Redress, a camp reunion and a 501(c)4 lobbying arm for JACL

Vol. 94, No. 12, March 26, 1982. 8 pages. View this issue

Redress led the Pacific Citizen of March 26, 1982. President Reagan signed the bill giving the Commission on Wartime Relocation and Internment of Civilians until Dec. 31, 1982 to finish its report, though the commission still needed separate legislation for more funding. John Tateishi explained the 501(c)4 political arm that JACL’s National Board approved to lobby for redress, and Harry K. Honda reported on the board’s two hours of redress talks, including a coram nobis petition. Bill Hosokawa asked whether a no-evacuation law would be needed after redress, and more than 800 people had signed up for the Heart Mountain reunion in Los Angeles.

Elsewhere in the eight pages, the paper followed the dispute over the suspension of Dr. Thomas Noguchi and the June 8 races of Rose Matsui Ochi and two Sansei judges. Bill Marutani wrote about job interviews, Ron Wakabayashi used a lifeboat exercise to talk about JACL’s budget, and Karen Seriguchi looked at how young Nikkei think about camp history. A page of chapter news covered queen contests and scholarship dinners.

What’s in this issue

Incarceration & Redress

• Reagan Signs CWRIC Extension Bill, by P.C. Staff, page 1. President Reagan signed a bill extending the Commission on Wartime Relocation and Internment of Civilians’ deadline to Dec. 31, 1982 to complete its report and recommendations. The commission, created in 1980, has only about $300,000 left from its original $1 million appropriation and will need separate legislation for additional funding.

National

• Rose Matsui Ochi in Bid for Congress, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Rose Matsui Ochi of Monterey Park, director of criminal justice planning in LA Mayor Tom Bradley’s office, is among Democrats seeking the party’s nomination in the reapportioned 30th Congressional District. The June 8 primary follows the resignation of incumbent Rep. George Danielson to take a state appellate court seat.
• Floyd Mori Was ‘Fired’, Friends Say, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Friends say Floyd Mori was actually asked to quit by Gov. Edmund G. Brown Jr. rather than resigning voluntarily, according to a Los Angeles Times report. The article discusses tensions with Secretary Mario Obledo and perceptions that Japanese Americans have not developed political power compared to other groups despite having significant votes.
• Dear Abby Asks if JAs Were ‘POWs’, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Syndicated columnist Abigail Van Buren responded to a representative of an ex-POW organization publicizing new benefits, asking whether the benefits would extend to Japanese Americans placed in internment camps during WWII. The exchange appeared in her March 10 column discussing the Former Prisoner-of-War Benefits Act of 1981.
• Asian Week Releases Asian Census Data, by P.C. Staff, page 8. Asian Week has published population statistics of Asian Americans in each California county and in each state, covering Chinese, Filipino, Japanese, Asian Indian, Korean, Vietnamese, Hawaiian, Samoan and Guamanian populations. A planned supplement will show similar breakdowns for the 25 biggest U.S. cities.

Community

• Supervisors Postpone Move to Suspend Noguchi, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The LA County Board of Supervisors postponed its vote on County Coroner Dr. Thomas Noguchi’s 30-day suspension amid developments including a county grand jury audit that found no evidence warranting the board’s action. Thirteen pathologists on Noguchi’s staff also wrote in his defense, claiming Assistant Coroner Richard Wilson was responsible for many management problems.
• Sansei Judges Face Challengers, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Judge Ernest M. Hiroshige of LA Superior Court and Judge Jon M. Mayeda of LA Municipal Court both face challengers in the June 8 primary election. Hiroshige faces Judge Thomas Foye who criticized his decision-making speed, while Mayeda faces attorney Arthur Wynn who seeks to improve the court system.
• Over 800 Sign In for Camp Reunion, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Over 800 people have registered for the Heart Mountain reunion set for April 2-3 at the Hyatt Regency in Los Angeles, with organizers expecting close to 1,000 attendees. Rep. Norman Mineta will speak at the Saturday dinner-dance.
• APAAC Holds First Annual Meeting, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Asian Pacific American Advocates of California held its first annual meeting March 19-21 at the Japanese American Cultural and Community Center. The organization opened its Sacramento office in January.
• Three JA Teachers Charged With Grand Theft in Credit Scandal, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Three Japanese American teachers were among 43 teachers charged with misdemeanor grand theft for receiving class credits and salary increases for courses they allegedly did not attend. Each teacher reportedly collected an average of $3,000 in fraudulent salary increments.
• Hanamatsuri Parade April 4, by P.C. Staff, page 3. A Hanamatsuri procession of Buddhist priests and members led by a baby elephant, along with a Sweet Tea ceremony, will be staged Sunday, April 4 at Japanese Village Plaza. Murals by Buddhist Sunday School students will be displayed during the festival through April 30.
• Poster, Essay Contest for APA Heritage Week, by P.C. Staff, page 3. A poster and essay contest themed on Asian American achievements and the importance of Asian Pacific American Heritage Week is being held, sponsored by Mayor Tom Bradley’s office and the Asian/Pacific American Heritage Week Committee. The contest is open to students from kindergarten through college level, beginning May 7.
• Young Nikkei Explore Being JA Today, by Karen Seriguchi, page 6. A column from the Pacific Northwest discusses how young Nisei and Sansei students grapple with questions about camp history and Japanese American identity, often hesitating to ask parents directly about their experiences. A new JACL-JAY chapter is forming in the Puget Sound area to address these concerns through social activities and classes on family relations, community issues, and internment/redress.
• Four Seek Twin/ELA Queen Titles, by P.C. Staff, page 6. Four candidates are competing for dual honors as Miss East L.A. JACL and Miss Cherry Blossom Festival: Kerry Hirakawa, Yuri Shimamoto, Elyse Marumoto and Shari Yanagi. The winner will represent East L.A. JACL at the Nisei Week Japanese Festival in August and be crowned Miss Cherry Blossom Queen in April.
• Gardena JACL Seeks Nisei Week Candidate, by P.C. Staff, page 6. Gardena Valley JACL is accepting applications for its 1982 Nisei Week candidate, who will be crowned May 1 at the Airport Hyatt Hotel and win prizes including a trip to Hawaii. Applicants must be between 18-25 years old with one parent of 100% Japanese descent.
• San Diego Scholarship Dinner Set May 2, by P.C. Staff, page 6. Leslie Furukawa, PSWDC legal counsel, will be guest speaker at the 25th annual San Diego JACL scholarship awards dinner on May 2 at Tom Ham’s Lighthouse. Scholarship chair James Yamate recalled that the first awards in 1957 required splitting a single $100 prize, showing how the program has grown.
• PC People, by P.C. Staff, page 7. A roundup of community news including an award to Judge William M. Marutani from the Patriotic Order Sons of America, business promotions at California First Bank, and the confirmation of Judge Yoshimi Hayashi to the Hawaii Supreme Court. Also noted are academic and musical achievements including Dr. Joseph Yabu’s appointment at University of Hawaii and violinist Mayumi Ohira’s performances.
• Noguchi Continued, by P.C. Staff, page 8. Further developments in the Noguchi controversy reveal that District Attorney John Van de Kamp found no evidence to support a criminal investigation, while the Board of Supervisors hired attorney William Masterson to defend their suspension decision. The LA Times reported additional allegations that Noguchi had staff perform personal errands and used county resources for a private case that earned him $7,000.
• Twin Cities to Host MDC-MDYC, by P.C. Staff, page 8. The spring meeting of the JACL Midwest District Council will be hosted by the Twin Cities chapter April 2-4 at the Radisson Hotel in St. Paul, with May Tanaka as general chair. The meeting will include a redress workshop with JACL Redress Director John Tateishi providing guidance on remedies and district programming for 1982.
• Nikkei Policeman Earns D.A.’s Praise, by P.C. Staff, page 8. The San Francisco District Attorney’s office informed JACL of commendable crime-fighting work by Inspector Al Sonoda of the city’s Police Department vice squad. Asst. District Attorney Bernard Walter praised Sonoda’s program designed to reduce crimes against tourists by prostitutes.

Commentary

• Redress Phase 4: Implementing 501(c)4, by John Tateishi, page 2. Min Yasui’s request for a 501(c)4 political arm of JACL, to be named the JACL Legal Defense and Education Fund, was approved by the National Board for lobbying redress legislation. The article explains IRS regulations limiting direct lobbying by tax-exempt organizations and draws parallels to JACL’s earlier Anti-Discrimination Committee which raised $1 million for citizenship rights efforts.
• East Coast JAR, by Stanley N. Kanzaki, page 4. A letter responding to a previous piece on East Coast Japanese Americans for Redress (ECJAR), detailing the history of the organization’s formation and its successful CWRIC hearing in New York City on Nov. 23. The author recounts the coalition-building among eight JA organizations and individuals, and describes the continuation of the movement through programs like the Day of Remembrance.
• 35 Years Ago in the Pacific Citizen, by P.C. Staff, page 4. A historical roundup of news items from March 1947, including the start of a serial about the 100th Infantry Battalion, JACL-ADC’s push to rescind ‘enemy alien’ classification for Issei, and Wat Misaka’s acclaimed performance in Utah’s NIT basketball championship win. Other items cover Nisei GI court cases and legislation for an evacuation claims commission.
• For the Record, by P.C. Staff, page 4. A correction notice explaining that Asian Week requested permission to reprint Bill Hosokawa’s column and discovered missing text regarding a Commission on Higher Education of Minorities study. The missing statistics on high school graduation and dropout rates by race are restored in this piece.
• After Redress, Do We Need a No-Evacuation Law?, by Bill Hosokawa, page 5. Hosokawa examines the Anti-Defamation League’s resolution calling for a statute preventing future mass detentions based on race or ethnicity, in response to the WWII Japanese American incarceration. He argues that existing constitutional safeguards like the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments were sufficient in theory but failed due to military zeal, presidential approval, and judicial deference to ‘military necessity,’ concluding that additional legislation would be redundant without renewed popular commitment to constitutional principles.
• Getting a Foot in the Door, by Bill Marutani, page 5. Marutani recounts a discussion among Nisei professionals about why Asian American job applicants often give poor interviews due to difficulty communicating, despite strong technical qualifications. The piece explores generational and cultural explanations for this communication gap among Nisei and Sansei, and suggests JACL chapters consider sponsoring interview seminars for young people.
• The Lifeboat Dilemma, by Ron Wakabayashi, page 5. Wakabayashi uses a lifeboat survival simulation as a metaphor for JACL’s budget prioritization challenges, noting that criteria for what gets ‘jettisoned’ are inherently subjective and vary across the diverse Nikkei community. He suggests that rather than trying to determine a single national perspective or headquarters location, JACL should focus on how to meet the varied needs of its diverse constituency.

JACL

• Nat’l JACL Board News / Notes, by Harry K. Honda, page 4. The National JACL Board met Feb. 26-28 covering reports from committees including Personnel, JACL Student Aid Program, 1000 Club, and Veterans Affairs, as well as discussions on the Pan American Nikkei Association (PANA) charter and constitution. Nearly two hours were devoted to redress discussions with Min Yasui, John Tateishi, and Ron Ikejiri addressing the board about CWRIC testimony, legal strategies including a coram nobis petition, and the implementation of a 501(c)4 lobbying arm.

In-Depth

• 5th Generation Explores Roots, by From the Japan Times, page 8. Julie Yuriko Shigekuni, a 19-year-old UC Santa Cruz sophomore, is a rare Gosei (fifth-generation Japanese American) currently studying in Japan as a visiting scholar. Her great-great-grandfather Tomas Okawara immigrated to San Francisco from Hiroshima in 1893, and she hopes to work in international relations focusing on Japan-U.S. relations after completing her studies.

Thank you for exploring the Pacific Citizen archive. The title, introduction and contents on this page were written by an AI model from scans of the printed issue, so they may contain mistakes. If you spot one, we would be grateful if you let us know.