Seattle school clerks, redress and the JACL’s 1984 agenda

Vol. 98, No. 15, April 20, 1984. 12 pages. View this issue

Twenty-seven Nisei women forced to resign from their Seattle School District jobs in February 1942 could receive $5,000 each under a redress proposal before the school board, and the front page and page 8 tell that story. Former employees May Daty Namba, Alice Kawanishi and Toyo Okuda Cary testified in support. Elsewhere, Min Yasui urged members to press Congress on redress bills HR 4110 and S 2116, and Bill Hosokawa profiled Mike Masaoka and the 442nd Regimental Combat Team.

Also in this issue: Karen Seriguchi on Asian Pacific Caucus politics in California, Ron Wakabayashi on the NHK program “Sanga Moyu,” Lane Hirabayashi on the happa experience, and Harry Honda on the “other” Nihonmachi in Los Angeles. Joe Oyama reported on the Suisun Valley Nikkei Reunion, and the issue also carried a note on JACL scholarship and award deadlines.

What’s in this issue

Incarceration & Redress

• School Board May Compensate Clerks for Forced Resignations, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Twenty-seven Nisei women forced to resign from Seattle School District jobs in February 1942 may receive $5,000 each under a redress proposal before the school board. Former employees and community leaders testified in support, citing the wartime hysteria that led to their dismissal.
• Presbyterians to Consider Redress, by P.C. Staff, page 2. The Presbytery of Sacramento voted to ask the Presbyterian Church’s general assembly to support Japanese American and Aleut redress bills in Congress. The resolution, initiated at a Japanese Presbyterian Conference meeting, calls for congregations to urge their representatives to support the legislation.
• Seattle School Clerks Forced to Resign in 1942, by P.C. Staff, page 8. This continuation details how Seattle PTA mothers pressured the school district to remove Nisei clerks in February 1942 over sabotage fears, despite Superintendent Worth McClure’s defense of their loyalty. The women ultimately resigned, issuing a statement expressing loyalty to America and gratitude to the school system despite the injustice.

National

• Minority Leaders Say Asians Should Make More Demands, by Karen Seriguchi, page 1. At a workshop during the California Democratic Party’s Asian Pacific Caucus convention, Black and Hispanic caucus leaders and a Chinese American mayor urged Asian Americans to be more assertive in coalition politics. Speakers emphasized clear goals, accountability from elected officials, and overcoming the perception that Asians are too polite to make demands.
• Matsui Rumored for Senate in 1986, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Rep. Robert Matsui may challenge Sen. Alan Cranston in 1986 according to a Sacramento Bee report. Matsui has gained national attention for his work on Lebanon policy and baby-food contamination issues.
• JAs in Hawaii Not Dominant, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Dr. Jonathan Okamura writes in the Hawaii Herald that despite large numbers employed in state government, Japanese Americans do not control Hawaii’s political and economic forces. Census data shows Japanese and Korean Americans occupy the middle of the occupational hierarchy, below Haoles and Chinese Americans.
• Bill Would Punish Racial Violence, by P.C. Staff, page 1. California Attorney General John Van de Kamp is pushing legislation, Assembly Bill 2719, that would add two years to prison sentences for felonies motivated by a victim’s race, religion or ethnicity. The bill was introduced by Assemblyman Tom Bane.
• Mansfield Against Scapegoating, by P.C. Staff, page 1. U.S. Ambassador to Japan Mike Mansfield urged Americans to avoid scapegoating Japan and to work on improving bilateral relations. He spoke via taped message at a media briefing on U.S.-Japan relations attended by news editors and officials.
• Cannery Workers Win Appeal, by P.C. Staff, page 1. A U.S. court of appeals affirmed a ruling that New England Fish Company discriminated against non-white workers at Alaska salmon canneries. The case, brought on behalf of 780 non-white workers, also won a new hearing on compensatory damages claims.
• Students Testify Against U.C. Davis, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Asian American students testified in Woodland Superior Court that UC Davis is threatening Asian American studies by moving program resources to the central library amid other cuts. The Coalition to Save Asian American Studies plans to continue testimony in June.
• Democratic Candidates Accept Asian Pacific Caucus Platform, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Representatives of Jesse Jackson, Walter Mondale, and Gary Hart stated their candidates endorse the Asian Pacific Caucus platform at the California Democratic Party convention. The platform addresses civil liberties, immigration, social services, bilingual education, economic opportunity, and political representation for Asian Pacific Americans.
• Peace Prize Awarded Unitarian Minister, by P.C. Staff, page 11. Rev. Dr. Homer A. Jack, who championed Japanese American rights during WWII, received a Japanese peace prize including 20 million yen from the Niwano Peace Foundation. Jack, honored by JACL in 1957, directed multi-religious projects aiding Vietnamese boat people and Khmer refugees as secretary-general of the World Conference on Religion and Peace.

JACL

• Yonemura Scholarship Endowed at U.H., by P.C. Staff, page 2. University of Hawaii President Fujio Matsuda announced a $50,000 contribution establishing the James K. Yonemura Scholarship Fund. Yonemura, active in JACL, wants the income used to promote U.S.-Japan understanding through educational programs.
• Inagaki/JACLer Deadline Extended, by P.C. Staff, page 4. Applications for JACLer of the Biennium and the Inagaki Chapter Citizenship Award will be accepted until April 30. Completed applications must be received, not postmarked, by the deadline at a Rockville, Maryland address.

Community

• Alameda Reunion Scheduled for July, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Organizers have finalized plans for the Alameda Nikkei Grand Reunion taking place July 27-29, featuring registration, a bento dinner, wine country tour, golf tournament, and banquet. Former Alamedans are expected to travel from as far as Japan and Hawaii, with three to four hundred attendees anticipated.
• Short Stories About Nikkei Life Wanted, by P.C. Staff, page 3. The Japanese American Curriculum Project is developing a grade 5-8 book on Japanese Americans and is soliciting manuscripts for a contemporary short stories section. Three accepted manuscripts will receive $100 cash awards, with submissions due by August 31.

Arts & Entertainment

• Reception to Be Held for ‘Ganbatte’ Author, by P.C. Staff, page 3. UCLA’s Asian American Studies Center will hold a book reception for Karl G. Yoneda’s memoir “Ganbatte: Sixty-Year Struggle of a Kibei Worker.” Yoneda, a labor organizer and longshoreman born in 1906, will autograph books alongside editor Yuji Ichioka.

Commentary

• Exaggerations, by Ron Wakabayashi, page 4. JACL’s national director responds to accusations that JACL censored NHK’s “Sanga Moyu” program, clarifying that JACL only expressed concern rather than seeking to stop the broadcast. He argues JACL’s influence is often overstated and that concerns about the show’s impact on American and Japanese audiences differ depending on context.
• Role of Women Evolving, by Alysa Watanabe, page 4. A Sansei JACL member reflects on gender dynamics within the organization, drawing on a hypothesis developed in an Asian American Studies course about how camp life altered traditional gender roles. She observes that while women dominate chapter-level leadership, men still dominate district and national levels, though she expects this to change.
• Easter Holiday, by Min Yasui, page 4. The redress committee chair urges JACL members to contact their congressional representatives during the Easter recess regarding redress bills HR 4110 and S 2116. He lists key senators and House sub-committee members whose support is needed to advance the legislation.
• Understanding the ‘Happa’ Experience, by Lane Hirabayashi, page 5. A lecturer in Asian American Studies examines the diverse experiences of mixed-race Japanese Americans, arguing that happa identity is shaped by family background, gender, appearance, and community contact rather than being uniform. He shares his own path toward identifying strongly as Japanese American through his father’s family history and activism.
• Asian Drug Abuse, by Chiyeko Hedani, page 8. A letter writer expresses shock at reports of drug and alcohol abuse among Asian Americans, referencing a Family Weekly article on the topic. She calls for Japanese American community leaders to convene and address the problem before it spreads further among younger generations.
• Redress ‘Giri’, by Violet Kazue de Cristoforo, page 8. The Salinas Valley Chapter redress chair responds to William Marutani’s column urging Nikkei to contribute “three pennies a day” toward redress funding. She argues using the concept of giri (duty/obligation) rather than gaman (endurance), asserting the debt owed to Issei parents and Nisei soldiers obligates all Japanese Americans to support redress financially.

Military & Veterans

• The Mark of Mike Masaoka, by Bill Hosokawa, page 5. A profile traces Mike Masaoka’s decades of leadership for JACL, from advocating for Japanese American military service and co-founding the 442nd Regimental Combat Team to securing postwar legislative victories like Issei naturalization and the Evacuation Claims Act. His influence on U.S.-Japan relations and civil rights legislation is credited as profound and lasting.

In-Depth

• Suisun Valley Nikkei Reunion: Fleeting Impressions, by Joe Oyama, page 7. A reflective account of the Suisun Valley Nikkei Reunion held September 19, 1981, where 250 former residents gathered at a converted schoolhouse to honor Issei pioneers who farmed the valley before being incarcerated during WWII. The piece describes a memorial service at a cemetery with segregated sections and reflects on the resilience of Japanese American families who returned and multiplied despite the hardships of evacuation.
• The ‘Other’ Nihonmachi, by Harry Honda, page 9. This installment of Little Tokyo Life explores the lesser-known “other” Nihonmachi that thrived between 1900-1910 near 7th and Grand, distinct from the Little Tokyo area known today. The piece describes Japanese employment agencies offering day labor and traces how Issei settlers spread throughout Los Angeles as they learned English and saved money.

Obituaries

• Boise Valley JACL Leader Succumbs, by P.C. Staff, page 11. Yoshio Takahashi, 69, a longtime Boise Valley JACL president and scoutmaster, died April 3 at a Caldwell hospital. He farmed in Idaho after marrying Ayako Joyce Sakaue in 1943 and was a founding 1000 Club member continuously current since 1948.

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