Manzanar bill, anti-Asian violence and the 1942 Tolan hearings

Vol. 114, No. 8, February 28, 1992. 8 pages. View this issue

A bill to make Manzanar a national historic site passed the House of Representatives on Feb. 19 and awaited President Bush’s signature. Sue Kunitomi Embrey and JACL officials hoped for a signing near the 50th anniversary of Executive Order 9066. The same front page carried a report on anti-Asian violence from OCA, and the stabbing of Yasuo Kato in Camarillo, Calif., which JACL national director Dennis Hayashi asked authorities to examine as a possible hate crime.

Harry K. Honda wrote about the 1942 Tolan Committee hearings, and the full text of Mike Masaoka’s testimony for JACL is printed on page 6. Bill Hosokawa wrote about Kristi Yamaguchi’s Olympic gold medal. Other pages cover a proposed memorial in Little Tokyo for Japanese American war dead, a book review of 100th/442nd veteran accounts, and Japanese American candidates for office.

What’s in this issue

Incarceration & Redress

• Bush signing of Manzanar bill anticipated, page 1. The House of Representatives passed H.R. 543 on Feb. 19, a bill designating Manzanar as a national historic site, and it now awaits President Bush’s signature. Sue Kunitomi Embrey and JACL officials expressed hope for a signing ceremony timed to the 50th anniversary of Executive Order 9066.
• Manzanar Bill Details and Historic Sites Under Study, page 3. The bill designating Manzanar would require studies of numerous other former internment camps and related sites including Tule Lake, Rohwer, Gila River, Poston, Granada, Jerome, Heart Mountain, and Minidoka, among others. Additional sites under consideration include the Military Intelligence Language School, Terminal Island, and various assembly centers.
• Feb. 21, 1942: Tolan Committee Debates Evacuation, by Harry K. Honda, page 5. Harry Honda recounts the history of the Tolan Committee hearings held in early 1942 to discuss the proposed evacuation of Japanese Americans following Executive Order 9066. He details JACL’s response and testimony, including Mike Masaoka’s statement, amid hysteria and racist rumors targeting Japanese Americans.
• JACL’s Statement Before the Tolan Committee, by Mike Masaoka, page 6. This is the full text of Mike Masaoka’s 1942 testimony before the Tolan Committee on behalf of JACL, arguing that any evacuation should be conducted with fairness and full protection of citizens’ rights. Masaoka emphasized Japanese American loyalty and military service while requesting due process in any resettlement.

National

• Report on Anti-Asian Violence Is Published, page 1. OCA’s Anti-Asian Violence Task Force released a report titled ‘In Pursuit of Justice’ documenting hate crimes and OCA’s efforts to combat anti-Asian violence. The report includes a history of the Hate Crimes Statistics Act of 1990 and is intended to educate communities on reporting hate crimes.
• Japanese Businessman Murdered in Camarillo, page 1. Yasuo Kato, a Japanese national and developer, was found stabbed to death in his Camarillo, Calif. garage after receiving anti-Japanese death threats from two bikers weeks earlier. JACL national director Dennis Hayashi urged authorities to investigate the killing as a possible hate crime.
• University President Is Shot, page 1. Iwao Matsuda, president of Chukyo University in Nagoya, Japan, was shot and killed in his Boston hotel room on Feb. 18 while in the city to sign a sister school agreement with the University of Massachusetts, Boston. A masked man entered the room and shot Matsuda in the lower back; police have no motive.
• Nakasone: A Call for New Global Roles, page 1. Former Japanese Prime Minister Yasuhiro Nakasone spoke in Los Angeles about U.S.-Japan relations, GATT negotiations, and Japan’s potential expanded global role including a seat on the U.N. Security Council. He also addressed nuclear disarmament and criticized careless remarks by Japanese leaders about American workers.
• JACL on TV Talk Show, page 3. Dennis Hayashi, JACL national director, was scheduled to appear on the Oprah Winfrey Show on March 10 to discuss discrimination against Japanese Americans. Other guests included hate crime victim Tak Furumoto and cross-cultural expert Harvey Shoemack.
• World News Briefs: Political Candidacies Among Japanese Americans, page 8. Several Japanese American and Asian American politicians are noted as running for various U.S. congressional and state seats, including Jay Kimura for Congress and Matt Matsunaga considering a run for a Hawaii state seat. Also mentioned are Mayor Lorraine Inouye’s re-election campaign and Judy Chu’s bid for a second term on the Monterey Park city council.

Sports

• Kristi Yamaguchi Wins Gold Medal in Women’s Figure Skating, page 1. Kristi Yamaguchi won the gold medal in women’s figure skating at the Albertville Winter Olympics. Her achievement is noted as a landmark for Japanese Americans in international sports.

Community

• Nikkei Named to Judicial Post, page 3. Rose Ochi, director of Los Angeles County’s Criminal Justice office, was appointed by Governor to a state judicial or policy position. Her extensive credentials include being the first Asian American to sit on the board of trustees of the Los Angeles County Bar Association.

Commentary

• Yamaguchi: An American Name, by Bill Hosokawa, page 4. Bill Hosokawa reflects on Kristi Yamaguchi’s Olympic gold medal win as proof that Japanese Americans are fully American, recalling the historical prejudice faced by Japanese Americans during WWII. He notes the personal history of Yamaguchi’s parents, including her mother’s birth in an internment camp and her father’s discrimination in dental school admissions.
• We’re Not Cows or Sows, by Foumiko Kometani, page 4. This translated editorial from the Kobe Shimbun criticizes Japan’s government policy of paying families to have more children as treating women like breeding animals. The author argues for alternative solutions like raising the retirement age and hiring foreign workers rather than pressuring women to bear more children.
• Stop the Bashing on Both Sides, He Says, by Bean Hashimoto, page 4. A letter writer from Merced, Calif. argues that American workers are among the most productive in the world and that both Japan-bashing and worker-bashing are counterproductive. He contends that U.S. economic problems stem from the national deficit and overspending, not from Japan, and that the two countries’ economies are deeply interdependent.
• Why Are We Picking on the Japanese?, page 4. A letter to the editor challenges common criticisms of Japan, pointing out that Japanese students study harder, workers are more productive, and Japan has a trade surplus while enduring less crime and illiteracy. The writer argues that resentment of Japan stems from envy and scapegoating rather than legitimate grievance.

Military & Veterans

• Veterans, Citizens Form Steering Committee for All-Nikkei War Memorial, page 5. Veterans and citizens met in Little Tokyo to organize a steering committee for a memorial honoring all Japanese American war dead and missing-in-action. The committee includes George Nishinaka, George Matsumoto, and others, though some Nisei Veterans Coordinating Council members raised concerns about representation.

Arts & Entertainment

• 50 Years Later: Tales of Poignancy, by Harry K. Honda, page 6. A book review of new accounts from 100th/442nd Infantry veterans reveals previously untold stories, including accounts of the 522nd at Dachau and Nisei GIs held in German POW camps. The reviewer praises the book for capturing feelings and details that took decades for veterans to share publicly.

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