Vol. 98, No. 21, June 1, 1984. 12 pages. View this issue
Redress led the front page. The Pacific Citizen reported that newspapers including the L.A. Herald Examiner, the Salt Lake City Tribune and the Seattle Post-Intelligencer kept calling on Congress to act, even after a class action lawsuit brought by the National Council for Japanese American Redress was dismissed. On page 2, Minnesota’s legislature passed a resolution supporting redress, and Gov. Rudy Perpich signed it. The front page also covered the California Democratic primary: Walter Mondale campaigned in San Francisco’s Japantown, 18 Asian/Pacific Americans ran as Jesse Jackson delegates, and a Chinese American group endorsed Gary Hart.
Elsewhere in the issue, testimony in Sacramento described rising bigotry against Asians, and students at UC Davis held a candlelight march to protest anti-Asian violence. Floyd Shimomura’s commentary on page 4 looks at the attention given to Asian American academic success. Page 3 carries community news: the Nisei Week fashion show, a Venice-Culver Nikkei reunion and Kazuo Takechi’s decoration from Japan.
What’s in this issue
Incarceration & Redress
- Editorials Continue to Urge Redress, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Despite the dismissal of a class action lawsuit by the National Council for Japanese American Redress, major newspapers including the L.A. Herald Examiner, Salt Lake City Tribune and Seattle Post-Intelligencer continue editorially supporting redress legislation. The editorials call on Congress to pass the pending reparations bill establishing a trust fund and formal apology for internees.
- Minnesota Legislature Passes Resolution in Support of Redress, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Minnesota Gov. Rudy Perpich signed a joint legislative resolution supporting monetary redress for Japanese Americans incarcerated during WWII. National redress director John Tateishi and chairman Min Yasui praised the resolution, noting California, Oregon, Wisconsin and New Jersey have passed similar measures.
National
- Mondale Wins Asian Endorsements, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Walter Mondale campaigned in San Francisco’s Japantown and issued a position statement on Asian American issues covering education, housing, immigration and civil rights appointments. He received the endorsement of the Japanese American Democratic Club of San Francisco and various Asian Pacific American delegates in the California primary.
- 18 Asians to Run as Jackson Delegates in California Primary, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Eighteen Asian/Pacific Americans are running as delegates for Rev. Jesse Jackson in California’s Democratic primary, the first time so many Asian Americans have represented a single presidential candidate in the state. The article profiles the delegates’ backgrounds across Northern and Southern California congressional districts.
- Chinese Group Endorses Hart, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The Chinese American Democratic Club endorsed Gary Hart for his support of bilingual education, small business development, and opposition to the Simpson-Mazzoli immigration bill. Hart’s campaign director Joel Paul noted Asian Americans may also support Hart for his opposition to trade protectionism.
- Hawaii Center for International Studies Under Program Review, by P.C. Staff, page 2. A State Department review team led by UC Berkeley’s Prof. Douglas Pike evaluated the East-West Center’s program direction and usefulness. Pike questioned whether the center’s problem-oriented approach versus traditional area studies approach is viable.
- Grand Jury Indicts L.A. Korean for Fraud, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Harvard Myung Jee, a member of the Democratic National Committee’s business council, was indicted on charges of defrauding three banks out of $34 million. Jee had been under consideration for an honorary co-chair position at the Democratic national convention.
Community
- More Racist Acts Cited, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Testimony before the Sacramento Human Rights and Fair Housing Commission revealed rising bigotry against Asians, including tire-slashings, window-breaking, and assaults especially against Indochinese residents. The hearing was held May 17.
- Students Protest Violence, by P.C. Staff, page 1. About 100 students, faculty and citizens held a candlelight march at UC Davis to remember three Asians who died and to protest rising anti-Asian violence. Speakers included JACL national president Floyd Shimomura and others calling for measures to end such incidents.
- Voorhis Praises Kagawa, Founder of Cooperative Movement in Japan, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Former Congressman Jerry Voorhis spoke at the inaugural dinner of the American Committee for the Kagawa Centennial Project, honoring Dr. Toyohiko Kagawa’s cooperative and social work in Japan. Kagawa’s children and associates discussed plans for translations of his writings and a 1988 centennial celebration.
- Korean Group Active in Ban the Soviets, by P.C. Staff, page 2. The Elderly Korean American Assn. of Orange County was part of the Ban the Soviets Coalition following the Soviet bloc’s withdrawal from the 1984 Olympics. Some members later distanced themselves after pressure from the Korean consul general concerned about the 1988 Seoul Olympics.
- Fashion Show Kicks Off Nisei Week, by P.C. Staff, page 3. The Los Angeles-Nagoya Sister City Affiliation presents a benefit luncheon and fashion show by Nordstrom on Aug. 5 celebrating its silver anniversary. Proceeds benefit student exchange, cultural arts exchange and goodwill mission programs, kicking off the Nisei Week Festival.
- Tanaka Continues as Project Chair, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Edith Tanaka was re-elected to head the Japanese Cultural and Community Center of Northern California project, which is in the midst of a capital campaign to build a new community center in Nihonmachi. Other officers were elected to the 1984-85 board of directors.
- Takechi Decorated by Japan Emperor, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Kazuo Takechi of Omaha was awarded the Fifth Class of the Order of the Sacred Treasure by the Japanese government for promoting friendship between Japan and the U.S. Takechi, a founding member of the Omaha JACL chapter, emigrated from Kochi, Japan in 1930.
- Venice-Culver Nikkei Reunion Set July 8, by P.C. Staff, page 3. The Issei founders of Venice Gakuen and Venice Judo Dojo will be honored during a reunion at the Venice Japanese Community Center. The event includes a memorial service and catered lunch, free to prewar Venice and Culver City Issei residents.
JACL
- Nominations Sought for Arts Panel, by P.C. Staff, page 2. JACL’s Washington representative Ron Ikejiri was informed of a proposal to appoint an affirmative action panel to oversee the ARTS program of the Educational Testing Service. The panel aims to ensure participation by all youth regardless of race, disability or background.
Commentary
- Academic ‘Yellow Peril’?, by Floyd Shimomura, page 4. JACL national president Floyd Shimomura discusses media coverage praising Asian American academic success and warns of resentment and backlash this attention creates. He connects this to recent killings of Asian students at UC Davis and questions whether a new
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