Hate crime laws and U.S.-Japan relations in 1993

Vol. 116, No. 17, April 30, 1993. 8 pages. View this issue

A hate crime case before the U.S. Supreme Court and a Los Angeles conference on U.S.-Japan relations drew most of the attention. The Court heard oral arguments in Wisconsin v. Mitchell, and JACL had filed an amicus brief supporting the state’s stiffer sentences. National director Dennis Hayashi praised the Justice Department’s support. Gwen Muranaka and Harry K. Honda reported on the conference, where Richard Nixon, Lawrence Eagleburger and Toshiki Kaifu spoke on trade, security and the post-Cold War balance in Asia.

Other pages cover Michael Woo’s run for Los Angeles mayor, plans for the Military Intelligence Service reunion in Arlington, Va., and a push for more Asian American appointments at the Defense Department. In the commentary pages, Bill Marutani wrote on homosexuality and civil rights, and readers wrote in about redress and JACL’s Legacy Fund in response to Bill Hosokawa’s columns.

What’s in this issue

National

• High Court Hears Case for Stiffer Hate Crime Laws, page 1. The U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments in Wisconsin v. Mitchell, a First Amendment challenge to stiffer sentences for hate crimes, with justices appearing sympathetic to Wisconsin’s argument. JACL filed an amicus brief supporting the statute, and national director Dennis Hayashi praised the Justice Department’s support of Wisconsin’s position.
• Groups Seek More Asian American Appointments, page 1. A coalition including JACL’s Washington representative met with Defense Department officials to press for more Asian American political appointments. Officials said only one Asian American is expected to be appointed to a high-level Defense Department post and urged applicants to consider creative roles in environmental, technology, financial and purchasing positions.
• Nixon Calls for Japanese Aid to Russia, page 1. Former President Richard Nixon told a Los Angeles audience that Japan should not withhold aid to Boris Yeltsin’s Russia over the disputed Northern Territories islands. He also warned that U.S. troop withdrawal from Japan could push Japan toward nuclear rearmament and criticized the Clinton administration’s move toward managed trade.
• Fragile Friendship: U.S.-Japan Relations and the Balance of Power in Post-Cold War Asia, by Gwen Muranaka, page 1. A national policy conference in Los Angeles, sponsored by the Nixon Library and the Japan America Society of Southern California, brought together Nixon, Kissinger, former Japanese PM Kaifu and Clinton administration officials to discuss the future of U.S.-Japan relations. Speakers debated trade, security and political issues facing the two nations amid a changing post-Cold War Asia.
• Clinton Official: Japan Must Play Bigger Role, page 1. Derek Shearer, deputy undersecretary of Commerce, said at the U.S.-Japan conference that Japan cannot continue to play a ‘little brother’ role to the United States in international affairs. He said Japan must also open its markets while the U.S. pursues a results-oriented trade policy.
• Japan Official Warns of U.S. Protectionism, page 1. Yasuo Tanabe of Japan’s Ministry of International Trade and Industry bluntly criticized the Clinton administration’s proposed managed trade policy as unacceptable. He argued many American products succeed in Japan’s market, citing Sun Microsystems, Intel, Apple, Boeing, Dupont and Levis as examples.
• Eagleburger: Agreeing on the Disagreements, by Harry K. Honda, page 3. Former Secretary of State Lawrence Eagleburger summarized the Nixon Library conference by noting the fragile state of U.S.-Japan relations since the Soviet Union’s collapse. He said neither country was fully honest about mishandling political and trade issues, but praised the Japanese auto industry for forcing American improvement.
• Kaifu: Good Things to Come, by Gwen Muranaka, page 3. Former Japanese Prime Minister Toshiki Kaifu spoke at the U.S.-Japan policy conference about building a positive future relationship between the two nations. He emphasized the importance of continued American military presence in Asia and rejected quick-fix trade solutions like managed trade, while defending Japan’s support for Russian reform.
• Trade Officials Clash Over Japan Policy, page 7. Kevin Kearns, president of a U.S. trade group, sharply criticized past and present administrations for lacking a coherent Japan policy. He argued the U.S. has been ‘whining’ about Japan while inflating Japanese leaders’ egos, hindering effective negotiation.

In-Depth

• Panel Examines Views of Japan, by Harry K. Honda, page 3. A panel of experts including George Packard, Robert McFarlane, Michael Crichton, Makoto Kuroda and Karel van Wolferen discussed the changing paradigm of U.S.-Japan relations at the Los Angeles conference. Panelists debated nuclear proliferation, trade, Japanese bureaucracy and America’s declining industrial base.

Community

• L.A. Councilman Woo in the Running for Mayor, by Harry K. Honda, page 4. Los Angeles city councilman Michael Woo advanced to a runoff against businessman Richard Riordan in the mayoral race after finishing second in the April 20 primary. Woo’s supporters see his candidacy as breaking Asian American stereotypes, while voters also passed a term-limit measure and saw the first bilingual Japanese ballot available.

Military & Veterans

• ’93 MIS Reunion Plans Announced, page 4. The Japanese American Veterans Association announced plans for the 1993 Military Intelligence Service reunion October 21-23 in Arlington, Va., themed ‘Nisei Veteran: An American Patriot.’ The reunion will feature panels of MIS veterans and visits to the Smithsonian’s Japanese American Evacuation exhibit, with a separate 50th reunion of the Sempai Gumi planned in Honolulu.

Commentary

• Fools Rush In, by Bill Marutani, page 6. Columnist Bill Marutani reflects on his evolving views on homosexuality, describing himself as a ‘reforming’ rather than ‘reformed’ homophobe. He discusses his admiration for openly gay Congressman Barney Frank and a gay Philadelphia lawyer, while expressing reservations about equating gay rights with civil rights and teaching homosexuality in schools.
• Onihei, the Japanese Social Thinker, by Jin Konomi, page 6. Columnist Jin Konomi describes the historical Ishikawajima Rehabilitation Center established in 1790 Edo, which trained released convicts and the homeless in trades. He credits its creation to Hasegawa Heizo, a police official fictionalized in the novel ‘Onihei Hanka Cho,’ praising the era’s surprisingly progressive social policy.
• At Issue With Hosokawa on Meaning of Redress, by William Wobnrt, page 6. A letter to the editor disputes Bill Hosokawa’s suggestion that redress recipients should donate part of their payments to JACL. The writer argues group redress was never legally viable and questions why JACL alone should expect a share of individual redress payments.
• Bigger, Broader-Based Message Needed, by Sharon Warada, page 6. A Seattle letter writer responds to Bill Hosokawa’s column on redress donation statistics, suggesting JACL’s small membership base limits its outreach to the broader Japanese American community. She argues a sustained marketing effort, not one-time pitches, is needed to build support for the Legacy Fund.

Obituaries

• Tadao Sakai, page 8. Tadao Sakai, 73, a sign painter by trade, passed away April 21 in New York. He is survived by his wife Edel, brother Tom Sakai of Vancouver, and sister Harky Hiramura of Portland.

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