including Chinatown, in response to criticism of incomplete minority counts in 1970. Asian American groups had also objected to ethnic categories on new census forms.

Military & Veterans

• Story of the Military Intelligence Service Language School, by P.C. Staff, page 2. A booklet on the Military Intelligence Service Language School at Camp Savage and Fort Snelling, Minnesota, 1942-45, is available for purchase. It recounts America’s secret weapon of Nisei linguists.

Commentary

• Human Rights, by Ben Matsumoto, page 4. Letter writer Ben Matsumoto urges the JACL to be vocal and aggressive on human rights after a school board member proposed Christian-only release time, saying ‘This country wasn’t founded on Buddha.’ He argues conservatism will not protect Nikkei rights.
• The King & I, by Letter from San Diego reader, page 4. A San Diego reader defends protests against Starlight Opera’s production of The King and I as racist and demeaning to Asian peoples. The letter responds to Joseph Halprin’s earlier letter calling such works innocent.
• Tamotzu Gallery, by Karl G. Yoneda, page 4. Karl Yoneda responds to Bill Hosokawa’s column on the Tamotzu Gallery, recalling Tamotzu’s early wartime anti-Axis activism in New York. He also notes Tamotzu did not serve with the Office of War Information.
• Short Notes, by Vaughn M. Greene, page 4. Vaughn Greene praises Sachiko Seko’s poetic writing and suggests she publish a collection of her essays. He particularly enjoyed her piece about her husband’s cake-making.
• Word of Wisdom for This Day, by Shoko Masunaga, page 4. A short aphorism warns that a man who preaches religious teaching without practicing it is like a cowman counting another’s cattle. The piece is a brief reflection.
• Permissiveness Spreading, by Sachi Seko, page 5. Columnist Sachi Seko, writing from Tokyo, reflects on President Carter’s proposal to liberalize marijuana penalties and the growing permissiveness toward drugs in America. She argues society should question the morality, not merely the legality, of drug use.
• ‘Bigamist’, Nisei Style, by Sachi Seko, page 5. A Salt Lake City writer humorously describes her husband’s 25-year devotion to his company IBM as a second wife, marking his quarter-century anniversary. She reflects on how he was among the first Nisei hired by IBM and how his career matured.
• Family from Flagstaff, by Bill Hosokawa, page 5. Bill Hosokawa profiles Bill and Mary Shimasaki of Flagstaff, Arizona, who worked abroad for AID for 17 years before retiring. He notes they and other Nikkei pursue interests beyond ethnicity.
• Marijuana and Japanese Gangsters, by Sachi Seko, page 8. Sachi Seko continues her column on drug permissiveness, noting that Americans arrested abroad often face severe penalties and that Japanese gangster groups are major local drug sources. She contrasts Japan’s strict laws with more lax foreign countries.

JACL

• 4 JACL Graduate Scholarships Awarded, by P.C. Staff, page 4. Four recipients of the 1977 National Graduate Scholarships were announced by JACL Interim Youth Director Rich Okabe. Caryl Hashitani, Jane Kawasaki, John Yamamoto, and Dianne Arakawa were selected from 41 applicants based on scholarship, activities, and need.

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