Redress becomes an entitlement: Bush signs the 1989 appropriations bill

Vol. 109, No. 18, December 1, 1989. 8 pages. View this issue

Redress became an entitlement program in this issue. The front page reported that President George Bush signed the Commerce, State, Justice and Judiciary appropriations bill on Nov. 21, making redress payments an entitlement beginning in October 1990, at $500 million per year until all eligible individuals are paid. Jerry Enomoto and Grant Ujifusa spoke for JACL, and leaders including Sen. Inouye, Rep. Mineta, Rep. Matsui and Bill Yoshino offered statements on the Civil Liberties Act and the long campaign behind it. The front page also followed Dr. Mark Tanouye’s tenure case at Caltech, which continued on page 7 with attorney Dale Minami taking the case.

Inside are columns by Bill Hosokawa, Bill Marutani, Steve Doi and John Saito, with Doi reporting on the National JACL headquarters after the Oct. 17 earthquake. Other pages cover the Japanese American National Museum’s fundraising dinner, the JACL Intermountain Minidoka Relocation Project’s work on a memorial list of Nisei war dead, and local election results for Nikkei candidates.

What’s in this issue

Incarceration & Redress

• Redress Entitlement Is Go! Bush Signs Commerce, State, Justice and Judiciary Appropriations Bill, by P.C. Staff, page 1. President Bush signed the 1990 appropriations bill on Nov. 21, making redress payments an entitlement program beginning in October 1990, guaranteeing $500 million per year until all eligible individuals are paid. JACL leaders including Jerry Enomoto and Grant Ujifusa praised the 15-year campaign’s success and thanked key legislators including Sen. Inouye, Rep. Frank and Rep. Gingrich.
• Redress Proponents Comment on Redress Entitlement, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Numerous political and community leaders, including Sen. Inouye, Sen. Matsunaga, Rep. Mineta, Rep. Matsui, Rep. Saiki, Rep. Gingrich, Rep. Frank, Angus Macbeth, Bill Yoshino, Mike Masaoka and representatives of the American Jewish Committee and Organization of Chinese Americans, offered statements celebrating the signing of the redress entitlement legislation. The comments reflect on the decades-long struggle for justice and the significance of the entitlement program for Japanese Americans.

National

• Caltech’s Professor Tanouye, Denied Tenure, Presents His Case, by George Johnston, page 1. Dr. Mark Tanouye, an assistant professor at Caltech whose research into nerve and muscle cell electrical signals has drawn interest from top universities, was denied tenure despite strong academic credentials, in a case similar to UCLA’s Don Nakanishi. A community forum sponsored by the Greater Pasadena Area JACL drew over 70 people to hear his story and show support.
• Architect Maya Lin Unveils Another Emotional Design, page 2. Chinese American architect Maya Lin, known for designing the Vietnam War Memorial, created a new Civil Rights Memorial dedicated Nov. 12 in Montgomery, Alabama. The memorial commemorates those who died in the civil rights struggle and was inspired by a request from the Southern Poverty Law Center.
• South American Nikkei Workers Tallied Among Illegal Foreign Workers in Japan, page 2. Japan’s National Police Agency warned about a rapidly increasing number of illegal foreign workers, including Japanese Brazilians and other South Americans of Japanese descent, being recruited for unskilled labor. Police arrested executives of a Chiba company accused of illegally recruiting thousands of workers and profiting roughly 5 billion yen from the scheme.
• Matsunaga Sick, Missed Voting on Entitlement, page 2. Sen. Spark Matsunaga was hospitalized at Walter Reed Army Medical Center with a viral infection and high fever, missing three days of work including the final floor vote on the redress entitlement program he had long championed. His office reported the illness on Nov. 13.
• Japan Decorates 4,494 Individuals on Culture Day, page 3. Japan’s Cabinet announced Culture Day decorations for 4,494 recipients including former Irish prime minister Garret Fitzgerald and American educators Martin Meyerson and Elias J. Corey. Four Southern California residents, including Mme. Tokuye Hanayagi and Dr. Linda Kiku Morimoto, were also honored for contributions to cultural affairs and community service.
• Japanese Overseas Tally Continues to Increase, page 3. The number of Japanese living abroad for three months or more increased by a record 5.8% in 1988, reaching 549,400 according to Japan’s Foreign Ministry. The increase reflects growing numbers of Japanese businessmen traveling to North America and Europe, with the U.S. as the top destination.
• Minority Journalists Sought by L.A. Times, page 7. The Los Angeles Times Minority (Metpro/Reporting) program is seeking African American, Latino, Asian American, and American Indian applicants pursuing journalism careers for its 1990-92 session. Applications are due by Jan. 1, with a separate METPRO/Editing program available through Newsday.

Community

• Nikkei Win / Lose in Nov. 7 Local Elections, page 2. In Stockton, California, Kelly Kitagawa lost a three-way race for a city council seat. In Washington state, Wayne Tanaka and Ben Kodama won school board seats while K. Scott Nishizato and Dick Osaka were unsuccessful in their respective races.
• Nikkei Named to Direct Census Tally in S.F., page 2. Norman P. Ishimoto took a leave from his firm to manage the 1990 census for the northern half of San Francisco, overseeing recruiting, hiring, and public outreach. His district includes Japantown and other key San Francisco neighborhoods.
• Horii Pegs Making L.A.’s Bridges Quake-Safe Costly, page 2. Los Angeles chief engineer Robert Horii told the city council that bringing over 1,000 bridges to zero-risk earthquake safety would cost a minimum of $100 million. He made the report after being asked to assess the city’s vulnerability following the Oct. 17 Bay Area earthquake.
• To United Way Donors in Southland: ‘Donor Option Designation’ Forms Offered by Major Little Tokyo Community Groups, page 2. Little Tokyo Service Center, Keiro Services, and the Japanese American Cultural and Community Center renewed a joint campaign encouraging United Way payroll donors to designate their contributions to these organizations. The groups explained that United Way donors can specify these nonprofits as recipients since they hold proper IRS designation, despite not being regularly funded United Way agencies themselves.
• Japanese ‘Investment’ of a Different Kind Seen, page 2. Japanese companies operating in Hawaii have set a $933,000 fundraising goal for the Oahu Aloha United Way’s international division. About 200 of the 245 companies on the donor list are Japanese-affiliated.
• Japanese American National Museum’s Annual Fundraiser Raises $300,000, page 3. The Japanese American National Museum’s Nov. 4 dinner, themed ‘America’s Strawberry: Fruit of Our Labor,’ honored the California strawberry industry and was attended by over 1,100 people. The event, held at the Westin Bonaventure Hotel and hosted by George Takei, raised over $300,000 for the museum, which plans to open in 1990.
• TV Reporter Addresses Sacramento Inaugural, page 6. Award-winning TV reporter Sandra Gin Yep addressed the Sacramento JACL installation dinner on Nov. 25, where attorney Michael Iwahiro was installed as 1990 president. Yep’s recent production ‘Perceptions’ included coverage of rededication rites at Klamath Falls for the graves of evacuees removed from Tule Lake cemetery.
• Gasoline in Tokyo Was $3.70 per Gallon in Sept., page 8. A management consulting firm survey of 80 cities found Abidjan, Ivory Coast had the most expensive gasoline at $3.91 a gallon, with Moscow second and Tokyo third at $3.70. Buenos Aires had the cheapest gas at just 13 cents a gallon.

Military & Veterans

• JACL Minidoka Project Wants to Make Sure Nisei War Dead of WWII List Is 100%, page 3. The JACL Intermountain Minidoka Relocation Project is nearing completion of a memorial plaque listing Nisei GIs from the Minidoka camp who died in WWII, led by Hero Shiosaki with the Idaho Centennial Commission for a 1990 dedication. Research indicates over 60 Nisei GIs died, though the current honor roll list contains only 54 names, and help is sought to complete it by Jan. 1, 1990.
• Caltech’s Tanouye Tenure Case Continues, page 7. This continuation of the page 1 story details the timeline of Dr. Mark Tanouye’s tenure battle at Caltech, including split votes from the tenure committee, divisional faculty, and Interacademic Council. Attorney Dale Minami, known for his work on WWII coram nobis cases and Don Nakanishi’s tenure fight, has taken on Tanouye’s case, which now awaits a decision from a faculty review committee.

Commentary

• The Fuss Over a Book, page 4. This editorial discusses the controversy surrounding ‘A Japan That Can Say No,’ a book co-authored by Sony’s Akio Morita and nationalist politician Shintaro Ishihara, which contains conflicting American and Japanese viewpoints. The piece argues the controversy is mystifying, disturbing, and amusing, warning against overreacting and damaging the important U.S.-Japan relationship.
• Thanks for the Memories, by Dorothy Hoshi Okawa, page 4. A reader writes to thank columnist Bill Hosokawa for his piece about Yonezawa, Yamagata, noting her own family roots trace back to that area. She expresses hope to visit the region herself someday.
• Reader Wants to Join, by Fred & Charlene Sakurai, page 4. New subscribers Fred and Charlene Sakurai write asking how to become JACL members after learning about the organization’s civil rights work. The editor’s response explains the two ways to join: as a national associate member or through a local chapter.
• Min Yasui’s Protest, by Eiji Suyama, page 4. A reader responds to Holly Yasui’s article about her father Min Yasui’s wartime protest, distinguishing it from the principled stance of draft resisters and no-no persons who faced different legal and moral circumstances. The letter argues that draft resisters had no choice but to act on principle given the government’s 1943 actions.
• Friends in the Quake Area, by Lodi JACL Chapter Board, page 4. The Lodi JACL Chapter Board sent a letter to members following the Oct. 17 earthquake explaining their decision to hold a Pancake Breakfast Fund Raiser on Nov. 26 to benefit earthquake victims rather than simply writing a check. The board felt the fundraiser would better convey their genuine concern for Bay Area communities.
• The Stories Behind the Stories, by Bill Hosokawa, page 4. Hosokawa’s column examines the untold背景 behind two controversial stories: Mitsubishi’s purchase of Rockefeller Plaza, which was actively being shopped around before the Japanese firm bought it, and T. Boone Pickens’ failed attempt to gain board seats at Koito Manufacturing after acquiring stock from a Japanese speculator. He criticizes American media for one-sided reporting and cites Time magazine’s own question about potential racism in business coverage of Japan.
• Futto-Boru, by Bill Marutani, page 4. Marutani’s column discusses the growing popularity of American football in Japan, noting a 270% increase in teams over ten years driven by major Japanese corporate sponsors. He also discusses higher injury rates in Japanese football compared to other sports and predicts Joe Montana and the 49ers will win the Super Bowl, though he expects the Eagles to improve.
• Pachinko, by Jin Konomi, page 5. This column explores the history and evolution of pachinko from imported American pinball machines into a massive Japanese industry worth about one trillion yen annually. It also details a political scandal involving pachinko industry contributions to Japanese politicians, including Socialist Party leader Takako Doi and the Liberal Democratic Party, which ultimately benefited the LDP most.
• JACL HQ, After the Quake, by Steve Doi, page 5. Doi reports that the National JACL headquarters building in San Francisco withstood the Oct. 17 earthquake in good condition with only minor damage, though he notes small local businesses have suffered due to sensationalized media coverage. He announces a new endowment fund drive for the building, with Bill Marutani becoming the first donor to help ensure its continued maintenance.
• Japan’s Unconfirmed Bachelors, by Wakako Fujioka, page 5. This translated column from a Japanese magazine discusses Japan’s growing surplus of unmarried men and the rise of a ‘Bachelors Academy’ and matchmaking services to help men find wives. It attributes the trend partly to overprotective mothers raising passive sons and highlights that women dislike mama’s-boy tendencies, slovenliness, and stinginess in potential husbands.
• Another Test, by John Saito, page 5. Saito’s column discusses the Greater Pasadena Area JACL’s involvement in supporting Dr. Mark Tanouye’s tenure case at Caltech, drawing parallels to Don Nakanishi’s UCLA tenure battle. He reflects on whether people of his generation would assertively support Tanouye if they recognized he was being treated unfairly due to racism.

Obituaries

• Seattle Issei Businessman, Publisher Kubota Succumbs, page 6. T. Kubota, 87, an Ehime-born pioneer Seattle Issei businessman and publisher of the North American Post newspaper from 1951-1980, died Nov. 10. He was twice decorated by the Japanese government and is survived by his wife Esther and several children.
• Takeshi Kumagai, Retired Army Electrical Engineer, page 6. Takeshi Kumagai, 67, a Hawaii-born retired Army electrical engineer and former city inspector of Alexandria, Va., died of cardiac arrest on Oct. 31. He had served in the Army since 1946, retiring as a master sergeant in 1968 before working as a civilian engineer and then a city employee.

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