Redress bills and new proof that Nisei were not spies

Vol. 97, No. 14, September 30, 1983. 12 pages. View this issue

Redress led the news in this 12-page issue. Ron K. Ikejiri reported that JACL’s Washington Office and the National Committee for Redress were preparing bills to carry out the recommendations of the Commission on Wartime Relocation and Internment of Civilians, which the National Board had unanimously adopted as the basis for its legislative drive. Raymond Okamura wrote about declassified “Magic” cables showing that Japan told its consular staff to avoid using Japanese Americans as spies. Sen. Edward M. Kennedy’s support for S. 1520 and the endorsement of the Civil Rights Commission’s state chairs also appeared, along with editorials and letters on the compensation question.

Elsewhere, the Museum of Merced County Heritage opened a Japanese American room, and San Joaquin County moved toward a plaque remembering Executive Order 9066. A column by Min Yasui’s Philadelphia audience, a Chicago JACL president’s move to a coram nobis film, and Miki Himeno’s report on planning for the 1984 convention in Hawaii round out the issue.

What’s in this issue

Incarceration & Redress

• Congress to Get New Redress Bill, by Ron K. Ikejiri, page 1. JACL’s Washington Office and National Committee for Redress have spent months preparing briefing packets, booklets, and meetings to support introduction of bills implementing the CWRIC recommendations. The National Board unanimously adopted the commission’s recommendations as the basis for JACL’s legislative drive, with similar bills expected in the House and Senate shortly.
• San Joaquin County to Remember EO 9066, page 1. The San Joaquin County fairgrounds board voted to approve wording for a plaque commemorating the WWII internment of over 4,200 county residents of Japanese ancestry, though the location remains undecided. One dissenting board member argued there wasn’t proof exonerating Japanese Americans of wartime espionage allegations.
• ‘Dec. 7’ Denies Issei Who Built House Just Before Evacuation, page 9. The Nakamura family of Lemolo, Washington, lost their greenhouse business and a newly built house when WWII internment forced their evacuation just before Pearl Harbor. Surviving family members, now settled in the Midwest, recently visited their former hometown and found the unused house still standing.

Community

• Museum Has J.A. Room, page 1. The Museum of Merced County Heritage displays rare Japanese American artifacts including a tansu, a scrapbook/diary, and items from the Amache concentration camp in an exhibit called ‘Harvest Denied.’ The exhibit was organized by Marlene Tanioka and numerous Livingston-Merced and Cortez JACL volunteers.
• Yoshioka Makes Nov. 8 Ballot, page 1. Vernon Yoshioka qualified for the San Diego Community College District B Trustee general election after finishing second in the primary against incumbent Gene French. Yoshioka says leadership will be his key campaign issue heading into the November race.
• Over 1,300 Centenarians of Japanese Birth Honored Sept. 15, page 2. Japan’s Health and Welfare Ministry honored over 1,300 centenarians including the world’s oldest man, Shigechiyo Izumi, 118. Prime Minister Nakasone presented citations to 213 men and 682 women reaching 100 this fiscal year, including several Japanese Americans living in the U.S.
• Sansei Leads Everest Climb, page 2. Dolly Sano, a 28-year-old park ranger from Mill Valley, Calif., leads an 11-member Mt. Everest expedition attempting the treacherous west ridge in autumn for the first time. If successful, the team would put the first American woman atop Everest, though two climbers have already died on the route this season.
• Mas Kawaguchi to Be Honored at Community Testimonial Dinner, page 2. A community testimonial dinner will honor Masashi Kawaguchi, president of Fishking Processors, Inc., on Nov. 3 at the Hyatt Regency Hotel, benefiting the Boy Scouts of America. Kawaguchi is known for his philanthropic work through the Kawaguchi Kihara Foundation, which donates $100,000 annually to nonprofits.
• Testimonial Set for Monterey’s Tsuchiya, page 2. A testimonial dinner honoring Harold K. Tsuchiya, recipient of the Sixth Order of Sacred Treasure, will be held Nov. 13 at Rancho Canada in Monterey. Community sponsors include JACL, VFW Post 1629, and local churches.
• ‘Nisei Today’ Topic of October Series, page 3. A discussion series titled ‘Coming to Terms: The Nisei Today’ will be held Sundays in October at the Japanese American Cultural and Community Center. Topics include evacuation aftermath, health, aging and retirement, and spiritual needs, featuring speakers like Dr. Harry Kitano.
• Social Services Merge with Pioneer Center, page 3. Japanese Chamber of Commerce Social Services, Inc., and Japanese Community Pioneer Center have merged to provide services in Los Angeles. The brief item describes the organizational consolidation.
• Friendship Festival Draws 50 Sponsors, page 3. More than 50 groups will participate in the third annual Japanese Friendship Garden festival Oct. 2 at Balboa Park in San Diego, featuring koto concerts, tea ceremony demonstrations, and various cultural exhibits. Proceeds will fund the first phase of landscape construction for the garden.
• Women’s Network to Present Awards, page 3. The Asian/Pacific Women’s Network of L.A. will hold its third annual Woman Warrior Awards banquet Oct. 7 at the Biltmore Hotel, honoring women including Chief Justice Rose Elizabeth Bird and figure skater Tai Babilonia. Pioneer journalist Louise Leung Larson will receive the Life Achievement Award.
• Asian ‘Yellow Pages’ to Be Published, page 3. San Francisco will soon have its first free Asian Yellow Pages directory, printed in Chinese and Japanese, to meet the needs of the growing Asian community. Some 31,000 directories will be distributed throughout the Bay Area.
• Convalescent Nursing Home Planned for Nikkei in San Jose, page 3. Concerned individuals are developing plans for a non-profit convalescent hospital to serve Japanese Americans in the San Jose area, chaired by Dr. Tom Taketa. The group met with Los Angeles and Seattle Keiro executives to gather information on land and building plans.
• Asian Films Slated Oct. 8-9 at JACCC, page 3. An Asian American Film Festival featuring full-length dramas from Japan, Korea and the Philippines is scheduled for Oct. 8-9 at the Japan America Theatre. The event is co-sponsored by Visual Communications and JACCC with an opening night reception.
• JACCC Recognizes Its Builders, page 3. A bronze plaque was placed at the Japanese American Cultural and Community Center acknowledging the architects, engineers, contractors and landscape designers who constructed the five-story building. The building at 244 S. San Pedro St. was dedicated March 2, 1980.
• L.A. Retiree Group to Meet at JACCC, page 3. The newly organized Downtown Los Angeles chapter of the American Association of Retired Persons will meet Oct. 3 at the JACCC. Programs for senior citizens will be discussed at the meeting open to persons over 50.
• Salinas Valley JACL Lauds Redress Staffer, page 4. Salinas Valley JACL’s redress committee commended Carole Hayashino of JACL National Headquarters for her devoted behind-the-scenes work promoting redress. Redress chair Violet Kazue de Cristoforo praised her quiet, effective dedication to the cause.
• Bay Area Seniors Have Day at Picnic, page 6. Approximately 500 Japanese Americans gathered at Kelly Park in San Jose for the annual picnic sponsored by Bay Area Japanese Senior Centers. Representative groups came from numerous Bay Area chapters and senior programs.
• By the Board: Plan Now for ’84, by Miki Himeno, page 7. JACL board member Miki Himeno recounts a trip to Hawaii where she attended a JACL convention committee meeting and toured the Pacific Beach Hotel, site of the upcoming 1984 national convention. She describes convention planning details and a chapter picnic hosted by Honolulu JACL.
• Marina Slates Seminars on ‘Your Financial Planning’, page 8. Marina JACL will sponsor three Thursday seminars in October on financial and estate planning topics relevant to the Japanese American community, featuring speakers including attorney John Bartlett and CPA George Kodama. Topics include wills, life insurance, investments, and retirement planning.
• Four Awarded $600 Haruyama Grants, page 9. Four Japanese American seminarians received $600 scholarships from the Justin Haruyama Ministerial Scholarship Fund, named for the late pastor of the Japanese American United Church in New York. Recipients include students from California, Michigan, and elsewhere.
• U.W. Alumni Honor Pioneer Dream, page 9. University of Washington’s social work building will receive a historic plaque honoring the former Japanese Students Club/SYNKOA house that served Nikkei students from 1922 to 1962. A trust fund from the sale continues to provide annual scholarships to students.

National

• War Cables Reveal Japan Considered Nisei Unsuitable as Spies, by Raymond Okamura, page 1. Declassified ‘Magic’ intercepts show the U.S. government knew Japan’s government instructed its consular staff to avoid using Japanese Americans as spies, undermining the rationale for mass incarceration. The documents, obtained by Michi Weglyn, reveal the FBI and Naval Intelligence recommended against wholesale internment despite this knowledge.
• Sen. Kennedy Backs S.1520, page 2. Sen. Edward M. Kennedy wrote to Aiko Watanabe of Los Angeles expressing support for S. 1520, the Senate redress bill compensating those interned during WWII. Kennedy’s letter cited the CWRIC’s finding that no documented espionage or sabotage was committed by Japanese Americans.
• Labor Bias Charged on UC Berkeley, page 3. UC Berkeley plans to hire 26 women and five ethnic minority scholars to professorial positions within three years to meet affirmative action pledges. The Labor Department cited 18 problem areas in the university’s hiring program.
• Japan Trade Mission Ends U.S. Market Access Tour, page 5. A Japanese Market Access Promotion Mission led by Daiei president Isao Nakauchi concluded a 10-day U.S. tour with talks in Los Angeles on attracting American exports to Japan. The mission met with local business leaders and received honors from the mayor and other officials.
• Civil Rights Chairs Endorse Redress, page 6. The 51 state chairs of advisory committees to the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights endorsed the CWRIC recommendations including monetary compensation of $20,000 per survivor. Min Yasui, National JACL redress chair, had submitted the recommendation for their endorsement.
• ‘Magic’ Continued from Page 1, by Raymond Okamura, page 7. This continuation details how U.S. intelligence conducted covert investigations of Japanese American communities despite knowing from intercepted cables that Japan avoided using Nisei as spies. It notes that no person of Japanese ancestry was ever convicted of espionage, while at least 19 white persons were convicted as Japanese spies.
• Preliminary Redress Survey Indicates Most Want Damages, page 9. A survey conducted by the Toronto Japanese Canadian Citizens Association found the majority of respondents support government compensation for the WWII uprooting of Japanese Canadians. However, with less than 20 percent response rate, some officials questioned the survey’s conclusiveness.
• 21-Story Condominium in New York Opposed in Lawsuit, page 9. A lawsuit filed by Chinatown residents challenges the Henry Street Tower luxury condominium project, arguing it will raise rents and displace low-income tenants without adequate environmental review. The suit also challenges a $500,000 payment from the developer to the city as an improper exchange for zoning permits.
• WDC-Area Asians #1 in Schooling, Study Finds, page 10. A Council of Governments study found Washington D.C.-area Asian and Pacific Islanders have the highest educational attainment and median income among minority groups in the region. Montgomery, Fairfax, and Prince George’s counties account for 75% of the area’s Asian/Pacific Islander population.
• Business Charged in Dallas, page 10. Armstrong and Yamamoto face charges related to circuit boards for Pac-Man and Donkey Kong games with a disputed sales price and delivery date, held at Dallas County Jail. Details of the specific allegations are limited in this brief report.
• U.S. Experts on Education Value Japanese Mothers, page 10. American scholars including UC-Berkeley’s George de Vos and Harvard’s Jerome Kagan credit the dedicated ‘education mother’ as a key factor behind Japanese students’ academic superiority over American students. University of Michigan psychologist Harold Stevenson’s research found Japanese classrooms significantly outperformed American ones in math.

Military & Veterans

• ‘Sparky’ Condemns Soviet on KAL 007, page 1. A Senate resolution condemned the Soviet downing of KAL Flight 007 as an enormous crime against South Korea and all civilized nations. The brief item notes Senate participation in the Sept. 15 resolution.
• Fighter Pilot Capt. Nakagawa Assumes Command of Pt. Mugu Naval Air Station, page 2. Capt. Gordon Ross Nakagawa, a Sansei Navy fighter pilot who survived four months as a North Vietnamese POW in Hanoi, officially took command of Point Mugu Naval Air Station. He and his wife Jeanne are active JACL members who previously worked at the Naval Air Systems Command in Washington, D.C.
• Nisei Post 1183 Honors Illinois American Legion at Council Meeting, page 8. Members of Chicago Nisei Post 1183 honored Illinois American Legion officials including junior vice commander George Suzuki and Arthur T. Morimitsu for their support of Japanese American redress at the national American Legion Convention in Seattle. Morimitsu’s advocacy helped defeat anti-Nikkei resolutions from Washington and Pennsylvania legionnaires.
• Detroit JACL Helps Vincent Chin Case, page 9. Detroit JACL made a substantial contribution to American Citizens for Justice for the Vincent Chin case, presented to president Kin Yee. Elaine Prout, Detroit JACL board chair, participated in the presentation.

Arts & Entertainment

• ‘The Year of the Dragon’ Opens CSU-LA AATAP Season, page 3. Frank Chin’s play ‘The Year of the Dragon,’ directed by the playwright and starring Nobu McCarthy, opens the Asian American Theatre Arts Project season at CSU-LA. The play explores Chinese American identity through the Eng family living in San Francisco’s Chinatown.
• Sansei Drama in ‘West Coast Plays’, page 3. Phillip Gotanda’s play ‘The Dream of Kitamura’ is featured in the California Theatre Council’s publication West Coast Plays, Volume 15/16. The dreamlike work involves ambiguous characters who may be fathers, criminals, or avenging spirits.

Commentary

• Reparations for Veterans?, by Wes Peyton, page 4. A Mercury News editorial writer questions whether redress payments to Japanese American internees are warranted, contrasting his own WWII military service and benefits with internees’ experiences. The piece is a reprinted editorial opposing or questioning the redress payment proposal.
• Redress for Internment, page 4. A reprinted Honolulu Advertiser editorial discusses the CWRIC’s finding that internment was a ‘grave injustice’ resulting from race prejudice and war hysteria, noting military necessity ended after Midway. It acknowledges the difficulty of the monetary compensation question but argues some payment is warranted given the suffering endured.
• A Time to Close Ranks, page 4. This JACL editorial column urges Nikkei to set aside internal differences and egos over redress strategy and instead unite behind the central goal of vindication for Issei and Nisei who suffered injustice. It warns that infighting over credit or payment details could jeopardize the larger redress movement.
• Round Six, by M.Y. aka Iseke, page 4. A letter to the editor responds to a previous piece questioning whether women’s concerns in JACL leadership are real or perceived, arguing that women deserve equal leadership roles without deferring to men. The writer draws parallels to other civil rights struggles in demanding change.
• Redress Matter, by Tiz/Alice Tsuma, page 4. A letter to the editor agrees completely with Jerry Enomoto’s views on redress expressed in a previous Perspectives column. The writer suggests Enomoto’s piece should be published in major newspapers across the U.S.
• On Promoting Culture from Japan, by Allan Beekman, page 5. The columnist reflects on Japan’s cultural diplomacy efforts, contrasting expensive but lackluster government and corporate-sponsored programs with the simple but effective impact of a touring Japanese college choir’s concert in Colorado. He argues that people-to-people contact does more for international goodwill than costly promotional campaigns.
• Chiaroscuro: Yasui Inspires Philly, page 6. Min Yasui delivered a dynamic speech on redress as an American civil rights issue in Philadelphia, inspiring the Eastern District Council with his history as a WWII resister who challenged Executive Order 9066. Bill Marutani and Grayce Uyehara also urged members to actively engage legislators and the public in support of redress legislation.
• Japan’s Defense, page 7. This column examines Japan’s precarious defense posture amid U.S. pressure to increase military spending and the threat of Soviet SS-20 missiles, following the KAL 007 shootdown. It argues Japan’s peace constitution, rather than militarization, may be a more meaningful path forward, citing experts who warn against reliance on outdated nuclear deterrence strategies.
• Chiaroscuro: On Redress Arguments, page 7. A columnist warns against Japanese Americans dismissing other groups’ claims to reparations, arguing that solidarity with other wronged communities strengthens rather than weakens the redress case. The piece contends that legal precedent set by the Japanese American case will inevitably affect and be affected by other groups’ claims for constitutional rights violations.

In-Depth

• 80 Years in America: Family Roots in Pictures, by Henry K. Mori, page 5. Richard T. Imon, an 18-year-old CSU-Fullerton student, authored a pictorial family history tracing his family back to the late 1800s in Japan through WWII internment. The book documents his great-grandfather’s 1903 immigration and includes historical artifacts like passports and internment camp identification numbers.

JACL

• Salinas Valley Retiree Tells of McGraw-Hill Benefits, page 6. Violet Kazue de Cristoforo, a McGraw-Hill retiree, chairs Salinas Valley JACL’s redress committee and secured a $960 grant to fund a bilingual JACL newsletter distributed to 80 chapters nationwide. The newsletter covers printing and mailing costs for one year through McGraw-Hill’s Employee Volunteer Support Program.
• Salinas Works on 50-Year History, page 6. Historian Wilfred DeCristoforo of Salinas Valley JACL is compiling records and documents chronicling the chapter’s 50-plus year history. Members are asked to search their homes for relevant documents and contact him for inclusion in the project.
• Seabrook JACL Installs Ono as New President, page 8. C. Scott Ono succeeds Scott Nagao as Seabrook JACL president at a summer installation and graduates recognition banquet featuring Rep. William J. Hughes as keynote speaker on redress. Silver pins and over $1,000 in scholarships were awarded to outstanding students and community members.
• Chicago JACL President Resigns, page 8. Jane Kaihatsu resigned as Chicago JACL chapter president to join the production staff of ‘Unfinished Business,’ a television film documenting the coram nobis cases of Fred Korematsu, Gordon Hirabayashi, and Minoru Yasui. Vice president Michael Ushijima will replace her in the interim.

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