A discrimination lawsuit against WSU and the redress debate

Vol. 87, No. 12, September 29, 1978. 8 pages. View this issue

A federal lawsuit led the front page. Five students and the Spokane JACL sued Washington State University, charging discrimination against Asian Americans and pointing to the lack of an ethnic studies program. Elsewhere, the redress campaign drew debate from several writers. JACL President Clifford I. Uyeda wrote about how people reacted to it, treasurer George Kodama asked whether Japanese Americans should stay quiet, and Bill Marutani explained why the Hirabayashi and Korematsu decisions still matter to him. Mike Masaoka wrote two columns, one defending the paper’s coverage of unfavorable news and one describing what JACL stands for.

Other news included President Carter signing a bill giving Civil Service retirement credit to Japanese Americans held in the World War II incarceration camps, and a House vote on a Hawaiian claims bill. Bill Hosokawa reviewed Mine Okubo’s Citizen 13660. Nancy Karasawa described seven weeks in Tokyo, and five law students received JACL scholarships.

What’s in this issue

National

• Lawsuit against WSU charges racial bias, page 1. Five students and the Spokane JACL filed a federal suit against Washington State University alleging discrimination against Asian Americans, including the lack of an ethnic studies program. University officials called the suit another legal action and said academic freedom decisions belong to faculty.
• House kills Senate-passed Hawaii claims bill, page 1. The U.S. House voted 190-148 to send back to committee a bill that would have created a commission to study Hawaiian claims arising from the 1893 overthrow of the Hawaiian government. Hawaii’s congressmen vowed to reintroduce the legislation next year, reconsidering the commission’s composition.
• Carter signs two bills with Asian American impact, by P.C. Staff, page 1. President Carter signed a bill granting federal Civil Service retirement credit to Japanese Americans confined in WWII camps and a resolution designating Pacific-Asian American Heritage Week. Sen. Inouye said the measures call attention to the role of Asian Americans and correct a wrong committed in wartime.

Community

• East-West Players win $240,000 grant from CBS, by Sharon Suzuki, page 1. The East-West Players received a $240,000 grant from CBS Inc. as one of 12 cultural grants totaling $2,158,000 in Los Angeles. The theater will use the funds to start a festival showcasing Asian American contributions to Los Angeles cultural life.
• Samoan chief seeks roots in Japan, page 1. Tutuila high chief Frank Fani Shimasaki arrived in Japan to search for his ancestral roots, as his father had never discussed his life there. His father had come to Samoa from Hawaii in 1897 and originally hailed from Wagi, Yamaguchi-ken.
• Pacific/Asian Coalition board meeting Oct. 6-8 open to public, page 3. The PAC national board of directors will meet in San Francisco Oct. 6-8 at the Kyoto Inn, and the meeting is open to the public. Agenda items include reports from Washington, D.C. coordinator Mark Tajima and principal investigator Kenji Murase.
• Mondale no-show at Matsui dinner, page 8. Vice President Walter Mondale could not attend a Sept. 15 fund-raising dinner for Councilman Robert Matsui because of Mideast negotiations at Camp David. Agriculture Secretary Bob Bergland spoke in his place before over 500 attendees.

Commentary

• Colored Lens, by Clifford I. Uyeda, page 2. JACL President Uyeda argues that reactions to the redress campaign reflect differing fears and perspectives, and that Senator Hayakawa’s statements damage himself more than JACL. He expresses confidence that Americans will respond differently once the facts of the Evacuation become known.
• Good News and Bad, by Mike Masaoka, page 4. Masaoka defends the Pacific Citizen’s coverage of unfavorable news about the Nisei, arguing that knowing the enemy is necessary to fight it. He insists evacuation must not be forgotten while detention and discriminatory calls persist.
• By the Board: Are We to Be More ‘Quiet’?, by George Kodama, page 4. JACL treasurer George Kodama argues that the redress campaign should proceed despite fears of backlash, since failing to pursue it would perpetuate the stereotype of the quiet American. He contends the redress campaign is necessary to affirm that Japanese Americans’ goals are not limited by racism.
• A Rallying Focal, by Mike Masaoka, page 4. Masaoka describes JACL as a national organization symbolizing the goal of emancipating Japanese Americans from limited citizenship and questioned loyalty. He outlines JACL’s purpose and its four-letter policy framework of Justice, Assimilation, Citizenship and Loyalty.
• East Wind: It’s the Law of the Land, Yet, by Bill Marutani, page 5. Marutani examines the Hirabayashi and Korematsu Supreme Court decisions, which have never been reversed and still stand as law. He explains his support for JACL’s redress program as a matter of principle rather than money.
• Internal Combustion Furnace, by Gene Konomi, page 5. The author recalls a childhood at Daimyo Elementary School in Fukuoka, where students warmed their unheated classroom by shoving one another in a recess game. He reflects that children should be given the chance to develop their own inner resources.
• From the Frying Pan: ‘Citizen 13660’, by Bill Hosokawa, page 5. Hosokawa reviews Mine Okubo’s 1946 sketch-and-text memoir of evacuation, Citizen 13660, which is being reissued. He praises its stark, objective portrayal of life at Tanforan and Topaz.
• A Sansei in Tokyo: 7 Overwhelming Weeks, by Nancy Karasawa, page 7. Karasawa recounts her seven weeks in Japan as a fellowship participant, reflecting on harmony between old and new in Tokyo and the perceptions of Japanese society. She describes how her Japanese stereotype as a Japanese American made her understand her marginal position.

Obituaries

• Kiichi Gunji, prewar Japanese consul general, dies, page 2. Kiichi Gunji, 87, former Japanese consul general in Honolulu, died in Japan on Sept. 7. He had been recalled in 1940 over statements he made about the loyalty of Japanese in Hawaii.
• Mrs. Toyo Kazato, 92: A legendary pioneer Issei woman, by Mike Iwatsubo, page 8. Toyo Kazato, a pioneer Issei woman who lived in Fresno for 71 years, died Sept. 11 at age 92. The article recounts her education, her role in raising children who became a physician, music professor and public defender, and her devotion to the community.

JACL

• JACL-Tom Hayashi law scholarship: Five students receive $500 awards, by Special to The Pacific Citizen, page 3. Five Sansei law students received JACL Thomas T. Hayashi Memorial Law Scholarships for the first time. The article profiles the recipients, including Susan Kamei, Carol Izumi, Susan Onuma, Bruce Hironaka and Derrick Takeuchi.

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