Candidates, budgets and redress in the run-up to the 1996 JACL convention

Vol. 122, No. 11, June 7, 1996. 12 pages. View this issue

The coming JACL convention in San Jose, Aug. 6-11, shaped much of this 12-page issue. Sami Nakazono of the Mile-Hi Chapter announced her run for national secretary/treasurer against David Hayashi, and platform statements from the candidates for national office filled page 6. Richard Suenaga reported on the board-approved budget, which cut the Pacific Citizen’s publication frequency, and JACL President Denny Yasuhara explained the proposed dues increase. Redress news included staff named for the Civil Liberties Public Education Fund and a report from the Office of Redress Administration that 79,911 payments had been completed.

Columns by Bill Hosokawa and Bill Marutani looked at the Fort Missoula camp for Issei and at Nisei military service, including the 442nd Regimental Combat Team. Robert Sakaniwa wrote on immigration legislation in Congress. JACL members also acted on racial harassment at an Etna, California high school and on the California Civil Rights Initiative. An obituary recalled George Sakaguchi’s work on the Jerome and Rohwer camp sites.

What’s in this issue

JACL

• Nakazono of Mile-Hi Chapter to Run for Treasurer, page 1. Sami Nakazono of the Mile-Hi Chapter has announced her candidacy for JACL National secretary/treasurer, making it the only contested race barring floor nominations at the San Jose convention. A certified public accountant with extensive community involvement in Colorado, she runs against David Hayashi of the Twin Cities Chapter.
• Board-Approved Budget Places Priority on District Allocations, by Richard Suenaga, page 1. The JACL National Board considered multiple budget scenarios at meetings in April and May 1996, ultimately adopting a plan developed by the Governors’ Caucus that increases district allocations while reducing Pacific Citizen’s publication frequency and travel budget. The chosen budget will be sent to the National Council for a vote at the August convention in San Jose.
• Board Creates New, Stricter JACL Investment Guidelines, by P.C. Staff, page 4. Following an executive session to discuss potential litigation, the JACL National Board created new investment guidelines to reduce costs and establish firmer fiduciary controls, including moving six endowment funds worth over $640,000 to a discount brokerage. The board also passed an Endowment Investment Policy prohibiting margin accounts, personal checking accounts, and use of assets as loan collateral, and created a National Investment Committee to oversee all JACL investments.
• Platform Statements: Candidates for JACL Office, by P.C. Staff, page 6. Multiple candidates for JACL national office—including Helen Kawagoe for president, Richard Uno for vice president of general operations, David Hayashi and Sami Nakazono for secretary/treasurer, Lori Fujimoto for vice president of public affairs, Karen-Liane for membership services, Gary Mayeda for vice president of planning and development, and Hiromi Ueha and Nicole Inouye for youth/student council positions—presented their platforms ahead of the San Jose convention. Their statements addressed organizational restructuring, fiscal management, civil rights advocacy, membership recruitment, and youth engagement.

Incarceration & Redress

• JACL Helps Victim of Racial Harassment at School, by Richard Suenaga, page 3. Anna Phelps, one of only four Asian American students at Etna High School in rural Northern California, has suffered years of racial harassment culminating in swastikas and slurs drawn on her truck. JACL members, including Contra Costa Chapter president Don Delcollo and NCWNP regional director Patty Wada, have rallied to support Phelps and pressure the school to address the hate crime.
• Staff Appointed for Civil Liberties Public Education Fund, by P.C. Staff, page 4. Dale Shimasaki has been named executive director, Martha Watanabe deputy executive director, and Julie Hatto part-time grants consultant for the Civil Liberties Public Education Fund. The fund is responsible for sponsoring research and public education on the WWII internment of Japanese Americans, with grant eligibility criteria expected to be published later that month.
• ORA Reports on Redress Payments, Eligibility Requirements, by P.C. Staff, page 4. The Office of Redress Administration reported 79,911 redress payments completed to date, with funds available for about 2,250 additional cases including newly eligible minor children born abroad during the war years. JACL/LEC recommended extending the qualifying birthdate for Ishida-category cases, a position the JACL board voted to support despite dissent from Legislative Vice Chair Grant Ujifusa.

Community

• JACL Calls California City’s Secession Plan a Move to Discriminate, Segregate, by P.C. Staff, page 3. JACL chapters in Watsonville and Sacramento have objected to a proposed secession plan by the Pajaro Valley Unified School District in Aptos, California, arguing it would create a predominantly white district while leaving the remaining district mostly minority. A hearing on the controversial proposal was scheduled for June 12 before the State Board of Education.
• JACL Chapter President Protests Racist Porky Pig Cartoon, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Donald Delcollo, president of the Contra Costa Chapter, JACL, wrote to TV station KOFY objecting to the airing of a WWII-era Porky Pig cartoon containing racist dialogue including the term “Japs.” Delcollo, who had not received a response as of press time, plans to send a follow-up letter with JACL educational materials.
• District Is Neutral on New Otani Boycott, by P.C. Staff, page 3. The JACL Pacific Southwest District Council voted to take a neutral position on the New Otani Hotel boycott issue while also passing a resolution respecting the rights of hotel workers to organize. District Governor David Kawamoto said the boycott issue is complex, with some members supporting workers’ rights and others concerned about impacts on the Little Tokyo business community.
• Wisconsin Plans Asian Moon Festival, by P.C. Staff, page 10. Milwaukee’s third annual Asian Moon Festival will be held June 14-16, showcasing diverse Asian cultures with an expected 50,000 attendees, organized by the Wisconsin Organization for Asian Americans including the local JACL chapter. The festival features Chinese Opera, taiko drumming, and food vendors representing nine different Asian ethnic cultures.
• Personally Speaking: Women of the Year, by Sandi Kawasaki, page 12. Three Nikkei women—Aiko Yamaguchi, Jean Ushijima, and Betty Mariko Iwata—were honored at the Downtown L.A. JACL/So. Calif. Women’s Society’s 34th annual Women of the Year luncheon for their decades of community service. Their contributions span Okinawan cultural preservation, civic leadership in Beverly Hills, and dedicated service to the elderly at Keiro Home.
• Librarian Honored, by P.C. Staff, page 12. Michiye Yenokida, a Lodi Chapter JACL member, was honored with a retirement dinner after 27 years of service at the Galt High School library. She established a $250 college scholarship to continue for five years and served in leadership roles with the school’s PTA and Parent Faculty Club.
• Aide of the Party, by P.C. Staff, page 12. William Kaneko, a former JACL vice president of public affairs, has been named director of the Office of Asian Pacific Affairs for the Democratic National Committee. Kaneko will manage political outreach and constituency relations with the Asian American community for the DNC’s coordinated campaign program.
• Blue Shield Officials, by P.C. Staff, page 12. Satoko Watanabe has been named the new JACL-Blue Shield Group Health Trust administrator, replacing Frances Morioka who retired after 25 years of service. JACL National Director Herb Yamanishi presented Morioka with a plaque honoring her service.

National

• PSW Condemns California Civil Rights Initiative as Deceptive, by P.C. Staff, page 3. The JACL Pacific Southwest District Council passed a resolution opposing the California Civil Rights Initiative, calling it a deceptive measure that threatens affirmative action programs important to Japanese Americans and other minorities. The resolution cites the history of discrimination faced by Japanese Americans and argues legitimate concerns about affirmative action should be addressed by reform rather than elimination.

Commentary

• The Story of the Issei in Camp, by Bill Hosokawa, page 8. Hosokawa reviews “An Alien Place” by Carol Van Valkenburg, a book about the Fort Missoula detention camp where Issei were imprisoned during WWII alongside Italian seamen. The book documents abuse inflicted on some prisoners and raises unanswered questions about why successful Japanese community members were targeted for detention.
• Rushing into Public Education Phase of Redress, Reader Says, by Wataru Ouye, page 8. A letter writer from Seattle criticizes the rushed implementation of the Civil Liberties Public Education Fund’s public education program, questioning the allocation of funds and the impossible application deadlines given undetermined criteria. The writer argues the National JACL should insist on proper handling by seasoned veterans familiar with grassroots evacuee experiences.
• ‘Redneck’ Is Racist, Too, Says JACL Member, by Eugene Tsuzaki, page 8. A Watsonville Chapter JACL member objects to the use of the term “redneck” in a previous Pacific Citizen article about Manzanar, arguing racial slurs are wrong regardless of who uses them. The writer demands a printed apology and warns other racial slurs should receive equal scrutiny in future editions.
• The Proposed 1997-1998 Budgets, by Denny Yasuhara, page 9. JACL President Denny Yasuhara explains the reasoning behind the proposed dues increases and budget changes, citing inflation since 1988 as justification for a long-overdue increase. He criticizes the reduction in Pacific Citizen’s budget and issue frequency while defending the board’s overall fiscal restraint compared to peak spending years of 1993-94.
• Immigration: Our Connection to the Past for Better or Worse, by Robert Sakaniwa, page 9. JACL’s Washington representative discusses the history of U.S. immigration restrictions against Asians and analyzes current immigration reform legislation, HR 2202, moving through Congress. He highlights concerning provisions that could deny public education to undocumented children and deport legal immigrants who use public assistance.
• The Crimes Against ‘Comfort Women’, by P.C. Staff, page 9. The article discusses President Clinton’s 1996 apology to Japan for a servicemen’s rape of an Okinawan girl, contrasting it with Japan’s continued refusal to take legal responsibility for WWII-era sexual slavery of up to 200,000 “comfort women.” A U.N. investigative report urged Japan to compensate victims and educate students about this history, but Japan’s government has dismissed the recommendations.

Military & Veterans

• Nisei Military Service: WWII, by Bill Marutani, page 8. Marutani recounts the degrading treatment Nisei servicemen faced early in WWII, including being barred from combat roles and classified as “4-C” aliens, before the 100th Battalion’s battlefield success led to formation of the all-Nisei 442nd Regimental Combat Team. He also describes the lesser-known contributions of Nisei in military intelligence in the Pacific theater and the Nisei WACs.

Obituaries

• George Sakaguchi, St. Louis Chapter Leader, Dies at 76, by P.C. Staff, page 11. Former Midwest JACL district governor and St. Louis chapter president George Sakaguchi died suddenly on May 28 during a hospital visit for a lung biopsy. He was known for spearheading recognition of the Jerome WRA campsite and restoring Nisei soldier monuments at the Rohwer, Arkansas camp.

Sports

• Nisei’s Quarter Horse Wins ’95 World Honors, by Robert M. Wada, page 12. Frank Nakamura of Whittier, California, was named California Quarter Horse Owner of the Year for 1995 after his filly Ah Sigh was named world champion 3-year-old quarter horse. Ah Sigh’s winnings over two years exceeded $410,940, with her strongest rival being Dicey Secret, owned by fellow Japanese American Cathy Monji.

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