Redress awards in Torrance, plus the Clinton race panel’s report

Vol. 127, No. 7, October 2, 1998. 12 pages. View this issue

Redress and the Civil Liberties Act ran through the front page of this 12-page issue. Tracy Uba reported on the JACL Pacific Southwest District’s 1998 Awards Dinner in Torrance, where Dale Minami spoke of the end of a bittersweet chapter in the redress struggle. Caroline Aoyagi interviewed Sen. Daniel K. Inouye, 74, about his career and redress legislation, and the paper reported that Gov. Pete Wilson signed AB 1915, creating a California civil liberties public education grant program. Other front-page stories covered President Clinton’s race initiative report, with a follow-up from Angela Oh on page 10, and a report on campaign finance titled The Color of Money.

Memorials and museums drew two in-depth pages: the National Japanese American Memorial Foundation’s fundraising kickoff in Fresno, and the Japanese American National Museum’s new Pavilion in Little Tokyo. Bill Hosokawa wrote about the Kooskia camp in Idaho, and Brian Nilya reviewed a book of essays on Heart Mountain. Columns came from Emily Murase, Bill Marutani, Mika Tanner and Harry K. Honda.

What’s in this issue

JACL

• JACL PSWD 1998 Awards Dinner Commemorates the Success and Future of Redress, by Tracy Uba, page 1. Dale Minami spoke at the JACL Pacific Southwest District’s 1998 Awards Dinner in Torrance, marking the end of a bittersweet chapter in the redress struggle. Award recipients included George Aratani, Harry Kawahara, and others honored for their civil rights contributions.
• Florin JACL Honors Four Scholars, by P.C. Staff, page 5. Florin JACL welcomed new scholarship recipients at its 1998 event, with Dr. Jere Takahashi giving the keynote address. Scholars honored included Brian Sakamoto, Ryan Nakano, Erica Nakamura, and Kristy Kunisaki.
• Kudos to the Convention’s Youth Program, by Amy H. Matsumoto, page 12. Amy Matsumoto praises the Philadelphia Chapter and Eastern District Council for a successful JACL convention featuring a new youth/student program called ID-4 Day. She suggests future conventions include active mentoring workshops between current and future JACL leaders.

Community

• Martha Nakagawa Named New P.C. Assistant Editor, page 1. The Pacific Citizen announced that Martha Nakagawa has been hired as the new assistant editor. Nakagawa brings prior experience including work as a contributing editor.
• Ventura County Hosts Japanese Festival ‘Celebrating Our Heritage’ in Camarillo, by P.C. Staff, page 5. The Ventura County JACL will host its 8th annual Japanese cultural festival featuring taiko drumming, kendo and karate demonstrations, Okinawan dance, tea ceremony, and craft activities for children. The event aims to share Japanese culture with the broader community.
• Southern Calif. Hapa Issues Forum to Hold Its First Conference, by P.C. Staff, page 9. Southern California Hapa Issues Forum announced its first regional conference, ‘Towards a Multiethnic Millennium: Hapas and the Next 100 Years,’ sponsored by CSUN’s Asian American Studies Department. The morning keynote panel will feature Hapa writers and performers including Velina Hasu Houston and Kip Fulbeck.

National

• Sen. Inouye Seeks Sixth, But Not Last Term, by Caroline Aoyagi, page 1. Sen. Daniel K. Inouye, at 74, remains a dominant figure in Hawaii politics with an 88.6 percent approval rating in the Democratic primary. The Pacific Citizen sat down with Inouye to discuss his career, redress legislation, and his outlook on the upcoming election and Hawaii’s economy.
• Clinton’s Race Initiative Panel Submits Report, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Bill Clinton’s advisory board on race relations submitted its final report, ‘One America in the 21st Century,’ calling for continued dialogue and a permanent race relations council. The panel, which included Asian American attorney Angela Oh, faced internal division over whether to focus solely on black/white relations or a broader multiracial framework.
• Gov. Wilson Signs AB 1915 — Creates Calif. Civil Liberties Public Education Grant Program, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Gov. Pete Wilson signed legislation sponsored by Assemblymember Mike Honda creating a California civil liberties public education grant program with $1 million in funding. The law continues the work of the federal Civil Liberties Public Education Fund by educating the public about the WWII incarceration.
• The Color of Money — New Report Finds Minorities Marginalized in Campaign Finance System, by Tracy Uba, page 1. A report titled ‘The Color of Money’ found that campaign financing in federal elections comes disproportionately from white Americans, disadvantaging people of color politically. Data showed stark disparities in contributions between wealthy white neighborhoods and minority communities in cities like New York.
• Republican Nominee Credits Crossover Democrat Votes for Her Win in Hawai’i Primaries, by P.C. Staff, page 4. Maui Mayor Linda Lingle won the Republican gubernatorial nomination in Hawaii’s primary with help from crossover Democratic voters amid economic slowdown. Incumbent Democratic Governor Ben Cayetano disputed her framing of the race as being beyond party lines.
• Clinton Names Koh as Assistant Secretary of State, by P.C. Staff, page 4. President Clinton nominated Professor Harold Hongju Koh of Yale Law School as assistant secretary of state for democracy, human rights and labor. Koh, a noted human rights lawyer and son of Korean political refugees, has advocated for Haitian refugee rights.
• Miyake Santos, Tokuda Take Democratic Nominations in Seattle’s Primary Elections, by P.C. Staff, page 4. An Issei Methodist minister’s daughter married to a Filipino won the Democratic nomination for Position 1 in Washington state’s 37th District. The multiracial district’s demographics played a role in the primary outcome.
• House Passes H.R. 3892, ‘English Fluency Act’, by P.C. Staff, page 9. The U.S. House voted in favor of H.R. 3892, which creates a competitive block grant system for language assistance programs and forces limited-English proficient children to master English within two years. Civil rights advocates like Deepa Iyer criticized the bill as an attack on immigrant rights, particularly its voiding of compliance agreements protecting LEP students.
• Race Initiative Panel’s Report Falls Short of Expectations, by P.C. Staff, page 10. Angela Oh, the panel’s Asian American member, described internal tensions over whether to focus discussion narrowly on black/white relations or broaden it to a multiracial framework. White House officials suggested expectations for the panel may have been too high, while Oh maintained the effort was a necessary starting point.
• Report Shows APIs Had Highest Median Income in 1997, by P.C. Staff, page 12. According to the Census Bureau, Asians and Pacific Islanders had the highest median household income among racial groups in 1997 at $45,249, though per-member income was lower than white households due to larger average household size. The report also noted APIs were the only group without a statistically significant income increase between 1996 and 1997.

In-Depth

• NJAMF Kickoff in Central Calif. Attracts 150, by Caroline Aoyagi, page 3. The National Japanese American Memorial Foundation held a kickoff dinner in Fresno as it races to raise $4.6 million within a year to build a memorial in Washington, D.C. honoring JA WWII loyalty and sacrifice. The Central California region has already raised $61,000 toward its $300,000 goal, with strong support from younger Sansei and Yonsei generations.
• JANM Set to Open New Pavilion in January 1999, by Tracy Uba, page 3. The Japanese American National Museum is preparing to open its new $45 million Pavilion, designed by architect Gyo Obata, adjacent to its Historic Building in Little Tokyo. The new facility will include exhibition space, a National Resource Center, and a Japanese American Hall of Fame.
• NJAMF Looks for Support in Central California, by P.C. Staff, page 6. NJAMF board chair Melvin Chiogioji emphasized the unique significance of the Washington D.C. memorial compared to other West Coast monument projects, noting it will belong to the United States government in perpetuity. JACL National Director Herbert Yamanishi described the monument as part of a broader educational process about internment.
• JANM Unveils New Pavilion, by Tracy Uba, page 6. JANM board member Bruce Kaji reflected on the community effort behind the new Pavilion, calling it a shared achievement of many people’s dreams. The museum’s expanded role comes amid changes in Little Tokyo, including closures of family businesses alongside growth of larger cultural institutions.

Military & Veterans

• Gen. Shinseki’s Appointment to No. 2 Position in the Pentagon, by P.C. Staff, page 4. Eric Shinseki, the first Asian American four-star general, has been chosen to become vice chief of staff of the Army, pending Senate confirmation. Shinseki, wounded twice in Vietnam, previously commanded U.S. Army forces in Europe and NATO land forces.

Incarceration & Redress

• PSWD Celebrates Completion of Civil Liberties Act of 1988, by P.C. Staff, page 5. The awards dinner recognized NCRR with the Civil Rights Award for its efforts fighting for redress, marking reconciliation between JACL and NCRR after past differences. Dale Minami reflected on the bittersweet conclusion of the CLPEF program and the ongoing legacy of redress education.
• Troubled in Paradise, by Bill Hosokawa, page 7. Bill Hosokawa writes about Kooskia detention camp in northern Idaho, a lesser-known WWII internment site with no fences, where Issei volunteers worked on highway construction for better pay than WRA camps. The camp, which had loose discipline and amenities like a canteen and English classes, closed in May 1945 with little physical trace remaining today.
• Camp Stories, by Brian Nilya, page 7. Nilya reviews ‘Remembering Heart Mountain: Essays on Japanese American Internment in Wyoming,’ a collection of essays from a 1995 conference that explores lesser-known aspects of the Heart Mountain camp experience. The book covers topics including hospital strikes, the Heart Mountain Sentinel newspaper, draft resistance, and diverse perspectives on wartime loyalty.

Commentary

• A Bridge Across the Pacific, by Emily Murase, page 7. Emily Murase reflects on her family’s multigenerational connection to U.S.-Japan relations, tracing from Dr. Inazo Nitobe to her own experiences living and working in Japan. She discusses her studies of modern Japanese history and her career working on U.S.-Japan joint development projects.
• Dabbling in Nihon-go, by Bill Marutani, page 8. Bill Marutani continues his exploration of Japanese language quirks, discussing the L/R phonetic confusion and reader responses to his previous column. He also recounts an anecdote about General MacArthur and a banner with an amusing translation error.
• Writer’s Block, by Mika Tanner, page 8. Mika Tanner discusses her struggle with writer’s block as a columnist, noting that the passion and indignation that once fueled her writing has diminished over time. She reflects on the difficulty of taking firm positions on complex community issues and the challenge of balancing personal experience with universal relevance.
• Very Truly Yours: ‘Frances’ Will Be Hard to Forget, by Harry K. Honda, page 8. Harry Honda recounts his visit to Houston during tropical storm Frances and meeting with local JACL members including Mary K. Sutow, a pre-war JACL pioneer who worked with Saburo Kido and other early leaders. He also describes meeting Dr. Wataru Sutow, a pediatric researcher, and notes an unusual controversy involving a ‘Jap Road’ street name in the Houston area.
• Letters to the Editor, page 9. Readers respond to Bill Hosokawa’s column suggesting Japanese Americans should stop ‘whining’ about the WWII evacuation, with one reader disagreeing and defending the importance of remembering camp experiences. Another letter addresses the correct terminology distinguishing American internment camps from Nazi concentration camps.

Obituaries

• ‘Cappy’ Ozaki, Hawaii AJA League Icon, by P.C. Staff, page 11. Harold ‘Cappy’ Ozaki, 82, a coach and manager during the golden age of AJA baseball in Hawaii, died at his home on Sept. 11. Ozaki played shortstop and outfield before WWII, later managed the McCully team, and was affiliated with the AJA state baseball tournament for 60 years.

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