A staff downsizing at JACL and the 442nd’s Bruyeres anniversary

Vol. 120, No. 1, January 6, 1995. 16 pages. View this issue

A financial crisis at JACL was the main news of this 16-page issue. President Denny T. Yasuhara explained why the National Board voted to downsize staff at national headquarters and the paper, and Neal Taniguchi resigned as vice president of membership and services in protest. The editorial page weighed in, with Roy M. Nishikawa writing on the deficit and an editorial and a letter supporting the Board. The front page also announced that the paper would move to a twice-monthly schedule, publishing on the first and third Fridays.

Harry K. Honda wrote several pieces on the 50th anniversary of the liberation of Bruyeres by the 100th/442nd Regimental Combat Team, including the story of Pfc. Sadao Munemori and the 522nd Field Artillery Battalion at Dachau. Elsewhere, Richard Campos was found guilty on all seven counts in the Sacramento firebombings, and Barry Saiki continued his series on JACL’s wartime role.

What’s in this issue

National

• President Explains Board Decision to Downsize Staff, by Denny T. Yasuhara, page 1. JACL National President Denny Yasuhara explains the financial crisis facing the organization, including deficits and depleted reserves that led the National Board to approve staff restructuring at national headquarters and Pacific Citizen. He outlines the specific financial figures behind the decision and defends the Board’s fiduciary responsibility to the membership despite the controversy it caused.
• Yamashita to File Federal Class-Action Suit for Marine Discrimination Victims, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Marine Reserve Capt. Bruce Yamashita announced he will file a class-action lawsuit on behalf of hundreds of minority officer candidates who suffered institutional racism at Marine Corps Officer Candidate School. The suit asks the court to compel the Navy to create an internal process to address racial discrimination claims and seeks reinstatement, promotion and back pay for affected class members.
• Former Chairman Norm Mineta Elected Ranking Democrat on House Transportation Committee, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Rep. Norman Mineta was elected ranking Democrat on the new House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee for the 104th Congress after Republicans took the majority. The new committee expands jurisdiction to include railroads and Coast Guard and maritime issues, with Rep. Bud Shuster as the new chairman.
• Campos Found Guilty on All Seven Counts in Sacramento Firebombing, by P.C. Staff, page 4. Richard Campos, an admitted white supremacist, was found guilty of seven counts related to firebombing attacks in Sacramento in 1993, including attacks on the Sacramento JACL and NAACP offices and a synagogue. The jury deadlocked on an attempted murder charge related to a firebombing of a city councilman’s home, and Campos faces up to 19 years and four months in prison.
• San Francisco DJ Fired for Racial Remarks, by P.C. Staff, page 4. KFRC-FM radio host J. Paul Emerson was fired after making racially insensitive remarks about Japanese Americans and Pearl Harbor during an on-air argument with a listener. Community groups including the Asian American and gay and lesbian communities had previously criticized Emerson and his co-host for similar comments.
• Groups File Lawsuit Calling for Implementation of ‘Motor Voter’ Law, by P.C. Staff, page 4. Several civil rights organizations filed a lawsuit against California Gov. Pete Wilson for failing to implement the federal National Voter Registration Act, known as the ‘Motor Voter’ law. The law allows people to register to vote through the DMV or public assistance agencies, but Wilson has refused full implementation without federal funding.

JACL

• Neal Taniguchi Resigns as Membership VP, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Neal Taniguchi resigned as JACL vice president of membership and services in protest of the National Board’s decision to restructure staff and cut the budget. He accused President Denny Yasuhara of bullying the board and said the cuts would decimate the membership staff.

Community

• Florin Japanese American History Collection Accepted by University, by Bill Kashiwagi, page 3. More than 400 people attended a reception for the acceptance of the Florin Chapter JACL Oral History Project and the Mary Tsukamoto Collection by California State University, Sacramento. The collection contains more than 350 items of historical material documenting the Florin Japanese American community.
• Making a Difference, by Mollie T. Fujioka, page 9. The Diablo Valley Chapter, JACL, works to make a difference on issues including domestic partners legislation, Japanese American history education, and diversity awareness. The article details a lecture by author Mei Nakano and a chapter’s response to a diversity-related incident at a Human Relations Commission dinner, which led to a productive dialogue and apology.
• Personally Speaking, by P.C. Staff, page 12. This roundup column profiles numerous Japanese Americans achieving recognition, including Las Vegas principal Wayne Tanaka, scientist Thomas Tanemori, Judge Thomas Oki’s domestic violence court, Eagle Scout Ryan Akira Dean, and honorees Fred Hoshiyama and Mark Kiguchi. It also covers author Janet Mitsui Brown, professor Timothy Yoshino, attorney Camille Hamilton Pating, and philanthropist Taul Watanabe among others.

Military & Veterans

• Japanese American National Museum to Hold Artifact Identification Day, by P.C. Staff, page 5. The Japanese American National Museum plans an Artifact Identification Day to locate and identify military artifacts, particularly World War II memorabilia, for potential future exhibitions. Dr. Kaoru Oguri emphasized the museum only seeks to identify items, not immediately collect them, ahead of upcoming exhibits on the 522nd Field Artillery Battalion and Nikkei soldiers.
• Bruyeres: A Special Experience, A Special Meaning, by Harry K. Honda, page 10. PC editor emeritus Harry K. Honda recounts the 50th anniversary commemoration of the liberation of Bruyeres and Biffontaine by the 100th/442nd Regimental Combat Team, including a controversy over sculptor Shinkichi Tajiri’s donated artwork and its placement near the JACL monument. The article details the historic battle and Honda’s personal journey retracing the path of Nisei soldiers through Italy and France.
• The French Connection, by Valerie Nao Yoshimura, page 11. Graduate student Valerie Yoshimura describes the deep friendship between Japanese American veterans and the French residents of Bruyeres and Biffontaine, who affectionately call their liberators
• 522nd GIs Shoot Open Dachau Gates, by Harry K. Honda, page 11. Harry K. Honda recounts the historic role of the 522nd Field Artillery Battalion, which helped liberate prisoners at the Dachau concentration camp in the final days of World War II. The article includes a firsthand diary account from T/4 Ichiro Imamura describing the harrowing scene of freeing starving prisoners.
• Bruyeres (continued): MIS Veterans Were Aboard, Too, by Harry K. Honda, page 13. Continuing his account, Harry Honda describes the veterans and family members who traveled to France for the 50th anniversary tour, including MIS veterans and the historic connection between MIS pioneers and the 100th/442nd. He recounts the story of Sgt. Joe Takata, an early 100th Battalion war hero, and other wartime heroics.
• The Munemori Story, by Harry K. Honda, page 14. The article recounts the heroic actions of Pfc. Sadao Munemori, who sacrificed his life to save two fellow soldiers by smothering a grenade blast near Serevessa, Italy, in 1945. Munemori was posthumously awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor, even as his family remained confined in the Manzanar concentration camp.

Commentary

• JACL President Needs Our Support, by P.C. Staff, page 8. An editorial supports President Denny Yasuhara’s budget cutbacks as necessary for JACL’s survival despite the pain involved, praising the board’s courage in tackling the deficit. However, it criticizes the lack of transparency about board deliberations and calls for more information on alternatives considered and how votes were cast.
• Mixed Date Flap at Wedowee, by Jin Konomi, page 8. Columnist Jin Konomi reflects on a controversy at a rural Alabama high school where a principal threatened to cancel prom over interracial dating, leading to his suspension. He uses the incident to reflect on ongoing racial tensions in the Deep South and unexpectedly progressive racial dynamics found among students there compared to some California schools.
• National Board Deserves the Members’ Support, page 8. A letter from a past JACL national president praises the National Board’s December decisions to address the budget crisis as necessary and courageous. The writer urges members to unite behind the Board as JACL works to restore fiscal balance in 1995.
• Reevaluating Priorities in Financially Tough Times, page 8. A letter writer expresses concern about JACL’s future, arguing the organization should focus primarily on the welfare of Japanese Americans rather than broader civil rights issues that may divide membership and drain finances. The writer suggests JACL reevaluate its priorities given its severe financial difficulties.
• Responding to Critics of JACL’s Wartime Role—Part 2, by Barry Saiki, page 9. In the second part of his editorial, Barry Saiki recounts personal experiences from his family’s wartime internment, including his father’s repeated FBI questioning and eventual detention, to illustrate the paranoia and distrust that divided Japanese American communities during the war. He argues that accusations of JACL members acting as informants are largely unsubstantiated and calls for reconciliation among those who lived through the Evacuation.
• The Deficit, by Roy M. Nishikawa, page 9. Former JACL national president Roy Nishikawa analyzes JACL’s financial crisis using a who-what-where-when-why framework, attributing the deficits to poor management, lack of communication, and a culture of denial among prior leadership. He proposes remedies including transparency, salary caps, and improved fundraising to restore JACL’s fiscal health.

Obituaries

• Joseph Noda, by P.C. Staff, page 15. Joseph M. Noda, 83, of Sun City, California, died Dec. 10. He was born in Salinas and served as West L.A. JACL Chapter President in 1959, and is survived by a brother and three sisters.
• William Biyo Yoshino, by P.C. Staff, page 15. William Biyo Yoshino, 80, of Modesto, California, passed away Dec. 1. During World War II he was incarcerated at the Amache Relocation Center in Colorado, and after the war he resumed farming until his retirement, and is survived by three sisters and several children.

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