Redress hearings ahead: a Seattle survey and the mock CWRIC panel

Vol. 92, No. 22, June 5, 1981. 8 pages. View this issue

Redress ran through the front page of this eight-page issue. Gordon Hirabayashi reported on a Seattle-area mail survey of Japanese Americans, with 851 valid responses and a strong preference for monetary compensation for the harms of Executive Order 9066. The results were headed to the Commission on Wartime Relocation and Internment of Civilians. The issue also announced that Michael Ira Heyman would play the “redress commissioner” at mock hearings on June 14 at Laney College Forum, and page 2 carried a question and answer fact sheet on the commission.

Elsewhere on the front page, Gerald D. Yoshitomi was named executive director of the Japanese American Cultural and Community Center, and Harry Honda wrote about plans for computerized JACL membership renewal. Inside are columns by Jim Tsujimura on his trip to Japan, Bill Marutani, Peter Imamura and Ed Mitoma, along with Joe Oyama’s account of leaving the Jerome Relocation Center in 1943.

What’s in this issue

JACL

• Gerald D. Yoshitomi Appointed JACCC Executive Director, page 1. Gerald D. Yoshitomi, 33, was appointed executive director of the Japanese American Cultural and Community Center in Los Angeles. The former Western States Arts Foundation vice president, a Portland native and Stanford graduate, will oversee operations of the $20 million cultural complex.
• Computerized Membership Renewal for JACL Coming, by Harry Honda, page 1. The National JACL Board meeting in San Francisco discussed staff resignations, including program director Lorrie Inagaki, and plans to automate membership renewal processing by mid-August 1982. The board also addressed funding issues, the 1000 Club Life membership rate increase, senior citizen concerns about Social Security changes, and preparations for the NC-WNPDC mock redress hearings and National JACL Youth Convention at UC Irvine.
• JACL Headquarters in S.F. Burglarized, page 1. Archival material from the Library of Congress intended to assist the JACL National Committee on Redress was reported stolen from JACL Headquarters in San Francisco in April. Associate committee chair Clifford Uyeda said the loss, discovered over time, did not seriously affect the committee’s work, and John Tateishi’s car tires were also slashed nearby.
• Heyman to Act in Mock CWRIC Panel, page 1. Michael Ira Heyman, UC Berkeley chancellor and former chief law clerk to Chief Justice Earl Warren, will play the role of ‘redress commissioner’ for the NC-WNPDC mock hearings set for June 14 at Laney College Forum. The announcement was made by George Kondo, JACL regional director.

National

• Census Finds More Than Half of APAs Living in California, Hawaii, page 1. A census update shows more than half of Americans of Asian or Pacific Island descent live in California and Hawaii, with 1,253,987 in California and 583,660 in Hawaii as of 1969 estimates. The category now includes Chinese, Japanese, Filipino, Korean, Asian Indian, Vietnamese, Hawaiian, Guamanian and Samoan groups, with new 1980 figures expected next year.
• Bill Would Ban Hiring Quotas, page 1. Rep. Walker introduced a bill amending the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to prevent the federal government from imposing numerical hiring or admission quotas based on race or sex. A similar Senate bill was introduced by Sen. Orrin Hatch, though similar House bills have twice failed in the Senate before.

Incarceration & Redress

• March Poll Shows 90% Favor Monetary Redress, by Gordon Hirabayashi, page 1. A Seattle-area mail survey of Japanese Americans on redress issues drew 851 valid responses, finding that about 95.5% of respondents are American citizens and over 70% are Nisei, with most having spent time in camps. The survey explored problems resulting from Executive Order 9066, such as property loss and emotional trauma, and overwhelmingly favored monetary compensation as a remedy, with results to be presented to the Commission on Wartime Relocation and Internment of Civilians.
• Holocaust, Internment Effects Bare Parallels, page 2. A Japanese laborer and researcher Nakanishi discuss parallels between the psychological effects of the Holocaust on Jews and the internment of Japanese Americans, noting both groups share bitterness and fear of history repeating. Nakanishi also notes major differences, including that six million Jews were killed while 110,000 Japanese Americans were incarcerated but not executed.
• Question and Answer Fact Sheet: Commission on Wartime Relocation and Internment of Civilians, page 2. This fact sheet explains the CWRIC, established by Public Law 96-317 signed by President Carter, detailing its nine commissioners including Chair Joan Bernstein and Vice-Chair Daniel Lundgren. It outlines the commission’s purpose to review Executive Order 9066’s impact, plans for public hearings nationwide, and procedures for individuals to testify or submit written testimony.
• Natsu Matsuri Days / Amerika Monogatari Screening, page 7. Chicago’s Buddhist Temple will hold its 37th annual Natsu Matsuri over the July 4-5 weekend, while the Salt Lake Issei Center will show NHK’s five-hour documentary ‘Amerika Monogatari’ at the Salt Lake Buddhist Temple on June 6. Both events aim to bring community members together around Japanese American history and culture.
• Redress Continued: Reactions on Emotional Judgment, page 7. Continuing the redress survey coverage, Nakanishi notes that when people were asked if internment could happen again, their responses reflected concern about emotional judgment against ethnic groups. The piece references ongoing community discussions about preventing similar injustices in the future.

Commentary

• Wearing Thin, by Peter Imamura, page 3. The author criticizes California Gov. Edmund G. Brown Jr. for blaming Japan for California’s economic troubles and using anti-Japanese rhetoric reminiscent of WWII-era sentiment that led to internment. He argues Brown’s remarks are politically motivated ahead of a Senate run and that America’s problems stem from domestic failures, not Japanese competition.
• President’s Corner: Japan Trip, by Dr. Jim Tsujimura, page 4. JACL National President Jim Tsujimura recounts his 16-day visit to Japan, including a visit with Ambassador Michael Mansfield, who shared warm hospitality and discussed Japan’s culture and economic success rooted in its people. Mansfield expressed familiarity with and respect for JACL’s history and mission.
• From the Editor’s Desk: Asian Images on Hold, by Harry Honda, page 4. The editor notes that the ‘Asian Images’ feature, funded by the PSWDC Trust Fund and initiated by Gary Yano, has ceased publication due to funding issues rather than lack of content. The editor expresses hope the feature can return once funding is secured.
• Guest’s Corner: U.S. Auto Problem Originates in Detroit, by Ed Mitoma, page 4. The author argues that import restrictions on Japanese cars are misguided, citing a letter noting that imports caused only a small fraction of Detroit’s sales losses, which stem from economic conditions and poor product choices. He also explains why American cars fail to sell in Japan, including impractical size, wrong-side steering wheels, strict emissions standards, and high fuel costs.
• East Wind: Raisin’ Kids: Issei Style, by Bill Marutani, page 5. The columnist reflects humorously on his childhood discipline at the hands of his strict Issei mother, contrasting it with his own experience as a father trying to raise his children. He notes changes in parenting approaches across generations while acknowledging some truths in his siblings’ recollections of his behavior.
• The Stalwart JACLer, by Dr. Frank Sakamoto, page 6. The 1000 Club chair discusses a new appeal for members to join the Century Club at $100/year or $1,000 for life to help National JACL repay a $100,000 loan needed to meet expenses. He also references historical documentation of anti-Japanese agitation and economic motives behind the WWII internment, urging members to remain fiscally vigilant for JACL’s future.

Community

• Hiroshima Doctors Check U.S. Hibakusha, page 3. A team of Japanese doctors specializing in radiation illness examined more than 200 atomic bomb survivors on the West Coast, including in Los Angeles, San Francisco, and the Pacific Northwest. The examinations are part of a Japanese government study tracking 500 to 700 hibakusha believed to be living in the United States.
• San Joaquin Valley History Now Available on Videotapes, page 3. Four videotapes produced by the San Joaquin Valley Library system document Japanese American history in the Fresno area, including oral histories of Issei and Nisei pioneers and festival highlights. The tapes and an accompanying three-volume oral history set are now available for public use through local libraries.
• Escort Service Gets Grant; To Begin Soon, page 3. Little Tokyo Service Center received an $11,600 grant from the California Community Foundation to begin a Japanese community escort service assisting Nikkei and disabled individuals who cannot speak English with medical appointments and other needs. The program, also supported by ARCO Foundation funding, will begin next month.
• Chapter Pulse, page 6. This roundup covers chapter news including Cleveland JACL’s scholarship eligibility rules, Fresno JACL’s scholarship deadline extension, San Jose JACL’s successful bridge party, and Philadelphia JACL’s redress fund report with named donors. It also notes new officer installations for various chapters including Livingston-Merced and San Fernando Valley.

In-Depth

• Newest Chapter in the JARP Collection, page 5. The article reviews the history of the Japanese American Research Project (JARP), launched by JACL in 1962 with a $100,000 grant to UCLA, which has produced numerous scholarly books including works by Bill Hosokawa, Frank Chuman, and John Modell. It highlights a new volume by Levine and Rhodes examining generational differences in values and assimilation among Issei, Nisei, and Sansei, crediting Shig Wakamatsu for his leadership of JARP.
• Tide of Racial Prejudice Turns During WW2, by Joe Oyama, page 5. The author recounts his personal experience leaving the Jerome Relocation Center in 1943, working in Des Plaines, Illinois, and eventually settling in New York City amid wartime anti-Japanese sentiment. He describes encounters with soldiers, a wrestler performing as ‘The Great Togo,’ and Mayor LaGuardia’s criticism of Japanese American evacuees, contrasted with support from New York newspapers and the city’s Jewish community.

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