Civil rights after Reagan’s reelection, and the push for redress

Vol. 99, No. 22, November 30, 1984. 12 pages. View this issue

Civil rights and redress ran through the front page and the editorial pages. Concern grew among minority groups after President Reagan’s reelection, and Assistant Attorney General William Bradford Reynolds defended the administration’s opposition to race-based quotas. The front page also covered a pumpkin-carving contest entry depicting the Vincent Chin slaying, which drew protests from the Asian community. On redress, the Chicago city council endorsed monetary redress, Sen. Pete Domenici pledged support for Sen. Matsunaga’s bill after hearing from Min Yasui, and an editorial rebutted common excuses against it.

Other pages include the ‘Unfinished Business’ documentary on the coram nobis cases of Fred Korematsu, Gordon Hirabayashi and Minoru Yasui, a Manzanar exhibit of Ansel Adams photographs at the Fresno Metropolitan Museum of Art, and honors for author Masayo Duus from the 442nd community. Bill Hosokawa and Glen S. Fukushima wrote on the commentary pages, and Harry Honda’s Little Tokyo Life series visited Long Beach and Signal Hill.

What’s in this issue

National

• Civil Rights Policies Articulated by Justice Dept. Official Spark Concern, page 1. President Reagan’s reelection has raised concern among minority groups about civil rights progress, particularly regarding Supreme Court appointments and Justice Department policy. Assistant Attorney General William Bradford Reynolds defended the administration’s opposition to race-based quotas, citing the Firefighters Local Union v. Stotts decision as a major victory for equal opportunity over preferential treatment.
• Student Insists Pumpkin-Carving Depiction of Vincent Chin Slaying Not Racist, page 1. A Wayne State University law student won a Halloween pumpkin-carving contest with an entry depicting the Vincent Chin slaying, sparking protests from the Asian community. The student apologized but denied racist intent, while the article recounts details of the 1982 killing and subsequent federal civil rights conviction of Ronald Ebens.
• Reward Offered in Kidnapping Case of UC Berkeley Student, page 2. Friends and family of missing UC Berkeley student Roberta ‘Bibi’ Lee are offering a $5,000 reward for information leading to her return after she disappeared while jogging on Nov. 4. A witness identified Lee being dragged toward a van by a heavy-set white male, and police have released a description of the suspect and vehicle.

Community

• Men and Women Learn to Work Together at Leadership Conference, by J.K. Yamamoto, page 1. A Nov. 17 ‘Leadership to Win’ conference in Los Angeles, jointly sponsored by Asian Pacific Women’s Network and LEAP, addressed stereotypes about Asian Americans and leadership. Speaker Lily Chen discussed her experience as the first Chinese American woman mayor, and panelists examined gender dynamics and cultural traits affecting leadership.
• Council to Hear Asian Mental Health Concerns, page 2. A California state advisory council is holding a series of six public hearings to gather information on Asian Pacific American mental health needs, chaired by Allan Seid of Palo Alto. The committee will hear community experiences and recommendations for effective service delivery across several California cities through February 1985.
• Film Raises $10,000 in Southern California, page 3. The Southern California debut of Steven Okazaki’s documentary ‘Unfinished Business’ drew an audience of 900 at Gardena High School and is expected to raise $10,000 in donations. The film documents the WW2 internment and the coram nobis legal battles of Fred Korematsu, Gordon Hirabayashi, and Minoru Yasui.
• Workshop Explores Asian American Leadership Challenges, page 12. Panelists at the ‘Leadership to Win’ conference discussed stereotypes limiting women’s leadership roles and examined whether traditional Asian cultural traits conflict with Western leadership qualities. Speakers including Kenyon Chan, Tong Soo Chung, and Helen Kawagoe argued Asian Americans can develop new leadership styles without abandoning cultural identity.

Military & Veterans

• 442nd Honors Author Masayo Duus, page 2. More than 50 people gathered in San Francisco to honor author Masayo Duus for her books on Tokyo Rose and the 442nd Regimental Combat Team’s liberation of Bruyeres, France. Duus described her years-long research process involving hundreds of interviews, and received honors from National JACL, Company K Club, and Go For Broke, Inc.
• 442nd Documentary ‘Nisei Soldier’ Awarded Silver Medal, page 9. Loni Ding’s documentary ‘Nisei Soldier: Standard Bearer for an Exiled People’ won the silver medal at the Chicago International Film Festival. The film tells the story of Japanese American WW2 volunteers who served in the military intelligence service and the 442nd Regimental Combat Team while depicting the internment experience.

Arts & Entertainment

• Hwang One-Act Plays to Premiere in Bay Area, page 2. Two new one-act plays by David Henry Hwang, ‘The Sound of a Voice’ and ‘The House of Sleeping Beauties,’ are premiering at the Asian American Theater Company in San Francisco through Jan. 13. Both works previously had successful runs in New York and feature casts including Randy Nakano, Diana Tanaka, Amy Hill, and Hiroshi Kashiwagi.
• Manzanar Photos Re-released in New ‘Born Free and Equal’ Exhibit, page 9. Ansel Adams’ 1943 photographs of the Manzanar internment camp, originally published in the censored book ‘Born Free and Equal,’ have been re-released in a new exhibit at the Fresno Metropolitan Museum of Art through Jan. 20. Fine arts photographer Emily Medvec rediscovered the prints at the Library of Congress and republished a condensed version of the book to ensure the collection would not be forgotten.

Incarceration & Redress

• Chicago Endorses Monetary Redress, page 3. The Chicago city council unanimously adopted a resolution Oct. 31 endorsing the findings of the Commission on Wartime Relocation and Internment of Civilians and urging other legislative bodies to support redress. Alderman David Orr, who introduced the resolution, said the city council must accept responsibility for protecting civil liberties at every level of government.
• Elected Representatives Reveal Misconceptions About Redress, page 4. Florida constituent Ida Hayataka solicited positions on redress legislation from her senators and congressmen, revealing a range of views from acknowledging injustice while opposing compensation to defending the internment as militarily justified. Responses from Sen. Paula Hawkins, Sen. Lawton Chiles, Rep. Bill Chappel, and Rep. Bill McCollum are excerpted, showing only two Florida congressmen supported redress bill HR 4110.

Commentary

• ‘Used Car Dealers’: Rebutting Excuses Against Redress, page 4. This editorial condemns arguments that trivialize the wartime internment of Japanese Americans, detailing the constitutional rights violated during the roundup of 115,000 Americans of Japanese ancestry. The piece systematically rebuts common rationalizations used to oppose redress, insisting the issue is about redress for grievances, not mere apology.
• Panic in the Sumo Ring, by Bill Hosokawa, page 5. Hosokawa’s column discusses the controversy surrounding American Samoan sumo wrestler Salevaa Atisanoe (Konishiki), whose near-championship performance stirred xenophobic reactions among Japanese sumo fans. He notes disturbing suggestions that Atisanoe be sabotaged or bribed to lose, reflecting unhealthy nationalism in the sport.
• Differences Between Nikkei and Chinese Americans, by Glen S. Fukushima, page 5. Responding to Bill Hosokawa’s earlier column, attorney Glen Fukushima offers five factors explaining why Chinese Americans more readily embrace their ethnic heritage than Japanese Americans do: historical wartime experience, differing responses from Japan and China, demographic dispersal patterns, cultural values like deference to authority, and differing American perceptions of Japan versus China.
• Letters: Membership Drive Reform Suggested, by Paul W. Ellis, page 7. A letter writer argues JACL’s membership renewal system causes unnecessary losses because it relies on personal contact rather than centralized notification from National Headquarters. He cites his own experience losing membership after moving and the fluctuating membership of his former chapter based on one volunteer’s efforts.
• Letters: Merchant Marines Deserve Recognition, by Dennis Roland, page 7. A WW2 Merchant Marine survivor writes that Bill Marutani’s prior article humbled him regarding his grudge against the government’s failure to recognize Merchant Mariners as veterans. He describes merchant mariners’ sacrifices and lack of benefits, expressing newfound appreciation for the recognition given to 100th/442nd veterans.
• Letters: Navy Seal Team Record Disputed, by Bob Sears, page 7. A reader writes to correct a claim about Seal Team 2 being the most highly decorated naval unit, while praising the 442nd and 100th Battalion as a great group of fighting men. He provides details about Seal Team deployments and decorations during the Vietnam War.
• Scholarships Available for Members Only?, by Miki Himeno, page 7. This ‘By the Board’ column reports on new JACL committee appointments including Women’s Concerns, Aging and Retirement, and Scholarship chairs, while raising concern over a proposal to restrict JACL scholarships to members only. The author argues strongly against limiting the scholarship program, warning it would end a valuable outreach and public relations opportunity for the organization.
• How a Newspaper Treated Two Stories, by William Wong, page 9. Oakland Tribune ombudsman William Wong critiques his own paper’s handling of two Asian American stories: a sensationalized, poorly-sourced front-page piece on Asian gangs based on outdated information, and the under-covered killing of Chinese American writer Henry Liu, whose funeral coverage trivialized a potentially politically-motivated murder. Wong argues both cases reflect lapses in editorial judgment on minority-related news.

JACL

• Papers Sought for South America Nikkei Convention, page 4. Charles Kubokawa of the Pan American Nikkei Association issued a call for academic papers on the role of persons of Japanese ancestry in their native countries, to be presented at the 3rd biennial Pan American Nikkei Convention in Sao Paulo, Brazil in July 1985. Harry Honda plans to submit a paper on the Japanese American population and immigrant history.
• Yamashita Family Funds Scholarship, page 5. National JACL announced the establishment of ‘The Rev. H. John Yamashita Memorial Scholarship,’ funded by an $8,000 endowment from the family and friends of the late community leader. Yamashita, who founded a hostel for internees returning to the West Coast after WW2, pastored churches in Oakland and Los Angeles until his 1966 retirement and died in July 1984.
• Mountain Plains Wins Powerful Ally in Senate, page 6. Sen. Pete Domenici spoke at the Mountain Plains District Council banquet in Albuquerque, pledging support for redress legislation after hearing a presentation by Min Yasui. Domenici shared a personal story about his Italian American mother’s wartime detention and said he would support Sen. Matsunaga’s redress bill.
• Torrance Proclaims JACL Day for District, page 6. Torrance declared Nov. 18 ‘JACL Day’ when the Pacific Southwest District Council held its quarterly session, with Mayor James Armstrong presenting a proclamation citing PSWDC’s community contributions. PSWDC vice-governor George Nakano, a Torrance City Council member, introduced the mayor at the event hosted by the newest chapter, Torrance JACL.
• PSWDC Trust Fund Considers Supporting Seven Community Projects, page 6. The Pacific Southwest District Council Trust Fund, chaired by Roy Nishikawa, endorsed seven applications from JACL chapters for community projects including a Pacific Citizen typesetter fund and the ‘Unfinished Business’ film project. The council also approved a supplemental budget for women’s concerns and ethnic concerns committees.

In-Depth

• Mental Health of Asian American Adolescents: Families Resist Therapy, page 8. Psychiatrist Dr. Ted Tokaji discusses how traditional Asian cultural values around ‘face’ and shame cause families to delay seeking psychiatric treatment for emotionally troubled children, often until conditions become severe. He explains that this delay results in Asian Americans being diagnosed with fewer mild disorders but more severe psychotic illnesses, and emphasizes the importance of family-inclusive therapy that respects cultural values.
• Little Tokyo Life (No. 43): Long Beach / Signal Hill, by Harry Honda, page 10. This installment of the Little Tokyo Life series details the history of Japanese American communities in Long Beach and Signal Hill, from early 1910s farming and flower-growing to the 1923 oil boom’s impact. It also recounts a 1942 Gardena city council dispute over housing evacuees from Terminal Island just before Executive Order 9066 was signed.

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