Coroner Noguchi’s case nears final arguments, and a call to support coram nobis

Vol. 95, No. 18, October 29, 1982. 8 pages. View this issue

The front page followed the case of Dr. Thomas Noguchi, the Los Angeles County coroner defending his record before the County Civil Service Commission. County attorneys filed a 109-page closing brief, and final oral arguments were set for Nov. 5. Other front-page stories covered the Nov. 2 elections, including Gov. George Ariyoshi in Hawaii, Sen. Spark Matsunaga, and Gary Locke’s primary win in Washington state. On page 4, JACL National President Floyd Shimomura explained the coram nobis cases of Korematsu, Hirabayashi and Yasui and urged members to support them.

Elsewhere in the eight pages are a profile of Margaret Lyons of the CBC, a Radio Li’l Tokyo anniversary dinner, and Harry Honda’s talk to the Japanese American Historical Society of Southern California. Commentary includes Bill Marutani on JACL banquets, Craig Kusaba on a play’s use of racial slurs, and the concluding chapter on Earl Warren and the newspapers.

What’s in this issue

National

• Coroner Noguchi’s Case Due Final Oral Arguments, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Dr. Thomas Noguchi’s defense against removal as Los Angeles County coroner heads toward final oral arguments Nov. 5 after county attorneys filed a 109-page closing brief. Supporters, organized as CARP, continue holding community meetings to rally attendance and highlight Noguchi’s upcoming installation as president of the National Assn. of Medical Examiners.
• Ariyoshi Running on Own Terms and Record, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Hawaii Gov. George Ariyoshi faces Republican Andy Anderson and Independent Frank Fasi in the Nov. 2 election after a costly primary campaign against Lt. Gov. Jean King. Ariyoshi defends his nine-year record of budget control and no tax increases against charges that his administration is stuck in its ways.
• S.F. Asians in Election Bid, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Several Asian American candidates, including Ben Tom, Martin Lee Eng, Moy Velazques, and Alan Wong, are running for San Francisco Board of Supervisors, school board, and community college board seats in the Nov. 2 election. Tom, a transportation analyst, is considered confident of winning a supervisor seat.
• Dr. Geokas Removed from UC-Davis Vice-Chair Post, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Dr. Michael Geokas, found guilty of racially discriminatory acts against Chinese American Dr. Edmund Jung, was not reappointed vice chairman of UC Davis’ internal medicine department and faces transfer to a Livermore VA hospital. UC Davis officials cited department reorganization rather than the controversy, but Chinese for Affirmative Action said the reasoning doesn’t matter since Geokas is out as vice chair.
• Polls Show Spark Due Big Re-election Win, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Polls show Sen. Spark Matsunaga headed for a landslide re-election victory in Hawaii against Republican Clarence Brown and Independent Spunky Bernier-Nachtwey. Brown struggled to raise sufficient campaign funds to challenge the incumbent.
• Gary Locke Defeats Incumbent in Bid for Seat at Olympia, by Ron Chew, page 1. Gary Locke, an attorney and former president of Asian Americans for Political Action, defeated six-term incumbent Peggy Maxie in Washington’s 37th Legislative District primary and is expected to win the general election, which would make him the only Asian lawmaker representing Seattle. The article also covers other Asian candidates in the area including Art Wang and Jesse Chiang, and notes support for Rep. Mike Lowry, who introduced a redress reparations bill.
• Old Letter Fuels ‘Dec 7’ Puzzle, by P.C. Staff, page 1. A letter written by Adm. Husband E. Kimmel claiming President Roosevelt and Navy brass knew of Japan’s attack plan but withheld warning sold for $1,500 at a San Diego book fair. Retired Vice Admiral David C. Richardson purchased the letter, which offered no documentation to support Kimmel’s belief in a cover-up.

In-Depth

• B.C. Nisei Completes First Year as Canada’s ‘Mme. Radio’, page 1. Margaret Lyons, a Nisei whose family was uprooted during WW2, has become managing director of CBC’s English Services Division and is regarded as Canada’s leading woman in public broadcasting. The profile covers her career path from university cook to CBC executive, her views on feminism, and her personal hobbies including collecting Japanese prints and music.

Community

• Calif. Florists Honor Art Ito, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Arthur T. Ito, president of Flower View Gardens in Los Angeles, was named ‘Retailer of the Year’ by the California State Florist Convention for his service to the floral industry. Ito, a longtime Hollywood JACLer, has held leadership positions in multiple florist associations since entering the industry in 1935.
• Nisei Balloonist Eyes World Trip Again, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Maxie Anderson and Colorado Nisei Don Ida announced their third attempt to fly the balloon ‘Jules Verne’ around the world, launching from near Billings, Montana. Previous attempts failed due to balloon leaks, and the pair will face extreme altitude and temperature conditions during the flight.
• Nisei UCLAns Attend 50th Class Reunion, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Dr. Tom Watanabe and John Ty Saito were among 114 members of UCLA’s Class of 1932 attending their 50th anniversary reunion, each receiving a Golden Bruin gold pin. Other Nisei alumni from the class included Ben Nakano of Tokyo and Kay Sugahara of New York.
• Semi-intensive Japanese Course at Cal State L.A., by P.C. Staff, page 3. Cal State L.A.’s department of foreign languages is offering an eight-unit elementary Japanese course from Jan. 3 to Mar. 19, 1983, taught by Dr. Kazumitsu Kato. The university also offers intensive summer Japanese courses at elementary and intermediate levels.
• Radio Li’l Tokyo to Fete Its 30th Year, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Radio Li’l Tokyo, now in its 30th year, will celebrate with a gala anniversary dinner Nov. 27 at the Biltmore Bowl featuring Manny Harmon’s band and several entertainers. Host Matao Uwate announced reservations are being accepted for the $30 dinner-dance.
• Historical Society to Hear Ex-PC Editor, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Harry Honda, who edited the Pacific Citizen for 30 years, will speak about his experiences at the first general meeting of the Japanese American Historical Society of Southern California at Union Church of Los Angeles. A short business meeting precedes the talk.
• West L.A. JACL Installation Nov. 13, by P.C. Staff, page 6. West Los Angeles JACL will hold its annual installation dinner Nov. 13 at 6 p.m. at a local hotel. Details of the event were announced in a brief notice.
• San Mateo Seniors Trip to Museums Set, by P.C. Staff, page 6. The San Mateo JACL Community Center is sponsoring a senior citizens bus tour to the Asian Art Museum and California Palace of the Legion of Honor on Nov. 4. Transportation is free but reservations are required through the Center.

Sports

• Kajikawa Named Into ASU’s Sports Hall of Fame, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Retired coach Bill Kajikawa, an Oxnard-born Nisei and longtime Arizona JACLer, was inducted into Arizona State University’s new Hall of Distinction honoring past coaches and administrators. Kajikawa served as assistant football coach, head basketball coach, and served with the 442nd RCT during WWII before his 46-year coaching career at ASU.

Obituaries

• Deaths: Julius Fujihira, Terumitsu Kano, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Julius Fujihira, an active Milwaukee JACLer who served as chapter president and redress chair, died Oct. 4, survived by his wife and three children. Terumitsu Kano, former editor-in-chief of Seattle’s North American Post and later a PR representative for Japan Air Lines, died in Japan Oct. 4 and was memorialized at Seattle Buddhist Church.

Military & Veterans

• 100-442-MIS Museum Foundation Meet Set, by P.C. Staff, page 3. A national meeting of the 100-442-MIS Museum Foundation has been called for Nov. 20 in San Francisco, following up on a July 21 meeting. Tom Kawaguchi and Tad Hirota are providing contact information for those seeking details.

Incarceration & Redress

• Portuguese-Japanese Festa-Matsuri Slated Nov. 19-20, by P.C. Staff, page 3. A weekend of cultural and historic events in Sacramento will commemorate ‘Strange and Wonderful Harvest,’ depicting the prewar experiences of Portuguese and Japanese immigrant farming families in the Freeport-Riverside-Pocket District. The multi-image program and banquet will honor pioneer community members, with the story recounting how Japanese families were removed to camps in 1942 while Portuguese neighbors safeguarded their property, though the community never fully recovered after the war.
• 35 Years Ago in the Pacific Citizen, by P.C. Staff, page 4. A historical digest reprints items from the Nov. 1, 1947 Pacific Citizen, including news on GI-bride marriages, a federal court ruling against Hawaii’s wartime ban on foreign language schools, and the Truman Committee on Civil Rights report calling the WWII evacuation the ‘most striking mass interference since slavery.’ Also noted is the dedication of a JACL memorial plaque in France honoring the 442nd’s rescue of the Lost Battalion.
• Warren and the Newspapers (Concluding Chapter), by M.M. Sumida, page 5. This concluding chapter examines Earl Warren’s role in advocating the WWII evacuation of Japanese Americans as California attorney general, and his later private expressions of regret as detailed in his posthumously published memoirs. The piece argues that newspapers and business interests pressured Warren’s wartime stance, and calls for media accountability and a watchdog role to protect civil rights going forward.

Commentary

• Coram Nobis, by Floyd Shimomura, page 4. JACL National President Floyd Shimomura explains the coram nobis legal proceedings being pursued by Korematsu, Hirabayashi, and Yasui to overturn their WWII-era convictions based on newly uncovered evidence of government suppression of facts proving Japanese Americans posed no security risk. He urges JACL members to support the individuals’ legal fight and contribute to the Committee to Reverse the Wartime Cases.
• New Membership Forms, by Harry Honda, page 4. The Pacific Citizen explains delays and improvements in JACL’s membership renewal forms, which are being computerized to include individual expiration dates and member categories. The piece details how addresses are sourced from PC circulation files and urges chapters to verify and correct the new forms.
• An Offensive Title, by Raymond Okamura, page 4. A letter to the editor condemns ‘The Official J.A.P. Handbook’ for exploiting a term that, while originating as Jewish slang, carries offensive historical connotations for Japanese Americans. The writer urges readers to send protest letters to the publisher, the Anti-Defamation League, and retailers promoting the book.
• The Empire Strikes Back, by Craig Kusaba, page 4. Playwright Jay Presson Allen defended her use of racial slurs against Japanese people in her play ‘A Little Family Business’ during a lecture at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Allen dismissed complaints about the offensive language, saying only one line was deleted at star Angela Lansbury’s request, and insisted sophisticated Japanese audiences would not be offended.
• Japan’s Sudden Change, by Honolulu Advertiser, page 4. A reprinted editorial from the Honolulu Advertiser analyzes Prime Minister Zenko Suzuki’s surprise resignation, attributing it to Japan’s economic troubles and LDP factional politics pitting Suzuki against Takeo Fukuda. The piece notes that Japanese leadership changes rarely alter the nation’s fundamentally conservative, pro-West foreign and domestic policy direction.
• The Rites of October—Whiff of Matsutake, page 5. A Denver-based column describes the booming business and cultural tradition of matsutake mushroom hunting in Colorado’s Rocky Mountains, where hunters sell their harvests to markets supplying Japanese restaurants nationwide. The piece details mushroom-hunting etiquette, unpredictable growing conditions tied to rainfall, and a gift of Oregon matsutake sent to the PC office.
• Some Enchanted Evening, by Bill Marutani, page 5. In this East Wind column, Bill Marutani humorously recounts the predictable chaos of JACL banquet evenings, from late starts and malfunctioning microphones to long-winded introductions and endless award presentations. He wryly notes that such events test attendees’ patience before finally arriving at the featured speaker and closing announcements.

JACL

• Reno JACL to Elect 1983 Officers, by P.C. Staff, page 6. Reno JACL will hold a potluck supper and elections this Sunday, with plans for an installation dinner Dec. 5 at the Ramada Inn featuring National JACL President Floyd Shimomura as keynote speaker. The meeting will take place at the Center for Religion and Life.
• Midwest JACL Cites Highway Administrator, by P.C. Staff, page 6. Midwest JACL commended London Kennedy, Federal Highway Administration’s region 5 civil rights director, for his work establishing the Asian American Supportive Services Program at a retirement party in Homewood, Illinois. Attendees included John Y. Yoshino and Dr. S. Michael Yasutake of Chicago.
• Solano County to Host NC-WN Quarterly Meeting, by P.C. Staff, page 8. The Northern California-Western Nevada-Pacific JACL District Council will hold its quarterly meeting Nov. 7 in Fairfield, featuring board elections and discussion of a proposal to split the district into north and south divisions. Committee reports will cover health, scholarship, redress, employment practices, and youth programs, along with new business on the 1984 Honolulu convention and redress commitments.
• Fun Was Had by All, by Dr. Frank Sakamoto, page 8. This Thousanders’ Corner column recounts the lively JACL Whing-Ding event in Los Angeles, highlighting performances by chapter groups from Philadelphia, Washington D.C., Chicago, and others featuring parody songs and costumes. The piece also describes a humorous door-prize mix-up involving a coin flip for a Sahara-Tahoe trip.

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