Vol. 67, No. 25, December 20, 1968. 72 pages. View this issue
JACL President Jerry Enomoto opened the issue with a holiday column arguing that neutrality is impossible in the campus unrest at San Francisco State. Elsewhere, Mike Masaoka looked back on a hundred years of Japan since the Meiji era and on the Supreme Court and civil rights from 1965 to 1968. Stuart Takeuchi’s essay “The Sorry Memory” examined the Korematsu decision and the Court’s approval of the wartime evacuation, and Bill Hosokawa traced the Nisei and the JACL from 1930 through the 442nd’s record and postwar civil rights work.
Other pieces include Henry Taketa on the 1869 Wakamatsu Tea and Silk Farm Colony at Gold Hill, Bruce Bollinger on how Issei and Nisei voted, Minoru Masuda’s Seattle survey of ethnic identity, and a story of a San Francisco family that stayed put during the forced removal. There are also Japanese folklore and fiction. About 29 of the issue’s 72 pages carry season’s greetings from JACL chapters and others.
What’s in this issue
Commentary
- Neutrality: An Impossible Stance, by Jerry Enomoto, page 1. National JACL President Jerry Enomoto reflects on the holiday season, the JACL’s growing relevance in civil rights, and the need for moderate Sansei to speak up on campus unrest at San Francisco State. He argues that neutrality is impossible in such conflicts.
- Past 100 Years of Japan Recalled, by Mike Masaoka, page 1. Masaoka reviews Japan’s Meiji Centennial, tracing the country’s rise from a feudal state to an industrial power through a chronology of key events. He concludes with hopes for continued cordial US-Japan relations and a larger Asian role for Japan.
- Christmas Message, by Fr. Clement, page 2. A Christmas reflection on the incarnation and the presence of God amid hardship, urging JACLers to find hope in the faith that Christ is born into human life.
- Education With Averted Eyes, by William R. Fielder, page 5. Fielder argues that school textbooks omit racial and ethnic conflict, particularly the treatment of Chinese and Japanese Americans, and examines the flawed portrayals in California texts.
- How Japanese Are the Japanese Americans?, by Minoru Masuda, page 6. Masuda reports a Seattle-area survey measuring ethnic identity across Issei, Nisei, and Sansei, finding that ethnic identification declines with each generation, with some exceptions.
- Mission Accomplished, Mission Incomplete, by Bill Hosokawa, page 12. Hosokawa addresses the Military Intelligence Service veterans, celebrating their wartime contributions and Japan’s postwar progress, while urging continued work on civil rights at home.
- The Snow Maiden of Japan, by Jim Henry, page 61. A folkloric article about snow women in Japanese legend, including Ariwara no Narihira’s encounter and Lafcadio Hearn’s story of Minokichi and O-Yuki, and the dangers these spirits pose.
- Trial of Our Times: The Supreme Court and Civil Rights, by Mike Masaoka, page 65. Masaoka reviews the 1965-68 period, covering the Civil Rights Act of 1968, Supreme Court decisions on housing and miscegenation, immigration reform, and JACL’s role in these developments.
In-Depth
- Wakamatsu Colonists Plant Mulberry Trees at Gold Hill, by Henry Taketa, page 1. The article recounts the 1869 Wakamatsu Tea and Silk Farm Colony at Gold Hill, El Dorado County, its short and tragic history, and the story of Okei, the girl whose grave marks the colony. It notes a planned 1969 centennial dedication of a historical landmark plaque.
- Political Behavior of Issei and Nisei, by Bruce Bollinger, page 2. Bollinger examines Japanese American voting patterns in Los Angeles and Portland using precinct analysis, prior studies, and survey data from two doctoral dissertations. He finds Democratic leanings among Nisei and shifting party loyalties across generations.
- Japanese Immigrant Life: Kanaka, by Naoto Nakashima, page 5. A translated short story set in Hawaii’s plantation community, centered on a farewell party for a family leaving with the ashes of a son killed in a train accident, and the colorful neighbor Laka.
- Quiet Dignity, by Howard Henjyoji, page 61. A serialized narrative following Chik Kawamoto, son of a Buddhist minister, from childhood through internment, school years, romance, and military service in Vietnam, exploring his developing sense of Japanese American identity.
Incarceration & Redress
- The Sorry Memory, by Stuart Takeuchi, page 2. Takeuchi, a prize-winning essay writer, traces anti-Japanese sentiment on the West Coast and the legal reasoning behind the Korematsu decision. He argues the Supreme Court’s validation of the wartime evacuation was a low point in American constitutional history.
- San Francisco Family Stays Put, by Allan Beekman, page 4. Beekman tells the story of Theodore Cathey and his Nisei wife Marian, who refused to comply with the evacuation order after Pearl Harbor. The couple’s marriage, the FBI visit, and their decision to remain in San Francisco are described.
Arts & Entertainment
- Kanrin Maru Replica Starts, by Tamotsu Murayama, page 3. The article reports on plans in Japan to reconstruct the Kanrin Maru, the first Japanese warship to cross the Pacific in 1860, and recounts its voyage with an American crew under Lt. John M. Brooke.
Military & Veterans
- For Better Americans in a Greater America, by Bill Hosokawa, page 25. An overview of the Nisei and the JACL’s history from its 1930 founding through wartime evacuation, the 442nd’s record, postwar legal victories, and civil rights advocacy.
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