Minidoka memorial dedication and a fatal crash on the road home

Vol. 110, No. 22, June 8, 1990. 8 pages. View this issue

The dedication of the Minidoka memorial at Hunt, Idaho, anchored the front page, along with the news that three Nisei from Seattle had died in a van crash on I-84 in eastern Oregon while returning from it. Yasuo G. Tokita wrote a firsthand account of the day, which drew 700 to 800 people. P.C. Staff reported on the Unos, who had served in the color guard. Bill Hosokawa’s column returned to the Smithsonian exhibit on Japanese Americans and the Constitution.

Other front-page stories covered Alberto Fujimori’s lead in Peru’s runoff, JACL’s testimony on Asian American college admissions, and the honorees of the 1988-89 Biennium award, Rep. Robert Matsui, Steven Okazaki and Ronald Takaki, ahead of the San Diego national convention. A letters and opinion page included Bill Marutani and Ed Mitoma debating JACL’s role in U.S.-Japan relations. Page 8 reported on a JACL meeting with Justice Department officials about anti-Asian violence.

What’s in this issue

Incarceration & Redress

• Three Die, One Hurt in Oregon Mishap After Minidoka Dedication, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Three Nisei from Seattle died and one was injured when their van overturned on I-84 in eastern Oregon while returning from the Minidoka memorial dedication over Memorial Day weekend. The victims, members of the color guard at the dedication, were identified as Miyeko Uno, Toshiichi Uno, and John Uno, with Patricia Uno treated and released.
• Minidoka Revisited: A Rendezvous at Hunt, Idaho, by Yasuo G. Tokita, page 1. A firsthand account describes the journey to and dedication ceremony of the Minidoka Relocation Center memorial in Hunt, Idaho, attended by 700-800 people who traveled from across the West. The piece details the logistics, the unveiling of the monument, speeches, music, and the emotional reactions of former internees.

National

• Fujimori Victory at June 10 Runoff Seen for Peru Presidency, page 1. Ahead of the June 10 presidential runoff in Peru, polls showed Nikkei candidate Alberto Fujimori leading Mario Vargas Llosa, with Nisei business leaders in Lima expressing mixed emotions and fear of anti-Japanese backlash if his government falters. A Tokyo Broadcasting System journalist reported that Japanese people were pleased with Fujimori’s near-victory while recalling wartime prejudice endured by Japanese in Peru.
• JACL Raises Asian Admissions Issue at Confirmation Hearing of Dept. of Education Nominee, page 1. JACL Washington Representative Paul Igasaki testified at the Senate confirmation hearing for Michael Williams, nominee for assistant secretary for civil rights at the Department of Education, urging action on Asian American college admissions discrimination concerns. Igasaki noted the Department’s failure to release findings from investigations at UCLA and Harvard and stressed that affirmative action should not be blamed for anti-Asian bias.
• Akaka Becomes First Senator of Native Hawaiian Heritage, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Daniel Kaniela Kahikina Akaka was sworn in as a U.S. Senator from Hawaii, becoming the first person of native Hawaiian ancestry to serve in Congress, filling the seat left vacant by the death of Sen. Spark Matsunaga. Akaka pledged to continue Matsunaga’s legislative priorities including redress and a U.S. Peace Institute in Hawaii.
• Two Japanese Shaken Up in Plane Crash, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Two Japanese flight students, pilot Hiromitsu Takano and passenger Yasuhiro Nakagawa, both 19, survived a crash of their single-engine Cessna at Rialto Municipal Airport after a helicopter’s wind shear forced the plane down. Both were treated for minor injuries and released.
• Detroit Audience Angered by Ishihara’s Remarks, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Japanese LDP legislator Shintaro Ishihara angered a Detroit-area town hall audience by calling the U.S. a ‘giant cry baby’ and blaming American racism and economic failures for trade tensions. Autoworkers and union leaders present bristled at his remarks, with one retiree accusing Japan of ingratitude for U.S. postwar reconstruction help.
• What’s a Japanese or an American Car?, page 5. A study examines the growing complexity of automobile ‘transplants,’ noting that over 1.5 million Japanese-brand cars will be built in the U.S. this year, blurring lines of national origin through cross-company manufacturing arrangements. Researcher Robert Z. Lawrence projects that increased U.S. manufacturing by Japanese automakers will create 110,000 jobs and reduce the trade deficit, though currency fluctuations could threaten these gains.

JACL

• Rep. Matsui, Filmmaker Okazaki, Prof. Takaki to Be Honored ‘Japanese Americans of Biennium’, by Karen Seriguchi, page 1. JACL announced that Rep. Robert Matsui, filmmaker Steven Okazaki, and history professor Ronald Takaki will receive the Japanese Americans of the 1988-89 Biennium award at the national convention in San Diego. The award, JACL’s highest honor, recognizes contributions in politics, arts, and education respectively.
• JACL Convention to Honor Director of Leadership Conference on Civil Rights, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Ralph Neas, executive director of the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights, will receive JACL’s Edison Uno Memorial Civil Rights Award in San Diego for his leadership in passing major civil rights and redress legislation. The Leadership Conference represents about 185 organizations advocating for equal rights.
• JACL Joins L.A. Area Reception to Honor Dr. Tien, UC’s First Asian Chancellor, by Alvina Lew, page 6. Lt. Gov. Leo McCarthy and 18 Asian American organizations, including JACL, co-sponsored a reception honoring Dr. Chang Lin Tien, the newly appointed UC Berkeley chancellor and first Asian American to head a UC campus. Tien praised the University of California system and thanked state leaders and residents for its excellence.
• J.A. of Biennium: Robert Matsui, Steven Okazaki, Ronald Takaki Profiles, page 6. Extended profiles detail the achievements of the three Japanese Americans of the Biennium honorees: Rep. Robert Matsui’s legislative work on trade, redress, and Asian American issues; filmmaker Steven Okazaki’s acclaimed documentaries including ‘Survivors’ and ‘Days of Waiting’; and Professor Ronald Takaki’s influential scholarship including his Pulitzer-nominated book ‘Strangers from a Different Shore.’

Community

• Educator Recants ‘Slant Eyes’ Slur, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Las Virgenes Unified School District Superintendent Albert D. Marley apologized at a board meeting for using the term ‘slant-eyed’ to describe Chinese people during a March presentation, after a complaint from JA attorney Lyn Kamishita Philipps. The San Fernando Valley JACL had pursued the complaint after the superintendent initially failed to apologize.
• Sac’to Nisei VFW Sponsors Speechfest, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Nisei Post 8985 of the VFW sponsored a Voice of Democracy speech contest at John F. Kennedy High School in Sacramento on the topic ‘Why I Am Proud of America.’ Winners included Kevin Fong, Tracy Chow, and Stephanie Casey, with the national contest offering an $18,000 scholarship.
• Asian-Pacific Coalition on Aging Honors Seniors, by P.C. Staff, page 2. The Asian and Pacific Coalition on Aging held its annual luncheon honoring senior volunteers at Hong Kong Low in Los Angeles’ New Chinatown. Candace Yamagawa spoke as guest speaker, and certificates were presented to 14 volunteers from various organizations serving seniors.
• Asians in Omaha Host Their First Heritage Banquet, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Cindy S. Daub, Commissioner of the Copyright Tribunal, returned home to Omaha to keynote the first Asian-Pacific American Heritage banquet, speaking on America’s diversity as its strength. Over 200 attended the event co-sponsored by multiple Asian community organizations.
• Sam Imoto, Tulare County JACLer: Probation Officer Honored as Officer of Year, Remembers Fences at Poston, page 2. Sam Imoto, a deputy probation officer in Tulare County who was incarcerated at Poston as a teenager, was named 1990 Adult Institution Probation Officer of the Year, crediting his camp experience with teaching him compassion for inmates. Imoto, a judo black belt instructor, is described by colleagues as indispensable to the probation department.
• Washington State Honors Yasuhara, Former Spokane Science Teacher, page 3. Dennis Yasuhara, a longtime Spokane science teacher and civil rights leader, received Washington State University’s Centennial Alumni Achievement Award for his contributions to education and community leadership. He was instrumental in founding WSU’s Asian/Pacific American Studies Program and served in numerous civil rights and JACL leadership roles.

Military & Veterans

• ‘Yankee Samurai’ Producer to Attend 15th AJA Veterans Reunion in Hawaii, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Israeli filmmaker Katriel ‘Kay’ Schory is traveling to Hawaii to attend the 15th National AJA Veterans Reunion and interview veterans for his planned film depicting the 522nd Field Artillery Battalion’s role in liberating Dachau prisoners. He also plans to research Army archives in Washington, D.C. for the project.
• In Quest of Justice—JACLers Meet with Justice Department Officials, page 8. JACL leaders including Cressey Nakagawa, Bill Yoshino, and Paul Igasaki met with Justice Department officials in the Civil Rights Division to discuss rising anti-Asian violence and tensions stemming from trade and economic friction. The meeting included Assistant Attorney General John Dunne and Office of Redress Administration director Robert Bratt.

Commentary

• How Much Don’t We Know?, by P.C. Staff, page 4. An editorial discusses a U.S. Department of Education survey showing many high school seniors lack basic historical knowledge, including only six in ten who could correctly identify the WWII internment of Japanese Americans. The piece urges JACL and communities to continue educating the public and to examine how well younger generations of Japanese Americans themselves understand the Evacuation.
• ‘A More Perfect Union,’ Good, But Not Perfect, by Bill Hosokawa, page 4. Columnist Bill Hosokawa recounts a return visit to the Smithsonian’s ‘A More Perfect Union’ exhibit on Japanese Americans and the Constitution, reflecting on security measures around Washington landmarks and the exhibit’s emphasis on Nisei military service. He suggests the exhibit could better connect the link between wartime imprisonment and the loyalty demonstrated by Japanese American soldiers.
• Ancestry Not Enough, by Bill Marutani, page 4. In a letter responding to Ed Mitoma, Bill Marutani argues that Japanese ancestry alone does not qualify Japanese Americans to serve as intermediaries in U.S.-Japan trade relations, and criticizes JACL programs that focus on economics under the guise of civil rights. He calls instead for programs promoting mutual understanding between Japanese and Japanese Americans as peoples.
• Barry Happy, by Frank Sakamoto, page 4. A letter praises Barry Saiki as a gracious host and goodwill ambassador during the writer’s trip to Tokyo, echoing Bill Hosokawa’s earlier column describing Saiki similarly. The writer looks forward to seeing Saiki and Bert Fujii at the National JACL Convention in San Diego.
• Happy Ending!, by Pat Aiko Amino, page 4. A follow-up letter reports that thanks to the newspaper’s readership network, a woman named Chiyoko Yamamoto contacted the writer, reuniting Tokiwo Uyeda with his sister. The writer thanks the Pacific Citizen for its help in the search.
• Japanese Veterans Against War Comes of Age, by Kiyofumi Kojima, page 5. A Japanese WWII naval veteran recounts his harrowing combat experience on Luzon and the imperial ideology that led soldiers to choose death over surrender, and describes founding Japanese Veterans Against War in 1988 to combat rising ultranationalism. The group, with about 180 members across the political spectrum, seeks to abolish war by the year 2000 and has met with American and Soviet veterans’ peace groups.
• Is JACL Participation in U.S.-Japan Relations Controversial?, by Ed Mitoma, page 5. Ed Mitoma defends JACL’s U.S.-Japan Relations Committee, explaining that its mission is strictly educational and focused on civil rights impacts on Japanese Americans rather than foreign policy or trade positions. He describes the committee’s structure and invites readers to attend its workshop at the San Diego convention.
• Ofuro and Yukata Days Ahead, by Norio Mitsuoka, page 5. A satirical column traces the history of American ‘Japan Bashing’ from Commodore Perry’s expedition through waves of anti-Japanese sentiment tied to immigration, silk stockings, light bulbs, and modern automobiles. The piece humorously predicts future Japanese cultural influence, like ofuro baths and yukata, will spark yet another round of backlash.
• The Newsmakers, page 8. A roundup of notable Japanese American achievements includes performance artist Brenda Wong Aoki’s GOLDie Award, Ron Wakabayashi’s appointment to head L.A.’s Human Relations Commission, Cornell scholar James J. Kumpel’s Merrill Presidential Scholar honor, Col. Dan O. Yoshii’s Air Force promotion, student Nancy Kazuko Okazaki’s Japan Foundation grant, Paul Isaki’s state trade appointment, and Ronald Takaki’s Commonwealth Club gold medal for nonfiction.

Obituaries

• Obituaries, page 7. This week’s obituary listings include Donald H. Aoyama, Shizu Kamei, Yoshiko Morisaki, Shizuko Kanai, Kichino Kasai, George Katagiri, Masao G. Kato, Dorothy K. Kimura, Hana Kinoshita, John S. Kitayama, Michiko Matsumoto, and several others with survivor details noted. Entries span cities including Stockton, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Sacramento.

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