Redress bill advances, plus Homicide Hal Hoshino and the Manzanar Pilgrimage

Vol. 90, No. 94, May 23, 1980. 8 pages. View this issue

The front page told the story of Harold “Homicide Hal” Hoshino, a Nisei featherweight boxer known for his knockout punch, whose chance at a world title was cut short by World War II. Writer George Yoshinaga traced his career. Elsewhere in the issue, the redress commission bill S1647 moved forward. John Tateishi wrote about its 11-0 committee vote and the addition of Aleut civilians, Cook County commissioners endorsed the bills, and nearly 300 people attended the 11th annual Manzanar Pilgrimage. Misa Hatakeda also recalled her time at the Jerome, Arkansas camp during the World War II incarceration (often called internment).

Also inside: Harry Honda announced a new 45-issue publication schedule, Sachi Seko wrote about refugees in Hong Kong camps, and Floyd Shimomura explained proposed changes to the JACL National Board. Steve Yokoyama profiled Gail Hirata, the first Asian American to earn an LPGA touring card. Community news included a $7 million plan to rebuild San Diego’s Japanese Friendship Garden and the renaming of San Francisco’s Committee Against Nihonmachi Eviction.

What’s in this issue

Sports

• ‘Homicide Hal’ Hoshino: WWII ‘Robbed’ Him a Shot at World Featherweight Title, by George Yoshinaga, page 1. The article recounts the boxing career of Harold ‘Homicide Hal’ Hoshino, a Nisei featherweight boxer known for his devastating knockout punch who was on the verge of a title shot before World War II intervened. A loss to Jimmy Florita days before Pearl Harbor and the subsequent wartime climate ended his chance at a rematch and world championship.
• Gail Hirata: 1st Asian Breaks into Bigtime Ladies Golf, by Steve Yokoyama, page 8. Gail Hirata, a 23-year-old Sansei, became the first Asian American to earn an LPGA touring card, finishing third out of 79 entrants at Qualifying School in August 1979. The article recounts a friendly round of golf with Hirata, her background learning golf from George Koyama, her collegiate golf career at Whittier College, and her rise through mini-tour competitions before joining the LPGA.
• Sansei Gail Hirata—First Asian on the LPGA, by Steve Yokoyama, page 8. This continuation covers additional details of Gail Hirata’s golf career including her sponsorship by her grandfather and her earnings on tour exceeding $10,000. It also notes her election as a Player Representative on the LPGA Players Council and comparisons to Nancy Lopez.

Community

• Hot Lunch Sites Serving Nikkei Lack Funding, Notes Assemblyman Mori, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Assemblyman S. Floyd Mori visited several hot lunch sites serving Japanese American seniors in California and found them underfunded, with seniors lining up as early as 7:30 a.m. to secure a meal ticket. He made the remarks while heralding Asian/Pacific Heritage Week.
• Sansei Municipal Board Member in No. Colorado Sworn in as La Salle Mayor, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Bruce Kamada, a Sansei who had served on the La Salle, Colorado municipal board since 1978, was elected mayor with more than 60% of the vote and sworn into office April 8. He succeeded Maurice McMahan, who had served 28 consecutive years as mayor.
• San Diego to Rebuild Japanese Garden, by P.C. Staff, page 1. A $7 million campaign to build a Japanese Friendship Garden in Balboa Park was launched at a San Diego-Yokohama Sister City Society luncheon. The garden would replace the original teahouse and garden built in 1915 and dismantled in the 1940s, with master plans already approved by the city in 1979.
• Hosokawa to Speak at CSU Fresno, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Bill Hosokawa, editorial page editor of The Denver Post, will speak at CSU-Fresno on how an Issei pioneer might view contemporary America. The free public presentation is part of a Japanese American history project by the university library system.
• International District’s Summer Festival Set for June 7, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Seattle’s International District will hold a summer festival featuring ikebana, herbal medicine, acupuncture, and related activities through June at Wing Luke Memorial Museum. The article also covers related Asian Pacific American Heritage Week events in Denver, Fresno, and Washington D.C., including carnivals, bon dances, and cultural programs.
• Nisei Appointed Nursing Director of National School Health Program, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Dorothy Oda, DNS, was appointed nursing director of the National School Health Services Program sponsored by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, while continuing as assistant professor at UC San Francisco’s School of Nursing. The $48 million program aims to expand school nurse practitioner services to 37,000 children lacking adequate healthcare access.
• Reporter Annie Nakao Covers Minority Affairs for S.F. Examiner, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Award-winning writer Annie Nakao of the San Francisco Examiner was reassigned to a new beat covering minority affairs, having previously covered education. One of her first stories in the new role covered the firing of Jerry Enomoto by Governor Brown.
• Sansei to Head Philadelphia JACL, by P.C. Staff, page 6. Teresa Maebori, a Sansei teacher at Germantown Friends School, was installed as head of Philadelphia JACL, succeeding Grayce Uyehara after two successful terms. The installation dinner featured Mike Masaoka as speaker and honored a large group of graduating students with books.
• CANE Renamed, New Goal Declared, by P.C. Staff, page 6. The Committee Against Nihonmachi Eviction, founded seven years ago to combat Japantown redevelopment in San Francisco, marked its new name, Japanese Community Progressive Alliance, with an open house. The group is now pushing for low-rent housing through a nonprofit housing-community development corporation.

Incarceration & Redress

• Redress Bill to Look into Aleut Detention, by P.C. Staff, page 1. About 800 Aleuts were evacuated by the U.S. military in 1942 from their homes in the Pribilofs and Aleutian chain and detained in temporary camps, with many returning home to find their property looted. Sen. Ted Stevens introduced an amendment to S1647, the JACL-sponsored redress commission bill, to add hearings in Alaska investigating the Aleuts’ treatment.
• Cook County Commissioners Endorse S1647-HR5499, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The Cook County Board of Commissioners unanimously approved a resolution urging Congress to support the redress commission bills S1647 and HR5499. Commissioner Martin Tuchow, the resolution’s author, noted that many Japanese Americans displaced from camps settled in Chicago’s 48th Ward and became valuable citizens.
• ‘FDR, Warren Fanned Flames of Hate’ in 1942, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Misa Hatakeda of Parlier recalled her experiences at the Fresno Assembly Center and Jerome, Arkansas camp in response to her college daughter’s request, describing locked train windows, hard living conditions, and low wages. She concluded it was difficult to believe that Roosevelt and Earl Warren fanned the flames of hate that led to the wartime incarceration of an entire race without evidence of wrongdoing.
• 300 Participate in Manzanar Pilgrimage, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Nearly 300 people traveled by chartered buses and autos to Lone Pine for the 11th annual Manzanar Pilgrimage, cleaning the cemetery site and repainting the monument. Participants also toured the remains of the hospital, Children’s Village, gardens, and the Manzanar Reservoir.

National

• Court Dismisses Admissions Challenge, by P.C. Staff, page 2. A U.S. district court in Newark dismissed a lawsuit challenging an admissions program at Rutgers University Law School that includes Asian Americans, other minorities, and disadvantaged whites. The Asian American Legal Defense & Education Fund assisted the university in defending the program.
• Chiropractor Pleads Innocent, by P.C. Staff, page 3. David S. Asahara, arrested April 20 in San Francisco for allegedly killing his wife Kaoru in January, pleaded innocent to murder charges in municipal court. He was scheduled for a June 26 preliminary hearing and remained held in lieu of $500,000 bail.

Commentary

• Refugees, by Sachi Seko, page 4. The columnist discusses the slow pace of refugee resettlement from Hong Kong camps, noting that since 1975 nearly 18,000 refugees have resettled in the U.S. while over 50,000 remain in camps. She reflects on her visit to a Hong Kong refugee camp and the toll of prolonged camp life on children’s mental health.
• 45-Issue, by Harry Honda, page 4. The editor announces a new publication schedule reducing the Pacific Citizen to 45 issues per year, printing every other week during July and August, with coverage of the 50th Anniversary JACL convention planned for five 12-page editions starting in July. The change responds to rising postal rates that have increased dramatically since 1970.
• Redress Phase 2: Significant Steps Happen Quickly, by John Tateishi, page 4. Tateishi discusses the successful 11-0 vote reporting S1647 out of the Senate Governmental Affairs Committee, including the addition of Aleut civilians to the bill’s scope. He argues this strengthens the broader principle that redress is an American issue, not solely a Japanese American one, and notes budgetary changes reducing commission size and duration.
• The People Who Mean the Most, page 4. A columnist reflects on a retirement party for a longtime friend and colleague named Bill, recounting his career dedication, strong character, and the loyalty he inspired among coworkers over 25 years. The piece concludes with Bill’s remark that the people in the company meant more to him than the company itself.
• By the Board: A Stronger National Board, by Floyd Shimomura, page 4. Shimomura explains proposed JACL constitutional revisions that would reduce the National Board from 27 to 17 members while increasing meeting frequency to strengthen decision-making authority. The changes would also lodge corporate powers in the National Board and require Executive Committee actions to be ratified at the next board meeting.
• Youth Subscription, by May M. Kimura, page 4. A letter writer requests that the Pacific Citizen provide a free subscription to a young JACL student member and JAYS advisor in Dayton, Ohio, noting that student memberships don’t currently include the paper. She argues the PC is important for young members to stay informed about JACL.
• Remembering Wendy, page 4. A letter writer draws a comparison between the attention given to American hostages in Iran and Colombia and the case of Wendy Yoshimura, whom the writer considers a domestic ‘hostage’ due to a distorted legal process leading to her incarceration. The writer references a prior letter to Senator Inouye on the matter.
• From the Frying Pan: Recipes Wanted for Anti-Intoxicants, by Bill Hosokawa, page 5. Hosokawa humorously discusses his personal intolerance for alcohol and shares various folk remedies, including Korean recipes, purported to help people drink without becoming intoxicated or to cure hangovers. He invites readers to share effective anti-intoxicant recipes.
• Random Musings: Heritage: As Perceived, As Foisted, by Robert H. Kono, page 5. Kono describes an inspiring Asian Pacific American Heritage Week celebration in Portland, contrasted with his outrage over a short story in the Kenyon Review that trades in offensive Asian stereotypes, including a mocking depiction of JACL. He argues that Japanese Americans should not accept being relegated to second-class status in literature and ideas, emphasizing self-realization over imposed equality.
• Chiaroscuro: The Invisible Nikkei?, by Doug Urata, page 6. Urata reflects on the American Testimonial Dinner as an eye-opening experience highlighting the need for continued Japanese American community involvement beyond redress. He praises national JACL leadership’s enthusiasm for the organization’s continuing mission as ‘Greater Americans in a Greater America.’
• Chiaroscuro: Knowing Our Friends, by David Takashima, page 6. Takashima praises Assemblyman S. Floyd Mori and 56 co-authors of a legislative resolution honoring Jerry Enomoto’s service, contrasting this support with the notable absence of two Sacramento-area assembly members. He calls for accountability from legislators who did not support the resolution.

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