Vol. 86, No. 18, May 12, 1978. 12 pages. View this issue
Redress led this 12-page issue. JACL’s Reparations Committee met in San Francisco and drafted a proposal for individual payments and a trust fund, covering about 120,000 eligible people, to go before the National Council at the Salt Lake City convention. On page 4, Clifford L. Uyeda, chairman of the National Committee for Redress, explained why the committee preferred the word redress. The front page also reported that Patsy Mink and David Ushio had left high-level Carter Administration posts, and Harry Takagi spoke of a void to be filled.
Other pages carry columns by Bill Hosokawa, Bill Marutani, Karl Nobuyuki and Miles Hamada, plus letters on the Bakke case. K.W. Lee’s feature on Chol Soo Lee and a front-page profile of Ko Mayeda, an Issei who ran a Hartford gift shop, are also inside. Chapter news covers Contra Costa and Riverside scholarships, and the Hayashi Law Scholarship opened for applications.
What’s in this issue
National
- Reparations Proposal Takes Shape: JACL Committee Outlines Individual Payments and Trust Fund, by P.C. Staff, page 1. JACL’s Reparations Committee met in San Francisco to draft a proposal covering all persons of Japanese ancestry detained or living in the Western Defense Command area, with about 120,000 eligible. The plan combines individual payments with a trust fund, to be presented to the National Council at the Salt Lake City convention.
- Asian Americans Lose Key Carter Administration Posts as Mink and Ushio Depart, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Patsy Mink and David Ushio have left high-level Carter Administration posts, leaving few Asian Americans in federal decision-making roles. JACL’s Harry Takagi and others voiced concern over the loss of Asian American representation in the administration.
Community
- Ko Mayeda: Connecticut Issei a Cover Girl, by Gerald Demeusy, page 1. Ko Mayeda, an 83-year-old Issei woman, ran an oriental gift shop in Hartford from 1935 to 1968 and remains active as a volunteer arts teacher. Her wartime experiences, including FBI questioning and later work as an interpreter, are recounted alongside her community honors.
- Tipster on S.F. Shootings Revealed, by P.C. Staff, page 2. An 18-year-old Chinese immigrant who gave police information about the Chinatown restaurant massacre was held in a suburban jail, and eight youths have been arrested. A defense group was also formed for Chol Soo Lee.
- Calendar, Pulse and Memos, by Miles Hamada, page 6. National JACL staff updates cover the extended Biennium nominations deadline, personnel changes, public relations events, and membership numbers. Upcoming orientation meetings and youth convention workshops are also noted.
- Riverside JACL Honors Six Graduates, by P.C. Staff, page 8. The Riverside JACL will honor six area high school graduates at a May 20 potluck dinner. Scholarship awards totaling $850 are being shared among the honorees.
- Paul Wada Memorial Scholarship Established for Bay Area Law Graduate, by P.C. Staff, page 9. A scholarship fund has been created in memory of Paul Wada, a USF law student slain in Chinatown, to support a Bay Area law graduate committed to minority and low-income communities. The award will help the recipient prepare for the bar exam.
- KPIX Regrets ‘Dolphin Burgers’ Remark After JACL Protest, by P.C. Staff, page 10. KPIX’s producer apologized after JACL objected to a remark about dolphin burgers made on the Evening Show during Cherry Blossom Festival coverage. The station said it would clarify the matter on air.
Obituaries
- Chol Soo Lee: The Americanization of Chol Soo Lee, by K.W. Lee, page 2. This Sacramento Union feature, reprinted in the Pacific Citizen, traces the life of Korean-born Chol Soo Lee, serving a life term for a 1973 Chinatown killing he may not have committed. It follows his troubled immigration, institutionalization, and mistreatment in the California juvenile system.
Incarceration & Redress
- Change to ‘Redress’, by Clifford L. Uyeda, page 4. Uyeda, chairman of the JACL National Committee for Redress, explains why the committee prefers the term redress over reparation. He argues that redress better serves the campaign by avoiding the emotional baggage of war-related payments.
Commentary
- Have We Really ‘Arrived’?, by H.H., page 4. The editorial challenges the model minority stereotype of Japanese Americans, citing Petersen’s 1966 article and newer generational studies showing rising intermarriage and social problems among Sansei. It argues that subtle racism still limits Japanese Americans in higher government and industry positions.
- An Insensitive Attitude, by Chiye Tomhiro, page 4. The author recounts a ski-trip conversation in which a neighbor dismissed the trauma of wartime evacuation. The incident prompts reflection on how much JACL still has to do in public relations and education.
- Lessons from Grandfather, by Miles Hamada, page 4. Hamada recalls how his grandfather taught him Japanese pride and perseverance while he grew up as a minority in America. He concludes that community support and ethnic pride remain important and wishes to pass the same values to his children.
- East Wind: Breaker One-Nine, Breaker, by Bill Marutani, page 4. Marutani describes his new citizens-band radio and the courteous jargon of CB drivers during traffic. He also notes the theft risk of CB radios and the attraction of the device for light-hearted reflections.
- Process & Participation, by Karl Nobuyuki, page 5. JACL’s executive director argues that how the organization pursues its goals matters as much as which issues it chooses. He calls for committed leadership, participation, and action in the coming biennium.
- Keeping in Touch, by Bill Hosokawa, page 5. Hosokawa describes how a Pacific Citizen item helped Peggy Varvandakis Smith reconnect with former Nisei friends from Hanna, Wyoming. He reflects on how Japanese Americans stay connected across distances through their shared heritage.
- Letters: Bakke Case, Fifth Generation, Dates in April, Short Notes, by Various, page 6. Readers debate affirmative action and the Bakke case, question a genealogy claim about a Yonsei, and note omissions in April commemorations. Letters also address a post-war apology issue and a business relations series.
- Bakke Controversy Continues Among Readers, by Fred Y. Hirasuna, page 6. Hirasuna closes a debate with CCDC over the Bakke case, arguing that race-based admissions are wrong and that preentry courses and financial aid are better remedies. He criticizes the CCDC resolution’s rhetoric.
JACL
- Contra Costa Chapter Plans Picnic, Golf and Scholarship Awards, by P.C. Staff, page 8. The Contra Costa JACL announced its July picnic, a May golf tournament, and four 1978 chapter scholarship recipients. The chapter’s Issei Appreciation dinner drew nearly 250 people.
- Hayashi Law Scholarship Applications Open Until July 15, by P.C. Staff, page 9. The JACL Thomas T. Hayashi Law Scholarship offers two $500 awards, one merit-based and one need-based, to entering law students. Applications are due July 15, 1978.
Sports
- Kajikawa Ending 45 Years on Campus, by P.C. Staff, page 11. Bill Kajikawa is being honored at a May 24 dinner for his 45 years at Arizona State athletics as a coach and phys-ed faculty member. He is among the best-known Nisei athletes and coaches.
- A Liberated Garlic, by George Yoshinaga, page 11. Yoshinaga humorously describes a Japanese farmer’s reported invention of odorless garlic and speculates on its aphrodisiac claims. He also mentions the garlic eating habits of Japanese boxers.
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