Retirement credit for camp years and the redress debate, May 1978

Vol. 86, No. 20, May 26, 1978. 8 pages. View this issue

A Senate hearing on S 244 led the news. The bill would give federal employees retirement credit for time spent in the World War II incarceration (often called internment) camps. Sen. Daniel Inouye, Sen. Spark Matsunaga and Rep. Norman Mineta urged passage, and the Civil Service Commission had withdrawn its earlier objections. Clifford I. Uyeda wrote about a Western Washington University conference comparing the wartime removal of Japanese Americans and Japanese Canadians, and the redress committee reported on a first draft proposal ahead of the JACL national convention. Letters from Miyo Morikawa and Keiko D. Hodge took up the question of reparations.

Elsewhere, Ross M. Harano led the Chicago aldermanic vote and faced a June 13 runoff. Builders were named for the Little Tokyo community center, and about 250 former Heart Mountain residents held a reunion in San Jose. Bill Hosokawa and Bill Marutani wrote columns, and George E. Condon looked back at actor Jack Soo’s years in Cleveland.

What’s in this issue

National

• Civil Service Retirement Credit Bill Heard in Senate, by P.C. Staff, page 1. A Senate subcommittee heard testimony on S 244, a bill giving federal employees retirement credit for time spent in WWII Japanese American incarceration camps. Sponsors including Sen. Inouye and Rep. Mineta urged passage, and the Civil Service Commission has withdrawn its earlier objections.
• Census Plans Block Data on Major Pacific/Asian Groups, by P.C. Staff, page 1. AACI endorsed the Census Bureau’s plan to publish 1980 block data for major Pacific/Asian ethnic groups, which would aid mental health and social service planning. The organization also urged inclusion of additional groups such as Vietnamese and Korean.
• Asian Community Dinner for Brown Raises $35,000, by P.C. Staff, page 2. About 140 Asian community leaders attended a $250-a-plate dinner for Governor Jerry Brown’s re-election campaign in Los Angeles, raising roughly $35,000. Attendees raised immigration, social services, and tax concerns, and Brown spoke of growing economic ties across the Pacific.

Community

• Ross M. Harano Leads, Now Faces June 13 Runoff, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Ross Masao Harano, a Sansei and past Chicago JACL president, finished first in the May 16 special 48th Ward aldermanic election. He faces Marian Kennedy Volini in a June 13 runoff.
• Gardena Buddhist Church Japanese School Celebrates 50 Years, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The Gardena Buddhist Church Japanese School marked its 50th anniversary with a banquet, where officials presented commendations. The event recognized the school’s decades of service to the community.
• Gov. Brown Calls Nikkei Businessmen Key to Plan to Improve Trade with Japan, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Assemblyman Floyd Mori presented Governor Brown with a plan to use California’s Japanese American businessmen to boost state trade with Japan. Fifteen leading Nikkei business figures attended the California-Japan Economic Development Conference.
• Builders for Little Tokyo Community Center Announced, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Ohbayashi America Corp. and RST Construction Co. were named builders of the Japanese American Cultural and Community Center with a guaranteed maximum price of $3,216,906. The joint venture was formed after a dispute over concrete subcontractor pricing and a delayed building permit.
• Memorial Day Rites for Nisei GIs Slated, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Memorial Day ceremonies at Golden Gate National Cemetery will honor Nisei war dead, co-sponsored by veterans, church, and JACL groups. Donations to decorate the graves can be sent to JACL Headquarters.
• Sharon Sanae Tomasa Named 1978 Cherry Blossom Queen, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Sharon Sanae Tomasa, a senior at the University of Hawaii, was named the 1978 Cherry Blossom Queen. She is the only child of Clara and Robert Tomasa of Hawaii Kai.
• Nisei Week Gets $2,500 City Fund, by P.C. Staff, page 3. The Nisei Week Festival will receive a $2,500 grant from the City of Los Angeles for the first time in its 38-year history. The city council approved the budget item after championing by Councilman Gil Lindsay.
• Asian Immigrants Flocking to U.S., by P.C. Staff, page 3. A State Department report shows Asians and Latin Americans have overtaken Europeans as the largest sources of U.S. immigrants. Immigration from Asia is growing faster than from Latin America.
• Asian Alliance in Colorado Organized, by P.C. Staff, page 3. The Colorado Alliance of Pacific Asian Americans was formally organized in March with Dr. N.K. Chang as acting chairman. The group serves an estimated 15,000 Asian Americans in the Denver area.
• Toyota Celebration Fund Established, by P.C. Staff, page 3. A million-dollar Toyota 20th Anniversary Celebration Fund was announced to support programs promoting closer U.S.-Japan relations. Proposals are due by August 1, 1978, with six to ten awards anticipated.
• All-Cal JACL Trackfest Set, by P.C. Staff, page 3. An all-California JACL track meet is planned for June 25, bringing together top two-place finishers from earlier June meets. The event was endorsed by the San Francisco JACL chapter.
• Nisei Ambassadors to Co-host July 4 Spectacular, by P.C. Staff, page 7. The Chicago Nisei Ambassadors Drum and Bugle Corps will co-host a July 4 show with the American Legion featuring over 600 teenage performers. The corps was founded in 1959 by Nisei veterans.
• Asian Group Converting Warehouse into Center, by P.C. Staff, page 7. The East Bay Asian Local Development Corp. received partial release of a $1 million federal grant to buy the Lyon Warehouse in Oakland Chinatown for an Asian resource center. The building will house multilingual services and retail space.
• Heart Mountain Reunion Draws 250, by P.C. Staff, page 7. About 250 former Block 23 residents of Heart Mountain camp attended a family-style reunion in San Jose featuring camp films, documents, and recognition of the oldest and most distant attendees. Special presentations honored several long-time participants.
• Zellerbach Funds S.F. Nikkei Group, by P.C. Staff, page 7. Three Japanese American organizations received grants from the Zellerbach Family Fund, including the San Francisco Center for Japanese American Studies and the Japanese Community Youth Council. The grants support arts and cultural programs.
• Statue Stolen, by P.C. Staff, page 7. A three-foot bronze statue of St. Shinran was stolen from the courtyard of the Denver Buddhist Temple in March. It had been a gift from a man in Japan in memory of his son.
• Ben Takeshita: Contra Costa JACLer Returns as Employment Manager, by P.C. Staff, page 8. Ben Takeshita, a longtime Bay Area civic leader and JACL member, returned to Pleasant Hill as manager of the Employment Development Department office. His career includes years of state service and leadership in international employment security organizations.
• Peoples: Honors, Media, Medicine, and Organization Notes, by P.C. Staff, page 8. Brief notes report honors for Nikkei individuals including Japanese government decorations, scholarship awards, and a Seattle columnist’s debut. Also noted are appointments such as Mary Ann Kimble to the California State Board of Pharmacy.

In-Depth

• Evacuation Experiences Compared Between U.S. and Canada, by Clifford I. Uyeda, page 1. A Western Washington University conference compared the wartime removal of Japanese Americans and Japanese Canadians, noting Canada’s harsher treatment including ship seizures and forced relocation east of the Rockies. The article also summarizes several conference presentations on camp life and Christian church responses.

Military & Veterans

• Recruiting for Navy Oceanographers, by P.C. Staff, page 3. The Naval Ocean Research and Development Activity is recruiting college students for its Cooperative Education Program, which pays tuition while students work on research. Eigoro Hashimoto, a Sansei oceanographer, is the recruitment contact.

Commentary

• Children’s Children, by Ken Nobuyuki, page 4. The columnist calls for JACL membership control over the youth program and reflects on Nikkei identity and the relocation camps. The piece argues that youth and JACL need closer ties.
• Reparations—No!!!, by Miyo Morikawa, page 4. A reader argues that Japanese Americans should not seek monetary reparations, pointing to their achievements and personal dignity. The letter urges pride over payment.
• Candidate Explains Stand, by Keiko D. Hodge, page 4. A congressional candidate for the 31st District clarifies her positions on issues such as reparations after a front-page article. She asks readers to correct potential misinterpretations of her views.
• Relocation History, by Kimi Tambara, page 4. A Portland reader reflects on the Western Washington University conference on Japanese American and Japanese Canadian relocation. She says the backward look helped her recall much she had forgotten.
• Dennis Roland, by Elsie Renne, page 4. A reader praises Dennis Roland’s spirit of forgiveness after his WWII imprisonment and forced labor on the Thailand-Burma railway. Roland later joined a friendship walk over the River Kwai bridge with former Japanese guards.
• Sign Up One New JACLer, by Mas Odoi, page 4. A Gardena reader urges Japanese Americans to focus on the future rather than bitter memories of the past. He reflects philosophically on the damage done by resentment.
• Adopted & Abandoned, by Bill Hosokawa, page 5. Hosokawa recounts a young Japanese woman adopted by an American serviceman who now lacks a birth certificate and family records. He reflects on the difficulty of helping people without roots or documentation.
• Aid to A-Bomb Victims, by P.C. Staff, page 5. The Denver Post editorial compares a Japanese court ruling granting medical care to an A-bomb survivor with pending U.S. legislation HR 5150 for American A-bomb survivors. It argues Congress should approve the bill.
• Convention Rhetoric, by Bill Marutani, page 5. Marutani argues that JACL convention themes and resolutions mean little without leadership that implements them over the following two years. He urges delegates to demand clear criteria for selecting the national president.
• Soo: A Singing Indian, by George E. Condon, page 7. Cleveland columnist George Condon reveals that TV actor Jack Soo, born Jack Suzuki, changed his name during WWII and once sang with a Cleveland band performing at Indians games. Condon recounts Soo’s career in Cleveland before his television fame.

JACL

• Proposal, by Clifford I. Uyeda, page 5. The redress committee reports on the April meeting with district representatives that produced a first draft proposal combining individual and trust payment concepts. The proposal will be modified before the convention.
• Executive Committee Action Summary, by P.C. Staff, page 6. The National JACL executive committee approved a balanced 1979 budget, dues increases, and several constitutional amendments for the national council. Other actions covered membership development, travel guidelines, and convention minutes.
• San Benito County Hosts NC-WN Session, by P.C. Staff, page 6. Northern California Western Nevada District Council added a new Solano County chapter at its quarterly session but approved Las Vegas JACL’s transfer to the Pacific Southwest District. The host chapter served a chicken barbecue.

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