Welfare reform and the elderly Issei, plus CLPEF grants

Vol. 124, No. 11, June 6, 1997. 12 pages. View this issue

Welfare reform and its toll on elderly Issei ran through this 12-page issue. Albert Y. Muratsuchi urged readers to press legislators to restore benefits to elderly and disabled legal immigrants, and Caroline Aoyagi reported on a Little Tokyo workshop where attorney Beth Osthimer explained who might keep SSI and what to do on receiving a cutoff notice. The Civil Liberties Public Education Fund announced 17 grants totaling $408,500 for projects on the Japanese American incarceration (often called internment). Aoyagi also profiled Ross Kakinami, a Yonsei whose internship at JACL’s Central California Regional Office led him to join.

Columns this week included Bill Hosokawa on an Irish JACL member, Col. Young Oak Kim on the 100th Battalion at Monte Cassino, and Michi Weglyn on redress for railroad Nikkei. A Manzanar Base Hospital reunion was announced, a tanka poem was chosen for the National Japanese American Memorial, and Harry K. Honda covered Little Tokyo’s Casa Heiwa and the Peru hostage crisis.

What’s in this issue

National

• Yonsei Shares Experience of CCDC Internship, by Caroline Aoyagi, page 1. Fresno State sophomore Ross Kakinami, a Yonsei with no prior JACL connection, describes how his internship at JACL’s Central California Regional Office changed his understanding of the organization. He plans to attend the National Youth/Student Conference and is considering a district youth representative position.
• Disabled May Be Spared Cuts to Welfare Benefits, by Caroline Aoyagi, page 1. At a Little Tokyo Towers workshop, attorney Beth Osthimer explained proposals to restore SSI benefits to some legal permanent residents facing cuts under welfare reform, while food stamps would not be restored. She advised elderly immigrants to determine if they qualify as disabled and to file appeals immediately upon receiving cutoff notices.
• U.S. Attorney Yamaguchi Quits Bid for Judgeship, page 1. U.S. Attorney Michael Yamaguchi abruptly withdrew his name from consideration for a federal judgeship in San Jose after being recommended by Sen. Dianne Feinstein. A federal prosecutor suggested Yamaguchi anticipated a difficult confirmation battle in the Republican-controlled Congress.
• E-mail on Campus Putting Multiracial Groups on Wide Alert, by Caroline Aoyagi, page 4. UC Berkeley is accused by Hapa Issues Forum and JACL of mishandling a case where student Joseph Finsterwald sent racist and harassing e-mails to a multiracial student group. The university eventually charged him with computer misuse rather than hate crimes, drawing criticism for lack of communication with the affected student group.
• Tougher Screening Delays Naturalization, page 9. The Los Angeles INS office processed far fewer naturalization applications last month than the number of immigrants applying for interviews, creating a significant backlog. The item is a brief note appended to the welfare workshop coverage continuation.

Commentary

• Defend the Issei: Fix Welfare Reform, by Albert Y. Muratsuchi, page 1. Muratsuchi describes the anxiety of elderly Issei facing loss of disability benefits and food stamps under 1996 federal welfare reform, prompting a rush to naturalization workshops. He urges readers to contact legislators to support restoring benefits to elderly and disabled legal immigrants.
• Developing a Clear View of JACL, by Herb Yamanishi, page 3. JACL National Director Herb Yamanishi outlines the CLEAR framework for JACL programs, focusing this article on education initiatives like the NISEI curriculum project and new fiduciary responsibility measures including planned giving programs. He describes efforts to develop investment policy and a directory of authorized financial planning advisors.
• Newspapering, by Bill Marutani, page 4. Marutani humorously addresses a mix-up in which his column was mistakenly attributed to columnist Bill Hosokawa, noting several coincidental similarities between them. He recalls his early journalism experience at the Tulean Dispatch camp newspaper and reminisces about fellow staff members from that era.
• From the Frying Pan: Introducing an Irish ‘Nisei’ in Ireland, by Bill Hosokawa, page 5. Hosokawa profiles Arthur Ken Donoghue, an Irish-American JACL and 1000 Club member living in Ireland who developed a fascination with Japan through the writings of Lafcadio Hearn and later joined JACL after meeting Japanese Americans in Sacramento. Donoghue’s story illustrates the global reach of JACL membership.
• For the Record: An Unthinkable ‘Boo-boo’ of Specific Standing, by Harry K. Honda, page 8. Editor emeritus Harry Honda explains a production error in the previous issue where columnist mugshots were switched, and details new production equipment purchases funded by P.C. SAVE donations including computers and QuarkXPress software. He reflects on the history of the Pacific Citizen’s production equipment dating back to Saburo Kido’s donation of desks in 1952.
• The 100th Bn. at Monte Cassino, by Col. Young Oak Kim (ret.), page 8. In response to a reader’s letter criticizing the 100th Battalion for the destruction of Monte Cassino Abbey, Col. Young Oak Kim clarifies that the 100th’s mission was to capture the Castle, not the Abbey, and that the unit had withdrawn before the Abbey was bombed by other forces. He describes the heavy casualties suffered by the 100th at Cassino.
• Letters to the Editor, by Various, page 8. This compilation includes reader letters answering trivia questions about Asian Pacific American Heritage Month’s origins, seeking copies of MIS war crimes trial writings, praising architect Alan Taniguchi’s achievements at University of Texas, and providing additional credits for the Poston Memorial Monument committee. Editor’s notes provide context and answers to reader inquiries.
• Our Internment Story, by Amy Naito Uchimoto, page 8. A reader describes her experience speaking to college classes at Chapman University about her family’s internment at Gila River after being denied her high school valedictorian graduation in 1942 due to Evacuation. She requests information about the JACL Curriculum and Resource Guide for use in the course.
• Michi Weglyn: Redress for Railroad Nikkei, by Michi Weglyn, page 9. Weglyn describes the wartime plight of Nikkei railroad workers, mostly Issei family heads, who lost jobs and were subjected to exclusion zones and curfews under various wartime proclamations targeting Japanese Americans differently than German and Italian aliens. She argues these workers and their families should be eligible for redress given their documented deprivation of liberty.
• Preserving Them, by Akemi Kayleng, page 9. A Sansei writer reflects on her generational disconnect from the Nisei and their wartime hardships, contrasting the Nisei’s brutal struggle for legitimacy with the relative ease of the Sansei/Yonsei generations. She expresses a desire to preserve the Nisei spirit of gaman, giri, and gambare through memorials as the older generation passes.
• Muratsuchi Continued: Now Is the Time to Defend the Elderly and Disabled Issei, by Albert Y. Muratsuchi, page 12. This continuation urges readers to write to legislators supporting full restoration of SSI benefits for elderly and disabled legal immigrants and highlights California Assemblyman Antonio Villaraigosa’s bill addressing state-level gaps. Muratsuchi emphasizes that legal immigrants contribute significantly to the nation and should not be scapegoated for welfare system problems.

Incarceration & Redress

• 17 More CLPEF Grants Made, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The Civil Liberties Public Education Fund announced 17 grants totaling $408,500 for curriculum and arts/media projects related to Japanese American incarceration history. Board chair Dale Minami said the grants enhance diversity of previously awarded projects.
• Poem Selected for National JA Memorial, page 5. A tanka poem titled ‘Legacy’ by Akemi Dawn Matsumoto Ehrlich of San Mateo was selected after a national search to be inscribed in stone at the National Japanese American Memorial in Washington, D.C. The selection panel included several noted poets and NJAMF board members.
• Alaska Japanese American Historical Project Underway with $20,000 Grant from CLPEF, page 5. The Alaska Japanese American Historical Project, led by Sylvia Kobayashi, will document on videotape the little-known World War II experiences of Alaska’s Japanese Americans, Eskimos and Indians of Japanese ancestry, as well as MIS Nisei who served in the Aleutian Campaign. Anthony Nakazawa provides administrative support and outreach to Alaska’s native communities for the project.
• Planning a ‘Hurrah’ After 52 Years!, page 9. Organizers are seeking former employees of the wartime Manzanar Base Hospital for the first-ever all-hospital reunion planned for October in Los Angeles. Contact information is provided for those interested in attending or providing information on other former employees.

Military & Veterans

• Army Seeks Info on 57 DSC Awardees Under Consideration for Medal of Honor, page 1. The Department of the Army’s Defense Language Institute is updating its list of Distinguished Service Cross awardees from the 100th/442nd/MIS being considered for the Congressional Medal of Honor. A list of 57 names is provided along with contact information for the search coordinator seeking information on their status or families.

Community

• Little Tokyo’s Nisei Week Festival Set Aug. 9-17, page 1. The 57th annual Nisei Week Japanese Festival will take place Aug. 9-17 in Little Tokyo with a grand parade on Aug. 10. Alan Furuta serves as general chairman and Joyce Shimazu was appointed to a new executive secretary position.
• Little Tokyo’s Newest: Casa Heiwa Sparkles at ‘Night Under the Stars’, by Harry K. Honda, page 1. More than 200 people attended the Little Tokyo Service Center’s fundraising event honoring over 50 donors to the LTSC/Casa Heiwa Foundation, which supports LTSC’s programs and its $17-million housing complex. Executive director Bill Watanabe and board president Alan Nishio spoke about the 12-year vision behind the six-story mixed-use facility.
• Contra Costa Completes ’97 Program Poll, page 3. Contra Costa JACL’s program survey received a disappointing 16 responses out of roughly 400 households distributed, revealing concerns about racial discrimination and busy lives affecting participation. First VP Ron Shiromoto noted the chapter must evaluate and possibly modify its programs given the low response and lack of clear membership mandate.
• Watsonville JACL Co-Hosts Local Premiere of ‘Beyond Barbed Wire’, by Mas Hashimoto, page 4. Nearly 1,000 people attended the local premiere of the documentary film ‘Beyond Barbed Wire’ at Fox Theater in Watsonville, requiring an unplanned second screening. Thirty-seven Nisei veterans were introduced and honored with a standing ovation at the event chronicling the 100th/442nd and MIS units.
• Casa Heiwa (continued), by Harry K. Honda, page 6. This continuation details the history of Casa Heiwa dating back to 1986 when LTSC took over the San Pedro Firm Building, and recognizes major donors including George and Sakaye Aratani and Sumitomo Bank of California. Architect Glenn Togawa unveiled plans for a donor wall display, and the piece describes LTSC’s upcoming Tofu Festival.
• A Farmer’s Daughter, 76: Mitzie Hashiguchi Among the ‘Best of Bellevue’, page 7. Mitsuko ‘Mitzie’ Hashiguchi received the Community Bridge Builder Award at Bellevue’s ‘Best of Bellevue’ celebration for her decades of community service including founding the Bellevue Boys Club and researching Issei pioneer history. She and her late husband Mutsuo were interned during WWII at Pinedale, Tule Lake and Minidoka before rebuilding their farm.
• ‘Jefferson Award’ Winner: Ken Nakano Honored for Community Volunteerism, page 7. Ken Nakano, a Hiroshima atomic bomb survivor and retired Boeing engineer, was honored with a Washington State Jefferson Award for public service projects including monuments honoring historical Japanese-American connections and helping link Hanford downwinders with Japanese medical specialists. He was also installed as commander of Seattle’s Nisei Veterans Committee.
• Asian Moon Festival to Run in Milwaukee, page 9. The fourth annual Asian Moon Festival will run June 12-15 at Summerfest Grounds in Milwaukee, featuring cuisine, arts, and entertainment from about a dozen local Asian American organizations. Featured performers include the Kabuki Academy of Tacoma and a Japanese classical dance troupe from Chicago.
• Japan Firm Donates $30,000 to Cal Poly, page 11. Nihon Ryutsu Systems donated $30,000 to Cal Poly Pomona to support a program training 20 Japanese students in computer information systems. Program coordinator Dr. Koichiro Isshiki said the donation reflects a growing trend of Japanese businesses prioritizing understanding of U.S. business culture.
• West Coast Vernaculars Make Changes: Rafu Shimpo and North American Post, page 12. The Rafu Shimpo restructured its printing and mailing operations while Seattle’s North American Post (Hokubei Hochi) absorbed the Northwest Nikkei to create a bi-lingual publication. Both moves reflect broader changes among Japanese American vernacular newspapers on the West Coast.

In-Depth

• Fujimori and the ‘Hostage Watch’ (2), by Harry K. Honda, page 6. This installment continues a detailed day-by-day chronicle of the Japanese Embassy hostage crisis in Lima, Peru, covering days 7 through 15, including hostage releases, Christmas Eve and Day events, and a dramatic impromptu press conference with rebel leader Nestor Cerpa. The piece includes eyewitness hostage accounts and international reactions from editorial pages across the U.S.

JACL

• CLPEF Grant Awards Listed in Curriculum and Arts/Media Categories, page 7. A detailed list of Civil Liberties Public Education Fund grant recipients is provided, covering curriculum projects on Japanese American incarceration history across multiple states and three Arts and Media grants including a documentary and musical projects. Recipients include universities, JACL chapters, and various nonprofit organizations.
• JACL Group Health Administrator Named, page 7. Mary Ann Hori of San Francisco was named administrator of the JACL Group Health Trust, underwritten by Blue Shield of California. Trust chairman John Yasumoto thanked outgoing administrator Satoko Watanabe for her service.
• Honolulu Chapter Launches Inaugural Scholarship Program, page 9. The JACL Honolulu Chapter is accepting applications for its first scholarship program, offering five $1,000 awards to high school seniors regardless of Japanese descent or financial need. The program aims to raise awareness of civil rights issues among Hawaii’s youth.
• CCDC Scholarship Luncheon and Quarterly Session Report, page 10. At the Central California District Council quarterly session in Fresno, close to 30 scholarships were awarded and discussions covered membership recruitment strategies, welfare reform’s impact on the community, and ongoing efforts to locate individuals eligible for redress before the ORA closes in 1998. National officials Karen-Liane Shiba and Donna Okubo addressed membership list procedures and youth outreach programs.

Obituaries

• Remembering a Korean War Hero: Wataru Nakamura, Posthumous DSC Winner, page 11. Pfc. Wataru ‘Watson’ Nakamura, killed in action in Korea in 1951, was posthumously awarded the Distinguished Service Cross for a one-man assault that silenced enemy positions before he was mortally wounded. His name was placed among 246 Japanese Americans on a memorial dedicated by the Japanese American Korean War Veterans in Little Tokyo.
• Death Notice: Shinpachi Kanow, page 11. Rev. Shinpachi Kanow, 84, who was interned at Jerome, Arkansas and later served as pastor of Lincoln Avenue Presbyterian Church in Salinas until his 1979 retirement, passed away on May 18. He is survived by siblings, children, and a grandson, with memorial contributions directed to a scholarship fund in his name.

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