Redress winding down, and a ballot fight in Washington State

Vol. 126, No. 3, February 6, 1998. 16 pages. View this issue

Redress was the thread through much of this 16-page issue. With less than seven months before the Office of Redress Administration closed, JACL hired John Tateishi as a consultant, and the national board approved the JACL-LEC Redress History Project to record oral histories. Caroline Aoyagi reported both stories. Columns by Rick Uno, Marie Matsunami and Tom Kometani returned to the project and the August 1998 deadline. The front page also covered Washington State’s Initiative 200, modeled on California’s Proposition 209, and National JACL’s support for the Soko Bukai lawsuit over the 1830 Sutter Street building in San Francisco’s Japantown.

Day of Remembrance events were announced for Salt Lake City, the Puyallup and Tacoma area, and Monterey. The Salt Lake City program, marking Executive Order 9066, was to feature Bill Lann Lee. Bill Hosokawa wrote about three Seattle-born Nisei artists, Bill Marutani on repaying kindness, and Mika Tanner on young people in JACL. Letters took up the Go for Broke monument and the Medal of Freedom.

What’s in this issue

National

• Prop. 209 Déjà-vu in Washington, page 1. Washington State’s Initiative 200, modeled after California’s Proposition 209, seeks to ban race and gender preferences in public contracting, education, and employment, and has gathered enough signatures to advance. Governor Gary Locke and Democrats oppose the measure while Republicans generally favor it, with Secretary of State Ralph Munro verifying signatures by Feb. 11.
• Hate E-mail Trial Begins, Again, page 1. Richard Machado, who admitted sending threatening hate e-mails to Asian students at UC Irvine, faced a second trial after his first ended in a deadlocked jury; charges were reduced from 10 to 2. The case is the first cyberspace hate crime tried in federal court, with Machado facing up to two years in prison.
• Matt Fong Announces Bid for U.S. Senate, page 5. California State Treasurer Matt Fong officially announced his bid for U.S. Senate on Jan. 28, becoming the first Republican to do so against incumbent Democrat Barbara Boxer. Fong is campaigning on economic themes including school vouchers and tax code changes, and is the son of former Secretary of State March Fong Eu.
• Bill Lann Lee Appointment Legal or Illegal?, page 5. The Congressional Research Service determined that President Clinton’s appointment of Bill Lann Lee as acting assistant attorney general for civil rights may violate the Vacancies Act since a predecessor had already exhausted the allowed 120-day period. The Justice Department maintains it broke no laws, and Lee’s nomination had not yet been resubmitted to Congress at press time.
• Kao Killing Will Not Be Pursued, Announces DOJ, page 5. U.S. Attorney Michael Yamaguchi announced he will not pursue federal civil rights charges against a Rohnert Park police officer who fatally shot Chinese American engineer Kuan Chung Kao in 1997. The Coalition for Justice for the Kao Family expressed disappointment but vowed to continue seeking justice through civil action.
• GOP Leaders Discuss Tighter Restrictions for Voters at Winter Meeting, page 5. Republican National Committee leaders discussed a 17-page memo on “ballot integrity” proposals including poll watchers and stricter voter ID requirements at their winter meeting. Democratic National Committee Chair Steve Grossman criticized the proposals as attempts to intimidate voters.
• Asian Students’ Dreams Fade, page 9. The Asian financial crisis is forcing many Asian international students, including at the University of Hawaii, to abandon their American education due to currency devaluation making tuition unaffordable. Nearly 40,000 South Koreans and additional students from other Asian countries study in the U.S., with many now facing the prospect of returning home.

JACL

• JACL-LEC Project Gets the Go-Ahead, by Caroline Aoyagi, page 1. The JACL national board approved the JACL-Legislative Education Committee Redress History Project, which will document JACL’s role in the redress campaign through oral histories and archival research, with an initial $57,500 allocation to be presented to the national council in Philadelphia. Youth representative Nicole Inouye’s emotional testimony was credited with influencing board members’ votes on the project’s funding.
• JACL Hires John Tateishi as Redress Consultant, page 1. With less than seven months before the Office of Redress Administration closes, JACL hired former National Redress Chair John Tateishi as a consultant to push for redress for remaining Japanese Latin American internees and other uncompensated groups. National Director Herbert Yamanishi said Tateishi’s experience made him uniquely qualified for this final push before the August 1998 sunset deadline.
• A Positive Outlook for 1998, by Rick Uno, V.P. of Operations, page 3. JACL Vice President Rick Uno reports on preparations for the Philadelphia convention, regional board meetings, and organizational restructuring following staff vacancies. He also discusses the board’s approval of the LEC Redress History Project, emphasizing the urgency of capturing oral histories from aging redress workers.
• First Impressions, by Marie Matsunami, MDC Governor, page 3. MDC Governor Marie Matsunami recounts her first National JACL Board Meeting experience in San Francisco, covering funding changes to program budgeting and challenges facing chapters in the Tri-District. She also discusses the controversial nomination of Bill Lann Lee and urges readers to contact Senate Judiciary Committee members in support of his confirmation.
• Nominations Deadline Set for April 1, by Bill Yoshino, Midwest District Regional Director, page 6. The JACL Nominations Committee announced the opening of nominations for eight national JACL offices for the 1998-2000 biennium, with an April 1 filing deadline. Detailed guidelines for campaigning, Pacific Citizen coverage, and voting procedures at the national convention were also outlined.
• JACL Awards to Be Presented at Philadelphia Convention, page 6. Several JACL awards, including the JACLer of the Biennium Award, the George Inagaki Chapter Citizenship Award, and the Edison Uno Civil Rights Award, will be presented at the Philadelphia convention in July, with an April 1 deadline for nominations. The article lists past recipients dating back to the awards’ founding.
• Summary of Jan. 23-24 Nat’l Board Meeting Motions, page 7. The article summarizes numerous motions passed at the January national board meeting, including joining the National Coalition of Asian Pacific American Organizations, forming a 70th anniversary committee, approving the JACL-LEC redress history project, and supporting the Soko Bukai lawsuit. It also covers a proposed Washington D.C. internship program honoring Grayce and Hiroshi Uyehara.
• NISEI Project Tops Education Committee Agenda, page 9. The National JACL Education Committee is advancing its NISEI project to disseminate an education guide on the Japanese American WWII experience to at least five sites outside the West Coast, using a Civil Liberties Public Education Fund grant. The first workshop is scheduled for Feb. 8 in Glendale, Arizona, with additional sites being planned across the country.

Community

• Matsuda Announces Bid for 68th Assembly Seat, by Caroline Aoyagi, page 1. Sansei Mike Matsuda announced his candidacy for California’s 68th State Assembly seat, becoming the only Democrat in a crowded Republican primary field. Matsuda hopes his candidacy will encourage greater political participation among Asian Americans and other minorities in the diverse district.
• Soko Bukai Case Gets National JACL’s Support, by Caroline Aoyagi, page 1. A lawsuit filed by the Soko Bukai seeks to reclaim the 1830 Sutter Street building in San Francisco’s Japantown from the YWCA, which allegedly held the property in trust for the Japanese American community since 1912 before the trust was denied after WWII incarceration. National JACL passed a resolution supporting the Soko Bukai lawsuit and urged its chapters to support the Legal Defense Fund.
• Congresswoman Sanchez Encourages AA Political Participation at Selanoco Installation, page 4. Rep. Loretta Sanchez was keynote speaker at JACL Selanoco Chapter’s 32nd annual installation luncheon, encouraging greater Asian American political participation and discussing her support for Japanese Latin American redress. She reflected on her own contentious election and the changing face of American politics with more women and minorities in Congress.
• Panel Discussion on Peruvian Japanese to Take Place March 10, page 5. A panel discussion on Peruvian Japanese immigration, community, and redress politics will be held March 10 at Cal State Long Beach, featuring Dr. John Maeyama Ichida, Luis Yamakawa, and Alicia Nishimoto, a former Crystal City internee. The event is sponsored by the Nikkei International Association in cooperation with university studies departments.
• UH-Hilo Honors ‘Scrub’ Tanaka, page 5. Hiroshi “Scrub” Tanaka, 82, received a University of Hawaii Board of Regents Medal of Distinction for his community advocacy for higher education and economic development on the Big Island. He was a onetime Hamakua baseball figure.
• Author-Attorney Yamate to Be Honored at Asian Lunar New Year Celebration, page 5. The Japanese American Council will host its 15th annual Asian Lunar New Year Celebration in Chicago on Feb. 7, featuring a political forum, dinner, and entertainment by the Hiroshima band. Author-attorney Yamate will be honored at the event.
• Matsuda Runs for State Assembly, page 10. Continuing coverage of Mike Matsuda’s Assembly campaign details his background as a teacher, his platform focused on education reform and gun safety, and his advice for aspiring Asian American politicians. Matsuda emphasizes the importance of increased AA political representation and involvement.

Incarceration & Redress

• Unfinished Business, by Tom Kometani, Eastern District Governor, page 3. Eastern District Governor Tom Kometani discusses the JACL’s ongoing redress efforts as the August 1998 sunset deadline approaches, including the hiring of a redress consultant and the LEC History Project to document the campaign. The Eastern District Council pledged $1,000 toward the project, and the piece stresses the urgency of interviewing aging redress workers before their stories are lost.
• Bill Lann Lee Keynoter for Salt Lake City Day of Remembrance, page 4. Bill Lann Lee, acting head of the Civil Rights Division, will keynote the Day of Remembrance program in Salt Lake City on Feb. 19, sponsored by three Utah JACL chapters. The event commemorates the anniversary of Executive Order 9066 and will feature Taiko drumming, a gubernatorial proclamation, and a Topaz Museum presentation.
• Day of Remembrance Events Set for Washington Area, page 4. Multiple Day of Remembrance events are scheduled in the Puyallup/Tacoma area, including a ceremony at the Puyallup Fairgrounds/Camp Harmony featuring former internees and local officials, and an evening community forum in Tacoma addressing whether internment could happen again. A book signing by historian Dr. Ronald E. Magden is also part of the events.
• Monterey Peninsula to Host Day of Remembrance, page 4. The JACL Monterey Peninsula Chapter will host a tri-county Day of Remembrance commemoration on Feb. 22 near the site of the former Salinas Assembly Center. The event is especially significant this year given the approaching expiration of the Redress Bill and unresolved issues for Japanese Peruvians and railroad/mine workers.
• Administrator for Redress, page 5. The Office of Redress Administration has begun its close-down process ahead of the August 10, 1998 deadline, urging new claimants to file by end of January and providing updates on railroad worker and Hawaii claims reviews. ORA reminds claimants to use its toll-free Helpline for status updates as it works to resolve all cases before sunset.

In-Depth

• Three of a Kind: Tsutakawa, Yamasaki, Nakashima, by Bill Hosokawa, page 8. Columnist Bill Hosokawa reflects on three Seattle-born Nisei artists of major renown—sculptor George Tsutakawa, architect Minoru Yamasaki, and furniture designer George Nakashima—who all rose from humble immigrant beginnings to achieve world-class artistic stature. He muses on how a relatively small Nisei community in Seattle produced such extraordinary talent.

Commentary

• Teaching Tolerance with a Nikkei Angle, by Harry K. Honda, page 8. Harry Honda highlights a Teaching Tolerance magazine feature by Philadelphia JACLer Teresa Maebori about a friendship program between students and children with cerebral palsy, and another story about Roosevelt High School’s restored Japanese garden in Boyle Heights. He notes the upcoming JACL convention will be hosted in Philadelphia, where Maebori is a longtime chapter member.
• Ohn-Gae-Shi, by Bill Marutani, page 8. Bill Marutani explores the Japanese concept of “ohn-gae-shi” (repaying kindness) through the examples of George Inagaki, who paid off his deceased father’s debts despite no legal obligation, and the National Student Relocation Commemorative Fund, which awards scholarships to Southeast Asian refugee students in gratitude for wartime support given to Nisei college students. The fund has awarded $127,000 to 207 students since its founding.
• A Place for the Nisei, by Akemi Kayleng, page 8. Sansei columnist Akemi Kayleng reflects on generational differences and limitations within the Japanese American community as a new generation enters adulthood. The column discusses accepting certain community limitations while embracing new opportunities.
• From Theory to Practice, by Mika Tanner, page 9. Responding to a previous editorial, Mika Tanner argues that JACL and the Pacific Citizen must recognize young people as current members of the community rather than its future, and give them real leadership authority rather than just token input. She also critiques JACL’s recruitment focus on educated middle-class Japanese Americans, calling for broader inclusion regardless of income or education.
• WWII Monuments, Which One?, by Wes Doi, page 9. A letter writer questions why JACL officially supports the National Patriotism monument in Washington D.C. without equal mention of the Go For Broke monument in Los Angeles honoring the 100th/442nd/MIS. The writer calls for the Pacific Citizen to maintain independence and reflect the concerns of all JA communities regarding both monuments, with an editorial response defending the paper’s coverage.
• Author’s Son Grateful for Judge’s Kind Words, by Ken G. Sone, J.D., page 9. A letter from the son of author Monica K. Sone thanks Judge Thomas A. Haven for his heartfelt letter about her book Nisei Daughter and for creating a photo exhibit on Japanese American internment near his courtroom. The judge’s own letter, included in the piece, describes how the book and photo project deepened his understanding of the internment experience.
• Medal of Freedom Undeserved, Agrees with Hosokawa, by Fred J. Shiosaki, page 9. A letter writer agrees with Bill Hosokawa’s criticism of the Presidential Medal of Freedom awarded to Fred Korematsu, arguing that Korematsu’s wartime actions were motivated by personal reasons rather than principled defiance of evacuation, unlike Min Yasui and Gordon Hirabayashi. The writer contends the honor should have gone to one of the latter two instead.
• Against All Odds, page 9. A brief letter thanks sponsors Mr. Aratani and Mr. Hirasaki for supporting an insert reprint about the redress campaign, calling it an excellent review of the political process. The writer praises the persistence of individuals who made the redress campaign a success.

Military & Veterans

• So. Cal Nisei Vets Set for Post-Memorial Fete, page 10. The 100th/442nd/MIS/1399th Engineers will hold a “post memorial celebration” in Las Vegas following the October dedication of the Go For Broke monument in Little Tokyo. The four-night event includes a main banquet and chapter night banquets, with reservations due by June 30.
• Korean War Vets Install New Officers, page 10. The Japanese American Korean War Veterans held their installation party on Jan. 31 in Chinatown, installing Robert M. Wada as president along with a full slate of returning officers. The organization’s founding officers agreed to serve another two-year term to ensure continuity.
• Another Korean War Vet’s Sacrifice Honored Posthumously at Last, page 11. Misayo Nakamura’s son, an Army infantryman who fought in the Korean War, finally received proper recognition for his wartime bravery after Senator Akaka was moved to pursue the honors following a Memorial Day ceremony. The veteran recounted being surrounded by enemy forces during an attack on a bunker.

Obituaries

• Mary Pagano, Heart Mountain Teacher, Dies at 84, page 11. Mary Pagano, who resigned from Denver Public Schools during WWII to teach at the Heart Mountain internment camp because she felt the imprisonment was wrong, died in Denver on Jan. 18 at age 84. She held a master’s degree in history and education from Loretto Heights College and was honored at a Heart Mountain reunion in Los Angeles.
• Rev. John Henry M. Yamazaki, Episcopal Priest, Dies, page 11. The Rev. John Henry M. Yamazaki, who followed his father as pastor of St. Mary’s Episcopal Church in Los Angeles and ministered to internees at Gila River during WWII, died Jan. 29 after a series of strokes and a brain tumor. He later served as canon and was honored with the Yamazaki Family Room at the Cathedral Center of St. Paul.

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