Redress bill in the House and a golden anniversary ahead

Vol. 89, No. 62, September 28, 1979. 8 pages. View this issue

Redress was the main business of this eight-page issue. House leaders agreed to introduce a counterpart to S. 1647, which would create a fact-finding commission on Executive Order 9066. In an editorial, John Tateishi urged JACL members to write their Congressmen, and the letters page carried differing views on commissions, individual payments and a shared fund. The front page also covered Nelson Doi’s swearing-in as a part-time family judge on Oahu and a roundup of Nikkei candidates in Seattle races.

Elsewhere, Kerl Nobuyuki reported on the Minidoka Memorial dedication, which drew nearly 500 people. Bill Marutani wrote about functional illiteracy in his column, and Bob Hashimoto profiled Nisei in medicine. The Pacific Citizen also announced its Golden Anniversary dinner-dance in Los Angeles on Oct. 20. Chapter news came from Portland, Fresno, Marin County and Houston.

What’s in this issue

Community

• Ishikawa first Seattle judge, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Richard Ishikawa is noted as the first Seattle judge in a local election roundup that also covers several Nikkei candidates for city offices. The piece highlights campaign ties among Seattle JACL members in the upcoming races.
• Former Lt. Gov. Nelson Doi sworn in as family judge, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Former Lt. Gov. Nelson Doi was sworn in as a part-time district family judge on Oahu, substituting for the hospitalized Judge Paul Kokubun. Doi had previously served as a circuit judge from 1969 to 1973.
• PC Golden Anniversary fete attracting out-of-staters, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Out-of-state contributors are planning to attend the Pacific Citizen Golden Anniversary dinner-dance in Los Angeles on Oct. 20. Proceeds will fund the paper’s mail computerization project.
• Intermountain going for ‘Op ’80s’, by Kerl Nobuyuki, page 2. The author presented the Operation ’80s program to the Intermountain District Council after touring Pocatello and attending the Minidoka Memorial dedication. The dedication drew nearly 500 people, including Senator Frank Church and Bill Hosokawa.
• Credit-card flap at Sacramento flares, by P.C. Staff, page 2. State-issued gasoline credit cards for Assembly members drew scrutiny after a KGO-TV series on legislators’ state-leased car use. Committee chairman Lou Papan promised quarterly audits of gasoline receipts.
• Olympic volleyball benefit tilts slated, by P.C. Staff, page 2. JACL chapters are selling tickets to a U.S.-Japan women’s Olympic volleyball exhibition at UC Berkeley on Oct. 3. Proceeds will benefit the JACL Legal Assistance Fund.
• Little-known Buddhists in L.A. unite to welcome Dalai Lama, by John Dart, page 2. A coalition of Southland Buddhist communities outside the Japanese Buddhist Church Federation organized to welcome the Dalai Lama during his Los Angeles visit. The groups sponsored his final speech at Shrine Auditorium.
• Berkeley church to observe 50th, by P.C. Staff, page 2. The Berkeley Methodist United Church marks its 50th year with a reunion celebration on Oct. 21. Rev. Joseph Sakakibara will speak at the event.
• EXECOM Actions in Brief, by P.C. Staff, page 5. The JACL Executive Committee approved a loan from the Endowment Fund and considered revisions to the JACLer of the Biennium award. It also accepted progress reports from the Japanese American Research Project.
• Fashion show benefit Oct. 14 set for Eastbay Issei housing, by P.C. Staff, page 6. The Contra Costa JACL plans a benefit fashion show in Oakland to raise funds for East Bay Issei housing. Jan Yanehiro will serve as special guest commentator.
• Houston JACL beach house rented, by P.C. Staff, page 6. The Houston JACL rented a Galveston beach house for a beach party on Oct. 21. Members were invited to express interest in attending.
• Names for Schools, by P.C. Staff, page 6. The Fresno JACL board recommended naming two new elementary schools after Mary C. Baker and Hubert Phillips, Fresno State instructors who supported Japanese Americans. The recommendation was submitted to the Fresno Board of Education.
• Wendy Yoshimura Case, by P.C. Staff, page 6. The Marin County JACL asked Governor Brown to grant Wendy Yoshimura an immediate pardon. The chapter argued her continued incarceration reflects racial inequities in the justice system.
• Mas & Chiz Sato Memorial Fund update, by Tad Horita, page 6. Contributions to the Mas and Chiz Sato Memorial Fund reached $36,807.83 as of August 31. Additional donations to the Tule Lake Plaque Dedication Committee are also reported.

National

• House leaders to introduce redress bill, by P.C. Staff, page 1. House leadership agreed to introduce a counterpart to S. 1647 creating a fact-finding commission on Executive Order 9066. The bill is expected to be introduced around Sept. 27 with sponsorship from prominent congressmen.
• Anger seen as successful style for Viet refugees into U.S. life, by P.C. Staff, page 1. A University of Washington study of Vietnamese refugees found that anger may be an adaptive trait, as with Cuban and Hungarian refugees. Researchers cited loneliness, family breakup and uncertainty as major sources of mental distress.
• Seattle promoters of Orient culture veto sale of book during festival, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Bon Marche stores in Seattle barred sale of the Asian American picture history book “Seattle’s Other History” during its Orient Expressed festival. The store said the timing was wrong to raise wartime internment and railroad labor history.

Military & Veterans

• Ranking Asian American military officer gets top post, by P.C. Staff, page 1. A Oakland-born WWII pilot assumed command of the Sacramento Air Logistics Center at McClellan AFB on Aug. 22. He is described as the highest-ranking Asian American military officer in the U.S.

Obituaries

• Judge Tom Tomekichi Okino dies at 73, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Judge Tom Okino of Honolulu, the first Nisei magistrate appointed in Hawaii, died Sept. 4 at age 73. He later served as county attorney, territorial senator and administrative judge.

Commentary

• Editorial: Time to Act, by John Tateishi, page 4. The author urges JACL members to write their Congressmen in support of the House redress study bill introduced by Reps. Wright, Rhodes, Rodino and Horton. He stresses that a letter-writing campaign is essential to advancing the effort.
• A variety of views on Redress, by P.C. Staff, page 4. Letters to the editor present differing opinions on the redress campaign, from those doubting the commission approach to those seeking direct payments. Readers debate whether individual payments or a shared fund would best serve Japanese Americans.
• Letters to the editor on redress amounts and individual payments, by Naomi Kashiwabara; Fumio Yoshida, page 4. Readers debate whether redress money should be pooled or paid individually to former incarcerees. One writer argues that individual payments would respect those who need or want compensation.
• Letter on constitutional rights and Evacuation, by Eiji Sy. Yoshida, M.D., page 4. The writer argues the redress campaign fails to address the constitutional abuse underlying Evacuation, since detention was never adjudicated. He urges taking the issue to federal courts.
• Pumping Learnin’, by Bill Marutani, page 4. The columnist laments functional illiteracy among some high school graduates and recalls strict teachers from his youth. He contrasts their discipline with today’s teaching standards.
• Having Japan Retirees Live in U.S., by Nobuyuki Nakajima, page 5. The author proposes that Japanese retirees build communities in the U.S., bringing dollars back into the economy. He describes the active recreation of older Japanese and the benefits such a move would bring.
• To look ahead—look back, by Kimi Tambara, page 6. The Portland JACL prepares its 50th anniversary dinner by recalling early leaders and the chapter’s history. The column notes the transition from a Nisei-led past to a Sansei-led chapter focused on future goals.
• Summer fashion flop, by Robert H. Kono, page 7. The column critiques the energy-saving summer suit promoted by Prime Minister Ohira and his cabinet as a fashion failure. It notes that few officials adopted the look and that letters criticized it.

In-Depth

• Some ‘Big Nisei’ in the Healing Arts, by Bob Hashimoto, page 5. The column profiles Nisei physicians and scientists who advanced medicine, including Dr. Nagamatsu, Dr. Edward Hashimoto and the Toribara couple. It notes their teaching, research and professional achievements.
• Last Rebel’s Nemesis, by Mas Manbo, page 8. The column recounts how Okubo Toshimichi, a Meiji leader, opposed Saigo Takamori’s push to invade Korea and then suppressed Saigo’s 1877 rebellion. It frames Okubo’s pragmatic policies as central to Japan’s modernization.

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