Redress bill gains ground and anti-Asian violence in the news

Vol. 115, No. 5, August 28, 1992. 12 pages. View this issue

Redress and the Civil Liberties Act led the August 28, 1992 issue. Both the House and Senate versions of the Civil Liberties Act Amendments of 1992 were awaiting floor action after clearing committee, and JACL’s Karen Narasaki urged members to press their representatives to co-sponsor them. Anti-Asian violence ran alongside it: a Vietnamese American student, Luyen Phan Nguyen, died after an attack in Florida, and swastikas and racial slurs were painted on a Japanese American home in Anaheim. Congressman Norman Mineta and community groups responded to the Nguyen case.

Several stories came from the JACL national convention in Denver, including a talk by former skinhead Greg Withrow, a draft curriculum guide, and new president Lillian C. Kimura’s first message to members. Outgoing president Cressey H. Nakagawa filed his final report. Bill Hosokawa wrote about Hiroshima and about Chiune Sugihara’s visas for Jewish refugees.

What’s in this issue

Incarceration & Redress

• Redress Bill Gains Support in Congress, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Both House and Senate versions of the Civil Liberties Act Amendments of 1992 were awaiting floor action after clearing committee in August. JACL’s Washington representative Karen Narasaki urged community members to press their representatives to co-sponsor the bills during the September recess.

National

• Japanese American Home Vandalized With Swastikas, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The home of an elderly Japanese American couple in Anaheim was spraypainted with swastikas and racial slurs over the Aug. 23 weekend, alongside a similarly vandalized Vietnamese American home in the same neighborhood. JACL Pacific Southwest Civil Rights Caucus chair Trisha Murakawa called the incidents part of a disturbing trend of racial intimidation.
• Thai Murder Case Still Pending One Year Later, by P.C. Staff, page 1. A year after nine Thai Buddhists were found shot execution-style at a Phoenix temple, two high school students, Jonathan Andrew Doody and Alessandro Garcia, await trial in the case. Earlier coerced confessions led to charges against three other men being dropped for lack of evidence, and investigators now suspect robbery rather than a hate crime or heroin operation as the motive.
• Japanese Ambassador Says Japanese American Points of View Desirable, by Gwen Muranaka, page 1. Japanese Ambassador Takakazu Kuriyama, speaking at the JACL convention in Denver, said organizations like JACL can help improve U.S.-Japan understanding through grassroots exchanges. He discussed trade tensions, Japan’s evolving international role, and expressed comfort with either presidential candidate regarding protectionism concerns.
• Vietnamese American Student Dies After Racially Motivated Attack, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Luyen Phan Nguyen, a University of Miami pre-med student, died from injuries sustained when he was beaten by a group of party-goers after objecting to racial slurs. Eight white men were charged with second-degree murder in the attack that a detective called one of the sickest incidents he’d seen in 14 years.
• Coalitions Key to Passage of Voting Rights Act, by Karen Narasaki, page 3. The Voting Rights Improvement Act of 1992 passed Congress, expanding bilingual voting material coverage to approximately 200,000 Asian Americans in nine counties including Japanese Americans in Honolulu and Los Angeles. A coalition of Asian Pacific American organizations including JACL and OCA worked with a broader civil rights coalition over 16 months to secure the expanded coverage.
• Anti-Asian Violence Update, by P.C. Staff, page 3. JACL National Director Dennis Hayashi discussed the importance of tracking hate crimes and updated the audience on the Jacobs case challenging redress constitutionality. Hayashi also addressed the Supreme Court’s R.A.V. v. St. Paul ruling and its implications for hate crime statutes.
• Nguyen Killing Sparks Community Reaction, by P.C. Staff, page 12. The Asian American Federation of Florida and the National Network Against Anti-Asian Violence condemned the killing of Luyen Phan Nguyen as a hate crime and called for full investigation. Civil rights attorney Doreen Wong of the Asian Law Caucus said the killing exemplified rising anti-Asian sentiment amid Japan-bashing rhetoric and immigrant scapegoating.
• Mineta Praises Quick Police Response in Nguyen Case, by P.C. Staff, page 12. Congressman Norman Mineta commended the swift response of Coral Springs police and Mayor Jeanne Mills in investigating the racially motivated killing of Luyen Phan Nguyen. Mineta noted that other communities could learn from how local officials treated the crime with appropriate seriousness.

Commentary

• In-Sight: A Message From the New National President, by Lillian C. Kimura, page 1. Newly elected JACL National President Lillian Kimura introduces herself to members, recounting her decades of involvement in JACL starting in Chicago under mentor Abe Hagiwara through her roles in the Midwest District Council and National Board. She describes her work with the Japanese American Service Committee and various JACL committees before becoming president.
• Hiroshima Remembered, by Bill Hosokawa, page 6. Bill Hosokawa recounts taking his grandchildren to visit Hiroshima and hearing again his cousin’s wife’s account of the day the atomic bomb fell, including the horrific aftermath she witnessed and her rescue of relatives. He notes that of all their experiences in Japan, the grandchildren remembered the Hiroshima visit most vividly.
• The Fugu Plan, by Bill Hosokawa, page 6. Hosokawa tells the story of Japanese diplomat Chiune Sugihara, who issued thousands of visas to Jewish refugees in Lithuania in 1940 despite risking punishment from his government. The column also details the historical ‘Fugu Plan’ involving Japanese officials’ pre-war scheme to settle Manchuria with Jewish talent, tracing back to a relationship between Baron Takahashi and Jewish banker Jacob Schiff.
• A Delegate’s Thoughts on the ’92 Convention, page 6. A longtime JACL delegate reflects on the youthful new leadership elected in Denver, noting new president Lillian Kimura’s blend of maturity and youth. The writer honors early JACL pioneers like Dr. Thomas Yatabe, Saburo Kido, and others, expressing confidence that the new officers will carry forward the organization’s traditions.
• Have Nisei Forgotten the Other Internees?, by Darleen A. Fujita, page 6. A letter writer expresses concern about the direction of the Redress program and questions whether Nisei have forgotten other internees who deserve recognition. The letter references a copy sent to Congress emphasizing that redress payments should not be discontinued until all claimants are recognized.

Community

• Former Skinhead Tells of Fight With Hate, by Gwen Muranaka, page 3. At the JACL national convention in Denver, former skinhead Greg Withrow described his upbringing steeped in racial hatred and his eventual departure from the white supremacist movement, including his time working with Tom Metzger’s White Aryan Resistance. Withrow credited a love affair with a woman whose family fled Nazi Germany for changing his perspective, though he suffered severe retribution after publicly leaving the movement.

JACL

• Educational Issues for Asians Examined at JACL Conference, by P.C. Staff, page 5. At a JACL convention seminar, panelists Warren Furutani and Dale Shimazaki discussed the increasing difficulty Japanese American and Asian American students face getting into and staying at universities amid intense competition. They also addressed faculty tenure disputes, the need for diversity in higher education, and the importance of assertiveness for Asian Americans in business and politics.
• JACL Curriculum Guide Now in Draft Form, by P.C. Staff, page 5. JACL’s Education Committee presented a draft curriculum guide titled ‘The Japanese American Wartime Experience, 1941-45’ at the Denver convention seminar. The guide will be made available to chapters with plans to work toward inclusion in textbooks for broader educational use.
• Report of the National President: A Quest to Define JACL’s Future, by Cressey H. Nakagawa, page 7. Outgoing JACL National President Cressey Nakagawa presents his final report reviewing four years in office, describing the organization’s challenges after redress passage in 1988 and outlining goals including financial planning through the JACL Legacy Fund, coalition-building efforts, and extensive engagement on U.S.-Japan relations. The lengthy report details numerous meetings with Japanese ambassadors and consuls, legislative advocacy on civil rights issues, and preparations for the 50th anniversary of Pearl Harbor commemorations.

Obituaries

• In Memoriam: Takeshi ‘Tak’ Kawagoe, 1922-1992, page 12. A tribute notice for Takeshi ‘Tak’ Kawagoe describes him as bringing joy and happiness to all whose lives he touched, with never a dull moment. The notice thanks him for being a special part of his family’s life, submitted by wife Helen Kawagoe of Carson, California.

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