George Kondo retires, and JACL argues over Resolution 7

Vol. 111, No. 5, August 31, 1990. 8 pages. View this issue

George Kondo’s retirement after 15 years as director of JACL’s Northern California-Western Nevada-Pacific District led the issue. J.K. Yamamoto of Hokubei Mainichi profiled him: a former Topaz internee who helped start seven chapters and said his job kept him young. Resolution 7 and the WWII draft resisters ran through the opinion pages. Clifford Uyeda called the Presidential Select Committee’s report a whitewash, JACL headquarters answered with a six-page rebuttal, and Clay West described how the National Council adopted a substitute resolution at the San Diego convention.

Elsewhere, Bill Hosokawa wrote about a Japanese businessman who visits historic sites, and Bill Marutani criticized racism in advertising. An overview of the Office of Redress Administration opened a five-part series on the Civil Liberties Act. News included a lawsuit against a San Jose cemetery, a $1.15 million Japanese Canadian redress grant for a Toronto seniors’ home, and a profile of student Sanae Takahashi.

What’s in this issue

JACL

• No. Cal-Western Nevada-Pacific JACL Director Retires After 15 Years, by J.K. Yamamoto, Hokubei Mainichi, page 1. George Kondo retired after 15 years as director of JACL’s Northern California-Western Nevada-Pacific District, the largest JACL district with 35 chapters. Kondo, a Berkeley native and former internee at Tanforan and Topaz, helped start seven new chapters and never missed a district council meeting during his tenure.
• JACL HQ Rebuts Uyeda’s ‘Accusations’ on Resolution 7, by P.C. Staff, page 1. National JACL Headquarters issued a six-page rebuttal to Clifford Uyeda’s accusations regarding the Presidential Select Committee’s Report on Resolution 7 concerning WWII draft resisters. The rebuttal defends the process and notes that the National Council unanimously adopted a substitute resolution, Resolution 13, honoring the draft resisters’ sacrifices.
• National Council Action on Resolution 7 at San Diego Convention, by Clay West, page 5. Clay West, a JACL Japan Chapter delegate, recounts how the National Council responsibly handled the divisive Resolution 7 issue at the San Diego convention by adopting a substitute resolution honoring draft resisters. He describes the process as a principled resolution that allows JACL to move forward while preserving the historical record.

Community

• Rockefeller Residency on Ethnics Studies Set, by P.C. Staff, page 1. UCLA’s Asian American Studies Center announced Rockefeller Residency fellowships for 1991-92 on the theme of generational and cultural change in Asian Pacific American society. Applications are due Dec. 31 and include stipends ranging from $8,000 to $30,000.
• Visual Communications Celebrating Its 20th Anniversary Nov. 17, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Visual Communications will hold a 20th anniversary celebration at the Japan America Theatre featuring musicians Johnny Mori, Dan Kuramoto and June Okida Kuramoto of Hiroshima. The organization, founded in 1970 with JACL assistance, has produced numerous educational and cultural media projects.
• San Gabriel Valley’s Aki Matsuri on Oct. 6, by P.C. Staff, page 2. The San Gabriel Valley Japanese Community Center’s 18th annual Aki Matsuri will be held Oct. 6, featuring cultural displays, bonsai, martial arts, food and game booths, and ondo dancing. Proceeds benefit various organizations and the center.
• East Bay Nikkei Service Group Adds Personnel, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Japanese American Services of the East Bay (JASEB) announced two new staff members, Joyce Sakai as executive director and Laura Takeuchi as accounting officer. Sakai previously directed the Asian Community Center of Sacramento Valley and helped develop a nursing home for Asian elderly.
• Salt Lake JACL Hosts Sister City Group, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Salt Lake JACL hosted its 13th annual post-Pioneer Day picnic for visiting students and chaperones from sister city Matsumoto, Japan, this year held at the Capitol grounds. About 36 students, chaperones and officials attended the Japanese-style picnic organized by chapter president Jeff Itami.
• Over 75,000 Cambodians Living in So. Calif., by P.C. Staff, page 3. More than 75,000 Cambodian refugees from the Pol Pot regime live in Southern California, with the largest concentration of 45,000 in Long Beach. The figures were reported by San Diego writer Jonathan Freedman.
• Kondo Reflects on Family, JACL’s Future, by P.C. Staff, page 5. Continuing the profile on retiring regional director George Kondo, he discusses wanting to spend time with family and his views on JACL’s future priorities after redress. He warns of subtle anti-Asian discrimination that younger members may not yet perceive, and several chapters are planning retirement parties in his honor.
• 3 Japanese Families File $11.5 Million Suit Over WDC Metrobus Accident, by P.C. Staff, page 6. Three Japanese families filed an $11.5 million lawsuit against Metro, General Motors and Vapor Corp after their teenage daughters were injured when a bus door burst open in Washington D.C. The girls, exchange students from Aomori-ken on a U.S. tour, were thrown to the street when the door failed.

National

• Cemetery Accused of Anti-Asian Bias; Manager Denies Charge, by P.C. Staff, page 1. A class action lawsuit filed against Oak Hill Memorial Park in San Jose alleges management discriminated against Asians in burial plot sales and improperly disposed of cremated remains. A former sales executive’s deposition claimed the cemetery’s manager did not want the cemetery to become a ‘chink’ cemetery, which the manager denies.
• Toronto Senior’s Home Given $1.15 Million, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The Japanese Canadian Redress Foundation awarded Momiji Health Care Society of Toronto $1.15 million for a seniors’ care center, the largest grant approved to date. Meanwhile, individual redress payments in Canada are nearing completion with over 18,000 applications received.
• USA Today Devotes Opinion Page on Japan-Bashing, by P.C. Staff, page 3. USA Today devoted its entire opinion page to ‘Japan Bashing’ after the Selma, Ala. Country Club refused membership to a Japanese Honda executive. The editorial argued that Americans should address their own competitiveness problems rather than blaming Japan.
• Chicago Asian American Lawyers Seek Appointment of Own to Judicial Posts, by P.C. Staff, page 3. The Asian American Bar Association of Greater Chicago is pushing for qualified Asian Pacific Americans to be appointed or elected to the bench in Cook County, Illinois, which currently has none despite a large Asian population. Cook County Chief Judge Harry Comerford expressed support for diversity on the bench.

In-Depth

• San Diego State’s Sanae Takahashi Receives Wide Support in Bid to Stay, by Edna Ikeda, page 2. Sanae Takahashi, a 25-year-old San Diego State student who was raped, shot and left for dead in 1983 while an exchange student, is now confined to a wheelchair and seeking permanent U.S. residency through a private bill introduced by Rep. Duncan Hunter. She has received strong community support including thousands of letters and donations, and continues her education while awaiting the bill’s progress.

Commentary

• Resolution 7 Rebuttal Continued: Uyeda Calls It a ‘Whitewash’, by P.C. Staff, page 2. The continuation of JACL’s rebuttal addresses Uyeda’s charges that the Presidential Select Committee report was a whitewash and not independently produced. It details the history of Uyeda’s own withdrawn proposal for an academic conference and defends the research process used by the committee’s hired researcher.
• Just Kidding, Just Kidding, by P.C. Staff, page 4. This editorial discusses a Sacramento Rotary Club prank involving a fake Japanese businessman claiming to buy local landmarks, highlighting sensitivities around Japanese investment in America. It concludes that openly confronting such issues, even through humor, helps put them in perspective.
• Tourists in Quest of History or a Good Time, by Bill Hosokawa, page 4. Bill Hosokawa’s column features correspondence from Ko Nishitani, a Japanese businessman who visits historic sites related to early Japanese-American relations during his U.S. business trips, including the Wakamatsu Colony site and a Japanese cemetery in Colma. Hosokawa contrasts Nishitani’s historical curiosity with typical American tourists who seek only entertainment and souvenirs.
• Racism in Advertising, by Bill Marutani, page 4. Bill Marutani’s East Wind column criticizes racist-tinged advertising by American companies like Chrysler, Pontiac dealers, and Bell Telephone that use anti-Japanese imagery and rhetoric to promote products or legislation. He argues Americans should focus on improving competitiveness rather than resorting to racist posturing against Japan.
• JACL’s Report on Dissidents: An Attempted Whitewash?, by Dr. Clifford Uyeda, National JACL President (1978-1980), page 5. Uyeda’s Cliff’s Corner column criticizes JACL for delaying and censoring the Presidential Select Committee’s report on wartime dissidents, alleging embarrassing findings were deleted. He argues JACL is trying to manipulate history and that true historical facts will soon become known despite the censorship.
• What’s Wrong With Being a Bridge to Japan? Nisei Have a Vested Interest in Its Well-Being, by Ed Mitoma, page 5. Ed Mitoma argues that Japanese Americans have a vested interest in improving U.S.-Japan relations and could serve as a bridge between the two communities through grassroots engagement and educational programs. He cites examples like the Japanese American Society of Southern California and cautions, per Bill Marutani, that JACL should not become an advocate for Japan’s interests.
• Editorial Was Unhelpful, by Patti Adachi, page 5. Patti Adachi writes that while she agrees the WWII evacuation resulted from long-standing racial discrimination, she objects to the Pacific Citizen’s editorial language calling critics of JACL’s wartime actions guilty of ‘psychotic malice.’ She argues such inflammatory language does not help resolve the ongoing conflict over JACL’s history and an apology to draft resisters.
• Inspirational Convention, by Susan Korns-Hautefeuille, page 5. Susan Korns-Hautefeuille praises the 1990 JACL convention for showcasing the organization’s diverse membership, from experienced elders to enthusiastic newcomers. She thanks participants for creating an inspirational atmosphere of shared commitment.
• Thanks From a Nikkei, by Takashi Matsui, page 5. Takashi Matsui thanks the Pacific Citizen for referencing his article on the meaning of ‘Nikkei’ in a prior editorial. He notes that friends who read the editorial admitted they had not previously known the word’s true meaning.
• Chapter Newsletter Exchange, by Ken Nakagawa, page 5. Ken Nakagawa, editor of the Tokyo JACL Chapter Newsletter, seeks to establish a newsletter exchange with other JACL chapters. He notes growing interest from Japanese Americans moving to Japan for work and education, and invites contact from interested parties.
• Involving the Readers, by Mitsu Y. Carl, page 5. Mitsu Y. Carl praises the Pacific Citizen’s new ‘Monitor’ feature for keeping racism issues visible and inviting reader submissions. She suggests also featuring positive stories about Asians beyond just educational achievements.
• Lessons from JACL, by C. Waller, page 5. C. Waller reflects on lessons learned about hate and discrimination from JACL articles by Mrs. Kinoshita and Mr. Igasaki, sharing personal history as a frequently relocated ‘railroad brat.’ He describes dropping out of JACL when it seemed to favor ‘Nikkei only’ members but says he continued to learn and grow in understanding.
• Likes Op Ed Section, by Margaret Borowiec, page 5. Margaret Borowiec writes to praise the Pacific Citizen’s editorial and opinion pages, specifically citing columns by Paul Igasaki on racial violence and Ryuichi Imagawa on U.S.-Japan bridge building. She calls the paper excellent overall.

Military & Veterans

• 36th Infantry Reunion Inviting Nisei Veterans, by P.C. Staff, page 6. The 36th Division Association is inviting Nisei veterans to its second San Antonio chapter reunion at the Tropicano Hotel in April 1991. Hotel rooms will cost about $65 a day.

Incarceration & Redress

• An Overview on the ‘Office of Redress Administration’: Two Years Ago on Aug. 10, President Reagan Sets Government Motion for Apology and Redress, by P.C. Staff, page 6. This first of five articles explains the creation and operations of the Office of Redress Administration (ORA), established in 1988 under the Civil Liberties Act to administer redress payments to interned Japanese Americans. It details Administrator Robert Bratt’s three-phase plan to identify, verify, and pay eligible individuals using historical records gathered from archives nationwide.
• bNJACese American American Society History ProgramANC-ESTORS FROM ASIA—Course, three Nctors who toiled in a WWII concentration camp will honored at a JCHH health dinner. Nurse and doctors like Yone Akita, James goM. Goto, George Georgeara are obi will George Kambraara,, and Robert Obi prov practiced medicine and Manzanar and TopaWRA camps desptheir service to fellow internees during and after WWII., by ,, page 7. of cluyda contends and defends againstions the Presidential Select Committee’s Report as a ‘whitewash,’ detailing the full research history including the Nationalance to conduct broad archival research and the process by which the final Report was compiled and reviewed by the Committee.

Obituaries

• Kimiaki Nakashima, 72: Editor, by P.C. Staff, page 8. Kimiaki Nakashima, founding editor of the Montreal Bulletin newspaper since 1946, died June 19 of cancer. A 1939 University of Washington graduate, he was decorated by the Japanese government in 1977 and was the first Japanese Canadian admitted to the Institute of Chartered Accountants.
• Riki Okanishi, 100, by P.C. Staff, page 8. Funeral services were held for Riki Okanishi, a 100-year-old resident of East Los Angeles and native of Ishikawa-ken, Japan. She is survived by two sons, four daughters, and seven grandchildren.
• Henry Hajime Kazato, M.D., 79, by P.C. Staff, page 8. Dr. Henry Kazato, a Fresno family physician for 45 years and active JACL member, died peacefully at home. A UC Berkeley and UC San Francisco Medical School graduate, he practiced in Fresno’s Westside, served as a physician at Poston internment camp during WWII, and was later certified by the American Board of Family Practice at age 65.

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.