Vol. 116, No. 5, February 5, 1993. 8 pages. View this issue
Civil rights ran through this eight-page issue. Gwen Muranaka reported on President Clinton’s move to lift the ban on gays and lesbians in the military and on how Japanese Americans saw their own history of segregation in it. JACL took no official position pending Senate hearings. National director Dennis Hayashi wrote a tribute to Justice Thurgood Marshall, who had died in January, and Muranaka’s continuation looked at his Supreme Court dissents. Karen Narasaki described the two weeks between the inauguration and Marshall’s funeral.
Other pages looked at the World War II incarceration (often called internment). A March 20 conference in Albany, Calif., was set to help teachers cover it, and the Heart Mountain resisters planned a Feb. 21 homecoming in Los Angeles. Harry Honda covered a Military Intelligence Service veterans’ party, and Bill Hosokawa, Bill Marutani and Mei Nakano wrote columns.
What’s in this issue
National
- Gays in the Military Debate Resonates with Japanese American Struggles for Civil Rights, by Gwen Muranaka, page 1. As President Clinton grapples with lifting the ban on gays and lesbians serving in the military, Japanese Americans reflect on parallels to their own history of segregation and discrimination in the armed forces. JACL leaders and activists like Martin Kazu Hiraga and Bruce Yamashita weigh in on the debate, with JACL itself withholding an official position pending Senate hearings.
- Gay Rights Debate Continued: JACL History and Activist Voices, by Gwen Muranaka, page 4. The article continues coverage of the gays-in-military debate, detailing JACL’s 1992 constitutional amendment protecting rights regardless of sexual orientation and interviews with civil rights activists Diane Murakawa and Bruce Yamashita. Yamashita, who is suing the Marine Corps for reinstatement after facing racial discrimination, draws parallels between his experience and the military’s treatment of gay service members.
Commentary
- Justice in His Time: A Tribute to Thurgood Marshall, by Dennis Hayashi, page 1. JACL national director Dennis Hayashi reflects on the legacy of Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall, who died in January, highlighting his work dismantling segregation as counsel for the NAACP Legal Defense Fund. Hayashi connects Marshall’s fight against ‘separate but equal’ to the Japanese American experience of segregated military units during WWII.
- Marshall’s Legacy of Dignity and Equality, by Gwen Muranaka, page 4. This continuation of the Thurgood Marshall tribute examines his Supreme Court dissents in cases like Bakke and Croson, where he fought to preserve affirmative action and racial remedies. The piece highlights Marshall’s storytelling approach to humanize legal arguments and his famous quote defining equality.
- Restaurant Reputations, by Bill Hosokawa, page 6. Bill Hosokawa reflects on dining at a small Japanese restaurant called Namiko’s and muses about how restaurant reputations can be unfairly tarnished by a single bad experience years earlier, even after ownership changes. He draws a moral about the lasting power of first impressions and grudges.
- Goin’ Like Sixty, by Bill Marutani, page 6. Bill Marutani reminisces about learning to drive a Caterpillar tractor as a youth and contrasts it with the aggressive speeds and driving habits he observes on modern highways. He notes with some surprise that women drivers are now just as likely as men to drive aggressively, though he praises the Nikkei women drivers he has ridden with.
- Agents for Change, by Karen Narasaki, page 6. JACL Washington D.C. representative Karen Narasaki reflects on the emotional two weeks bookended by President Clinton’s inauguration and the funeral of Justice Thurgood Marshall. She discusses the Asian Pacific American community’s efforts to build political influence, including a breakfast to launch a national Asian American Political Action Committee, while questioning the administration’s engagement with APA concerns.
- Bright Morning, by Mei Nakano, page 7. Mei Nakano reflects on Maya Angelou’s inaugural poem and how movements of liberation in the 1960s and ’70s enabled writers of color, including Japanese American authors like Monica Sone and John Okada, to find their voices. She traces the evolution of Asian American literature into the mainstream through writers like Cynthia Kadohata, Karen Tei Yamashita, and Amy Tan.
- Agents for Change (continued), by Karen Narasaki, page 7. The continuation discusses connections between Justice Marshall and the Clinton administration, including the appointment of Marshall’s son Thurgood Marshall Jr. as Legislative Affairs Coordinator for Vice President Gore. Narasaki expresses hope that all Americans will work together to build bridges toward social and economic justice as Marshall envisioned.
Incarceration & Redress
- Lesson Plan: Teaching the Internment Experience, page 1. A conference set for March 20 in Albany, Calif., organized by the National Coalition for Redress/Reparation, aims to help educators teach about the Japanese American internment experience. Speakers including former internee Chizu Iiyama will share firsthand accounts and sample lessons for elementary and secondary classrooms.
- Heart Mountain Resisters Homecoming, page 5. The Heart Mountain Resisters, once branded as draft dodgers and largely ignored in history books, will share their stories at a ceremonial homecoming event on Feb. 21 in Los Angeles. The program will recreate the experience of Japanese American men who resisted the draft during WWII and were convicted and imprisoned for their resistance.
- Teaching the Internment Experience Continued: Educators and Speakers Detailed, page 5. This continuation details additional speakers for the internment teaching conference, including Paul DeWitt on secondary education integration and Libia Yamamoto and Rudy Tokiwa offering personal perspectives on Korematsu v. U.S. The National Japanese American Historical Society and Shen’s Books will also have materials available at the event.
Military & Veterans
- Hakujin MIS Vet Addresses Buddies, by Harry Honda, page 3. Dempster Dirks, a hakujin MISLS graduate of 1943, spoke about aging and staying active at the Military Intelligence Service Club of Southern California’s New Year’s party in Santa Monica. Col. Young Oak Kim also gave an update on efforts to identify MIS veterans from an incomplete list published in the 1992 Pacific Citizen Holiday Issue.
- MIS Club Honors Members, Discusses Museum Project, page 5. The continuation of the MIS Club story details presentations made to Cathy Tanaka and George Kanegai, along with a performance by Henry Kuwahara reprising his one-man skit from the 50th anniversary MIS reunion. Bruce Kaji updated attendees on the Japanese American National Museum’s Phase II project and its upcoming ‘Nisei Story’ exhibit.
Community
- MIS Officers Installed for 1993, page 3. New officers for the Military Intelligence Service Club of Southern California for 1993 were introduced, including Jim Mita as president and other officers filling various roles. The photo caption lists the full lineup of officers including historian, social chair, and treasurer positions.
- Library Leaders Installed at Friends of Little Tokyo Branch Library, page 3. New officers and board members were installed for the Friends of Little Tokyo Branch Library in Los Angeles, led by president Janet Minami. The group includes numerous vice presidents, secretaries, and board members responsible for areas like publicity, building expansion, and volunteers.
Sports
- Marge Schott Faces One-Year Suspension from Baseball, page 5. Cincinnati Reds owner Marge Schott faces a one-year suspension from major league baseball and a possible fine of up to $250,000 for racial remarks. Her attorney indicated she plans to fight the suspension and challenge the executive council’s authority to impose it.
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