Redress and anti-Asian bigotry: a February 1984 hearing, a camp plaque and a Senate bill

Vol. 98, No. 7, February 24, 1984. 12 pages. View this issue

The Pacific Citizen led with a Santa Clara County hearing on anti-Asian bigotry and violence, where JACL’s Ron Wakabayashi and about 40 other speakers described incidents including a “Japan Day” at a San Jose high school. The front page also reported a plaque dedicated Feb. 19 at the former Salinas Assembly Center, and Los Angeles Mayor Tom Bradley signing an ordinance to pay $5,000 each to 35 Nisei city employees fired during World War II. Inside, Minoru Yasui wrote that Senate hearings on redress bill S 2116 might come in April and May, and the editorial urged JACL and other Nikkei redress groups to work together.

Other pages carried Ron Wakabayashi’s column on the NHK drama “Sanga Moyu” and a reply from Barry Saiki, Harry Honda’s Little Tokyo Life column on a 1929 Mt. Whitney climb, and Bill Hosokawa on a Garfield High School reunion. Michi Weglyn reported that her book “Years of Infamy” was back in print. Letters filled most of page 7.

What’s in this issue

National

• Anti-Asian Incidents Described in Hearing, by P.C. Staff, page 1. At a Santa Clara County Human Relations Commission hearing on Anti-Asian Bigotry and Violence, JACL’s Ron Wakabayashi and other speakers described incidents including a ‘Japan Day’ at Homestead High School featuring racist caricatures and mock bombing re-enactments. Roughly 40 speakers addressed issues including redress, media stereotyping, language instruction and services for the county’s growing refugee population.
• Japanese American Youth Undergo Less Emotional Trauma With Knowledge of Their History, Says Psychiatrist, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Psychiatrist Allan Seid told the Pacific Citizen that college-age Asian Americans often face traumatic identity crises when confronted with discrimination for the first time, having grown up believing they were treated as Caucasian. Seid said understanding history and the interconnectedness of Asian American experiences, including redress, is critical to building identity and awareness.
• Asian Americans: Commission Hearing Spurs Action, page 7. Continuing coverage of the Santa Clara hearing notes that psychiatrist Allan Seid praised the Human Rights Commission’s effectiveness in generating media coverage and community response, including action following the Brad Wong Homestead High School incident. The commission also helped curb tire-slashing incidents targeting the Laotian community through police-community coordination.
• Japan to Ban Sex Discrimination, page 12. Japanese Premier Yasuhiro Nakasone announced plans to ratify a U.N. international law eliminating discrimination against women before the 1985 U.N. Decade for Women conference in Nairobi. He has instructed government agencies to complete preparations this year, including legalizing equal employment opportunities for men and women.

Incarceration & Redress

• Plaque Dedicated at Salinas Camp Site, by P.C. Staff, page 1. A California Registered Historic Landmark plaque was dedicated Feb. 19 at the site of the former Salinas Assembly Center, commemorating the internment of 3,586 Japanese Americans from the Monterey Bay area in 1942. Dignitaries including Judge William Marutani and JACL redress leaders Minoru Yasui and John Tateishi attended the ceremony at Sherwood Park.
• City of Los Angeles to Compensate WW2 Nisei Employees, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Mayor Tom Bradley signed a Los Angeles city ordinance providing $5,000 each to 35 former city employees terminated due to Japanese ancestry during WW2, calling it a step toward correcting ‘this blight on our democracy.’ The article also reprints excerpts from a 1942 radio address by then-Mayor Fletcher Bowron defending the firings.

Community

• Dr. Harry Kitano: Sociologist’s Academic Career Has Its Roots in Racial Discrimination, page 2. UCLA professor Harry H.L. Kitano, a nationally recognized researcher on Japanese American families, discussed his concerns about race relations and the potential targeting of Southeast Asian refugees. The profile details his academic achievements, visiting professorships, and recognition by JACL as ‘Man of the Biennium.’
• Utah Considers Asian American Council, page 3. Lobbying efforts by about 80 Asian Americans helped secure state funding for the Utah Asian American Advisory Council, established by Gov. Scott Matheson to address discrimination and economic development. A budget subcommittee approved the council’s full $36,400 funding request for FY 1984-85.
• Visual Communications Obtains Grant, page 3. The ARCO Foundation granted $15,000 to Visual Communications, an Asian Pacific media center, to support its Asian Pacific American Photographic Archive containing over a quarter-million historical images. Executive director Nancy Araki said the funding will help expand and improve access to the archive, which has been used in local publications and museum exhibits.
• UC Removes Pilipinos From Proposed Affirmative Action; Students Protest, page 3. A conference at UCLA on March 10 will address the university’s proposal to remove Pilipinos from its affirmative action plan, which student groups say ignores high attrition rates and immigration fluctuations among Pilipino students. Yori Wada, chair of the UC Board of Regents, will be the keynote speaker.
• Coachella Valley JACL Honors Pioneers, by P.C. Staff, page 6. Coachella Valley JACL’s annual Pioneer Night honored Issei pioneers Yoshi Kono and Yoshitaro Mizutani of Oasis, Calif., combined with installation of new chapter officers. The event featured a screening of the film ‘Pieces of a Dream’ about Asian immigration to California’s agricultural valleys.
• Fashion Show Proceeds Help Two Groups, by P.C. Staff, page 7. West Los Angeles JACL Auxiliary presented a $6,000 check to the Japanese American Cultural and Community Center and $2,000 to the Japanese Retirement Home, proceeds from the ‘Dateline: The Orient’ fashion show. The October event featured designers from Japan and local Japanese American designers, with Tritia Toyota as emcee.
• Non-Japanese Protest Country’s Fingerprinting Policies, page 12. Foreign residents in Japan, especially Koreans who make up 83% of registered foreigners, are increasingly refusing to comply with fingerprinting requirements under Japan’s Alien Registration Law, leading to indictments. Japanese American missionary Ronald Susumu Fujiyoshi was denied re-entry to Japan after refusing to be fingerprinted and has filed suit against the Ministry of Justice.
• Family Laments Son’s Suicide at 22, by P.C. Staff, page 12. Mark Matsukawa, 22, of Gardena was found dead in the Dominguez Flood Channel after a drug-related apparent suicide, days after leaving home without a word. His father, Jack Matsukawa, made a rare public statement urging parents to stay close to their children and ensure they know they are loved.

Obituaries

• Deaths: Kadani, Oshima, Satow, page 2. Obituary notices report the deaths of Takeichi Kadani, former San Benito County JACL president; Hoshiro ‘Coffee’ Oshima, a Sacramento JACL Life member; and Roy Toshio Satow, a WWII 442nd Combat Team veteran. Each notice lists surviving family members.

In-Depth

• Little Tokyo Life (No. 6): No. American ‘Alps’, by Harry Honda, page 3. Harry Honda recounts the 1929 climb of Mt. Whitney by three Little Tokyo Issei journalists and insurance agent Tadashi Kinoshita, documented in Kinoshita’s book about climbing the ‘North American Alps.’ The column reflects on how the stock market crash later curtailed such adventurous pursuits among Nisei and wonders if any Manzanar internees ever dreamed of climbing the peak visible from camp.

Commentary

• Coming Together for a Common Cause, page 4. This editorial argues that JACL and various Nikkei redress groups should stop competing and instead unite in an ecumenical spirit to pursue the common cause of redress. It calls for mutual support and cooperation regardless of organizational affiliation, since the injustice of WWII incarceration affected all Nikkei.
• Musubi: ‘Sanga Moyu’, by Ron Wakabayashi, page 4. Wakabayashi analyzes Nikkei anxieties about NHK’s television drama ‘Sanga Moyu,’ which dramatizes the WWII internment story for a Japanese audience. He notes concerns about conflation of ‘Japanese’ nationals and Japanese Americans, lack of context about American constitutional rights, and differing cultural value systems regarding wrongdoing and amends.
• Redress Phase Five: Early Senate Hearings Possible, by Minoru Yasui, page 4. Yasui reports that the Senate Subcommittee on Civil Service, Post Office and General Services, chaired by Sen. Ted Stevens, may hold early hearings on redress bill S 2116 in April and May. He lists key senators whose support will be needed and urges JACLers to contact their senators to advocate for the bill.
• From the Frying Pan: Golden Reunion for Garfield Grads, by Bill Hosokawa, page 5. Hosokawa reflects on an upcoming 50th reunion of his Garfield High School graduating classes of 1933 and 1934 in Seattle, recalling many classmates, including Nisei friends, now listed as ‘missing.’ He muses on whether the trip into the past would be worth the effort after such a long span of time.
• Chiaroscuro: Strength Through Unity, by Ric Berman, page 5. Fresno A.L.L./JACL president Ric Berman, a hakujin leader of the chapter, reflects on his unexpected rise to the position and the importance of JACL’s mission for his Japanese American family. He draws parallels between 1942 and 1984, citing the Vincent Chin case and anti-refugee violence as evidence that continued unity and vigilance are needed.
• Letter: Nikkei Lawsuit, by John A. Herzig, page 7. Herzig clarifies misconceptions about the NCJAR class-action lawsuit, explaining it represents all 120,000 wrongfully incarcerated Japanese Americans, not just the 25 named plaintiffs. He describes the lawsuit’s basis in 22 constitutional and human rights violations and urges recognition of NCJAR’s research efforts.
• Letter: Yellow Not in Rainbow, by Ross Harano, page 7. Harano criticizes Jesse Jackson’s ‘Rainbow Coalition’ for excluding Asian Americans in Chicago and for Jackson’s past statements opposing Asian American eligibility for minority programs. He urges Jackson to develop a statement demonstrating sensitivity to Asian American concerns.
• Letter: Tokyo View, by Barry Saiki, page 7. Saiki offers a detailed defense of NHK’s drama ‘Sanga Moyu,’ based on Toyoko Yamasaki’s novel, arguing that despite some dramatized liberties the Kibei protagonist’s loyalty to the U.S. is portrayed faithfully. He notes the novel has sold 1,300,000 copies and expresses confidence in producer Susumu Kondo’s handling of the sensitive material.
• Letter: Working for Peace, by Tony Rogers, page 7. Rogers sarcastically critiques an earlier Pacific Citizen article by Diane Narasaki on racial solidarity and peace work, questioning its abstract language about ‘people of color.’ He suggests the American Friends Service Committee should be proud of its ‘discriminating advocate.’
• Letter: Cultural Identity, by Chiyeko Hedani, page 7. Hedani argues that ethnic groups never forget their heritage and that Japanese Americans must preserve cultural ties through food, arts, and traditions as the Issei generation diminishes. She expresses worry that redress may come too late for many surviving internees.
• Letter: Force of Love, by Hashime Saito, page 7. Saito advocates a method of transmitting collective ‘love energy’ worldwide as a means to eliminate poverty, hunger, injustice and war, citing a Buddhist monk’s vigil at a local air force base. The letter frames humanity’s future as dependent on mass participation in this spiritual practice before the year 1998.
• Letter: Back in Print, by Michi Weglyn, page 7. Weglyn thanks readers for their letters of protest to publisher William Morrow after her book ‘Years of Infamy’ went out of print. She announces the book is back in print and available after Feb. 10 due to the community’s advocacy.
• Nikkei Divorce: Where Are We Today?, by Steve Fugita, page 12. A California survey found that Japanese Americans still have a lower divorce rate than the U.S. average, though marital instability among Sansei was nearly twice that of Nisei. The study found that Nikkei more involved in the Japanese community had lower divorce rates, suggesting community involvement serves as either a deterrent to divorce or a buffer against marital stress.

JACL

• A National Network of Asian and Pacific Women, by Irene Hirano, page 5. JACL Women’s Concerns Committee chair Irene Hirano describes the history and growth of the National Network of Asian and Pacific Women, now comprising 23 organizations nationally, and its work on issues from employment discrimination to scholarships. She encourages JACL members to engage with local Asian Pacific women’s groups for mutual benefit.
• Year Book 1984, by David Nakayama, page 5. National JACL Youth Director David Nakayama describes the annual Year Book 1984 scholarship publication, which recognizes over 40 scholarship recipients nationwide and features astronaut Major Ellison Onizuka. He invites chapters to contribute tax-deductible ‘greetings’ to support the publication.
• Membership Development Highlights PSWDC’s First Quarterly Session, by P.C. Staff, page 6. PSWDC’s first quarterly session, hosted by Selanoco JACL, focused on membership development strategies under new governor Harry Kajihara’s goal of increasing membership after PSW enrolled 8,200 members in 1983. Chapter representatives shared ideas including youth programs, family events, and targeted outreach to Sansei members.

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