Doris Matsui’s win and a Texas bill to remove a slur from road names

Vol. 140, No. 5, March 18, 2005. 12 pages. View this issue

Doris Matsui’s win in the special election for her late husband Robert Matsui’s congressional seat led the news. Jim Wasserman reported that she took 69 percent of the vote and was sworn in on March 10, and JACL leaders including John Tateishi and Ken Inouye congratulated her. Caroline Aoyagi profiled comedian Tina Kim, who sells out shows on both coasts and wants her own sitcom, and reported on a Texas bill by Rep. Martha Wong to end the state’s ‘Jap’ road names, backed by activist Sandra Tanamachi.

Gil Asakawa announced the paper’s Spring Campaign to fund a website for the Pacific Citizen. Warren Furutani and Tadashi Nakamura sought original participants of the First Manzanar Pilgrimage in 1969 for a documentary. Harry Honda previewed the PANA-APN convention in Vancouver, and the sports pages followed Apolo Ohno’s fifth straight national short track title and teenager Michelle Wie. JACL also set up a new scholarship named for Shigeki ‘Shake’ Ushio.

What’s in this issue

Arts & Entertainment

• The Next Big Thing Has Already Arrived, by Caroline Aoyagi, page 1. Comedian Tina Kim, who left a career as a TV news reporter to pursue comedy, is building a following with sold-out shows on both coasts. Kim discusses her confidence, her comedic influences like Margaret Cho, and her ambition to land her own sitcom.
• Tina Kim, by Caroline Aoyagi, page 4. This continuation of the Tina Kim profile details her rise through the comedy club circuit, her self-managed career including her website, and her ongoing struggles as an Asian American female comedian. She discusses her upcoming CD and her ultimate goal of landing a sitcom.
• Even in Hawaii, Asian Eyelids Are the Bane of a Young Girl’s Existence, page 9. This Q&A profiles Rachel Factor, a Japanese American performer who converted to Judaism after marrying and now performs a one-woman show titled ‘J.A.P.’ chronicling her journey from Honolulu to Hanukkah. Factor discusses her struggles with identity and beauty standards growing up, her theater career, and her spiritual conversion.

National

• Doris Matsui Wins Special Election, by Jim Wasserman, page 1. Doris Matsui won a special election to fill the congressional seat of her late husband Robert Matsui, capturing 69 percent of the vote in a 12-candidate field. She was sworn into the U.S. House of Representatives on March 10 and pledged to continue her husband’s legacy.
• Texas’ ‘Jap’ Roads May Become a Relic of the Past, by Caroline Aoyagi, page 1. Texas Rep. Martha Wong has introduced House Bill 1536 to eliminate all ‘Jap’ roads and prohibit derogatory names on public property statewide. Activist Sandra Tanamachi, who has fought for over a decade for this change, plans to testify in support of the bill, citing her family’s WWII military service.
• An Historic First: Philadelphia’s Chinatown Gets Charter School, by Pacific Citizen Staff, page 1. The Philadelphia School Reform Commission unanimously approved a new charter school, the Folk Arts Cultural Treasures Charter School, for Chinatown, marking the neighborhood’s first public elementary school. The effort was led by Asian Americans United despite opposition from the Philadelphia Chinatown Community Development Corp.
• Matsui, by Jim Wasserman, page 2. This continuation details Doris Matsui’s campaign, noting she became the nation’s 45th congressional widow to assume her spouse’s seat since 1923. It also covers her fundraising, campaign issues like stem cell research and Social Security, and criticism from rival candidates over her financial advantage.
• Lawmakers Want Congress to Rein in Patriot Act, by Kelly Kearsley, page 3. Washington state lawmakers heard testimony on a measure urging Congress to limit the USA Patriot Act’s surveillance provisions, citing concerns over civil rights violations. Witnesses shared personal stories, including a photography student detained for photographing federal property and a man’s friend wrongfully imprisoned in Pakistan.
• Marshall High Students Replace Redskins Nickname, by Associated Press, page 3. Students at Marshall High School in Michigan voted to replace the school’s 75-year-old Redskins nickname with Redhawks, ending a controversy that lasted several years. The change followed a civil rights complaint filed by American Indian activists in 2002 and a contentious series of school board votes and recalls.
• Opposition to Native Hawaiian Recognition Bill Simmers in Islands, by Ron Staton, page 3. Despite strong bipartisan support from Hawaii’s political leaders, an undercurrent of opposition exists to the Akaka bill, which would grant Native Hawaiians political status similar to Native Americans. Opponents, including some Native Hawaiians, argue against special privileges for any ethnic group and object to oversight by the Department of the Interior.
• National Newsbytes, by P.C. Staff and Associated Press, page 4. This roundup covers several stories: minorities remain underrepresented in New York City’s top government positions, WWII veterans reunited on Iwo Jima for the 60th anniversary of the battle, and author Iris Chang’s family spoke about the stigma of mental illness in the Asian American community following her suicide. Additional items cover a proposed Hawaii cigarette tax increase and a Japanese town paying women to have a third child.
• HR 1536, by Caroline Aoyagi, page 8. This continuation covers Sandra Tanamachi’s decade-long fight against Texas’s ‘Jap’ roads and her plans to testify before a House Committee in support of Rep. Martha Wong’s HB 1536. The bill has garnered bipartisan support and Tanamachi plans to share her family’s history, including an uncle killed while helping rescue the Lost Battalion.

JACL

• Launch P.C. Into the Digital Age, by Gil Asakawa, page 1. P.C. Editorial Board Chair Gil Asakawa announces the newspaper’s Spring Campaign, praising the small staff for producing a professional publication despite economic challenges. Funds raised this year will go toward creating a website for the Pacific Citizen to help modernize and expand its reach.
• JACL Congratulates Doris Matsui on Election Victory, by P.C. Staff, page 3. JACL leaders including Executive Director John Tateishi and National President Ken Inouye congratulated Doris Matsui on becoming the first Asian Pacific American woman outside Hawaii to serve in Congress. Matsui was also named to the House Rules Committee by Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi.
• JACL Establishes Shigeki ‘Shake’ Ushio Scholarship, by P.C. Staff, page 10. National JACL established a scholarship honoring Shigeki ‘Shake’ Ushio, a founder of the National JACL Credit Union who helped Japanese Americans during WWII when their bank accounts were frozen. The scholarship for entering freshmen emphasizes community service alongside academic achievement.
• Recruiting Members Pays Off With Cruise, by Andrea K. Parker, page 10. JACL’s 2005 Membership Cruise Contest offers a four-day Carnival Cruise as a grand prize to encourage members to recruit new JACL members. Names of members who refer new sign-ups will be entered into a drawing held in early July, with membership forms due by June 30.

Community

• APAs in the News, by Pacific Citizen Staff, page 4. This briefs roundup highlights notable Asian Pacific Americans including author Ha Jin’s Kiriyama Prize shortlist nomination, Akshay Desai’s appointment to Florida’s Board of Governors, violinist Vanessa-Mae’s tsunami benefit concert, chef Richard Chen’s new Las Vegas restaurant, and attorney Saru Jayaraman’s work securing settlements for NY restaurant workers.
• Training Tomorrow’s Leaders, by P.C. Staff, page 5. The 2005 JACL/OCA Washington D.C. Leadership Conference, funded by State Farm, brought young leaders to the nation’s capital for seminars and activities including meetings with Sen. Daniel Inouye and Secretary of Transportation Norman Mineta. The conference aims to nurture future community leadership.
• CAPAL Announces 2005 Summer Scholarships, by P.C. Staff, page 5. The Conference on Asian Pacific American Leadership announced its 2005 scholarship applications, offering $2,000 awards to three outstanding APA college students interning in Washington, D.C. during the summer. The scholarship program has been awarded annually since 1992 to help students learn about affecting public policy.

In-Depth

• First Manzanar Pilgrimage Participants Sought, by P.C. Staff, page 5. Warren Furutani and filmmaker Tadashi Nakamura are leading an effort to document the history of the First Manzanar Pilgrimage, which took place Dec. 27, 1969 and helped spark the Asian American Movement. They are seeking to contact original participants for a documentary funded by the California Civil Liberties Public Education Program.

Sports

• Former Philippine Basketball Star to Face Trial in Vegas Slaying, by Associated Press, page 6. Rudy Distrito, a former defensive star in the Philippine Basketball Association nicknamed ‘The Destroyer,’ was ordered to stand trial for murder in the fatal stabbing of Juan Amaya in Las Vegas. His defense attorney claims the November incident was self-defense.
• Revamped Fuji Speedway Unveiled, by Jim Armstrong, page 6. Toyota Motor Corp. unveiled a renovated Fuji Speedway, hoping the state-of-the-art facility will become one of the world’s top Formula One circuits. The track obtained a Grade 1 FIA license and could potentially replace the aging Suzuka circuit as Japan’s F1 host.
• Ohno Wins Two U.S. Short Track Titles, by P.C. Staff and Associated Press, page 6. Apolo Ohno won his fifth straight national title at the U.S. National Short Track Speedskating Championships, sweeping his events with 170 points. Sixteen-year-old Hyo Jung Kim also swept her races, winning her first national title.
• Wie, High School Sophomore, Is All Class, by Associated Press, page 6. Fifteen-year-old amateur golfer Michelle Wie finished two strokes behind winner Jennifer Rosales at the season-opening SBS Open, continuing her strong amateur performances against LPGA professionals. Wie says she is not in a hurry to turn pro and enjoys maintaining a relatively normal high school life while building marketability and international appeal.

Commentary

• Opening Shots From PANA-APN Convention in Canada, by Harry Honda, page 8. Harry Honda previews the upcoming PANA-APN biennial convention of Nikkei from North and South America in Vancouver, tracing the organization’s 25-year history since its founding in 1980. The column recounts past conventions, keynote speakers including Alberto Fujimori and Daniel Inouye, and the group’s role in preserving Nikkei heritage across the Americas.

Obituaries

• Jack McDowell, Former JAKWV Board Member, Passes, by P.C. Staff, page 11. Jack McDowell, a former Marine sergeant and board member of the Japanese American Korean War Veterans, passed away Feb. 24 at age 86. McDowell survived 45 months as a Japanese POW during WWII, fought in the Korean War, and helped Japanese American veterans receive benefits through JAKWV.

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