Asian American schools and jobs in 1971, plus a Nisei actor’s protest

Vol. 72, No. 11, March 19, 1971. 6 pages. View this issue

Education and fair treatment ran through this six-page issue. Asian American communities in Seattle, Oakland, Los Angeles and San Francisco pressed school systems for a voice. Seattle’s community college board agreed to hold administrative posts for Asian applicants, and Los Angeles elected 27 representatives to an Asian American Education Commission. Edison Uno testified before Sen. Walter Mondale’s committee. Ben Tong wrote two columns on how school textbooks treated Asian Americans. The front page also followed Clifford Arashi, the Nisei actor fired from a role in the Arena Stage play Pueblo, who organized his own picket line. JACL asked the D.C. Human Relations Commission to act on his complaint.

Elsewhere, Raymond Uno described a snowy trip to Burley, Idaho, and Bill Hosokawa wrote about Dillon S. Myer’s book. Edison Uno reviewed Subversion?, a documentary on the camps, and Mike Masaoka reported on hearings to repeal Title II of the Internal Security Act. Other pages cover a Tokyo earthquake warning and a review of Chie Nakane’s Japanese Society.

What’s in this issue

Commentary

• Nature and Personal Mishaps on the Road to Burley, by Raymond Uno, page 1. National JACL President Raymond Uno recounts a weekend Intermountain District Council trip to Burley, Idaho, including a wrong-turn detour and a late-night house-key mishap. He also reflects on a Utah political dinner and his lobbying work during the state legislative session.
• Title II Repeal Hearings, by Mike Masaoka, page 2. Masaoka reports on House Judiciary subcommittee hearings on repealing Title II of the Internal Security Act and notes JACL will submit written testimony. He also discusses the Senate’s rejection of 18-year-old voting in a 94-to-0 vote.
• From the Frying Pan: Who Is Dillon S. Myer?, by Bill Hosokawa, page 3. Hosokawa reviews Dillon Myer’s book Uprooted Americans and reflects on Myer’s role as WRA director during the camp years. He argues younger generations need to know the man who shaped the destiny of Japanese Americans.
• Junzaburo Ban: An Entertainer with Soul, by Dick Gima, page 3. Gima profiles Japanese comedian Junzaburo Ban, who organizes annual charity shows for crippled Japanese children. He recounts Ban’s visit with Glenn Ford in Hollywood.
• Analysis of Japanese Behavior: Japanese Society by Chie Nakane, by Allan Beekman, page 4. Beekman reviews Chie Nakane’s Japanese Society, which analyzes vertical social relations and hierarchical group loyalty in Japan. The book argues feudal patterns of behavior persist in modern Japanese life.
• Yoshinaga Case, by Kats Kunitsugu, page 4. Kunitsugu examines the civil service challenge by Nisei city planner Jim Yoshinaga, who was passed over for promotion despite placing first on a test. He argues the case reflects the broader problem of minorities being denied leadership opportunities.
• School Textbooks Probed for Inadequate Asian American Coverage, by Ben Tong, page 5. Ben Tong of the Asian American Education Task Force criticizes social studies textbooks under consideration in San Francisco for omitting or stereotyping Asian Americans. He urges the school district to adopt materials that accurately portray Chinese and Japanese American history.
• Asians Must Tell Their Own Story, by Ben Tong, page 5. Tong argues that existing Asian American studies materials in San Francisco schools perpetuate meek and compliant stereotypes. He calls on the Asian American community to assert its own history and voice.
• On Second Thought: Midwest District, by Warren Furutani, page 5. Furutani reflects on a productive Midwest District Council meeting held in private homes in St. Louis. He argues the district needs more national staff support and suggests the Endowment Fund could finance additional regional positions.
• Soledad Prison: Reflections on Corrections and Humane Management, by P.C. Staff, page 5. A corrections official reflects on outside groups and community ethnic organizations offering programs at Soledad prison. He argues the fewest people should be incarcerated for the shortest periods, while acknowledging a need for humane treatment of dangerous inmates.

Community

• Seattle Community College Agrees to Hold Administrative Posts for Asians, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The Seattle Community College Board of Trustees agreed to freeze available administrative posts for Asian applicants following a March 4 meeting with Asian community representatives. The board chairman also issued a public apology for calling a student sit-in juvenile and ill-advised.
• Nisei Voice Added to Oakland Schools, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The Oakland JACL praised active Japanese American participation on the city’s polyethnic advisory council to the school board. The chapter is now urging a full-time Japanese American staff worker for the school’s human relations office.
• Asian Americans in L.A. Pick Education Commission, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Twenty-seven representatives from Asian American communities were elected to the Asian American Education Commission in Los Angeles. The commission is expected to have official status with the L.A. board of education on educational policy.
• 3-Way Telephone Link with Interpreters Started in S.F., by P.C. Staff, page 1. San Francisco Superintendent Thomas Shaheen established a switchboard offering volunteer interpreters in nine languages for foreign-born parents seeking school information. Japanese volunteers include Masao Satow and Howard Imazeki.
• Asians Testify Before U.S. Senate Committee, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Asian and Black students from the Bay Area testified before Sen. Walter Mondale’s Select Committee on Equal Educational Opportunity in San Francisco. Edison Uno argued that Asian American students exceed 20 percent of enrollment while Asian educators make up less than 6 percent.
• Gardena Council Sets Special Election to Fill Vacancy, by P.C. Staff, page 2. The Gardena city council set a special election for June 8 to fill a seat left vacant by councilman Vincent Bell’s death, after failing to appoint Nisei runner-up Paul Bannai. Councilman Ken Nakaoka issued a statement defending his opposition to the appointment.
• Tariff Commission Rules on Japan TV Sets, by P.C. Staff, page 3. The Tariff Commission ruled that imports of Japanese-made television sets injured the domestic industry, clearing the way for Treasury penalty duties. Attorney H. William Tanaka said the rulings may be challenged in court.

Military & Veterans

• Intermountain District Adopts JACL-Blue Shield Health Plan, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The JACL Intermountain District Council unanimously adopted the JACL-Blue Shield health plan of the NC-WNDC district. Coordinator Haruo Ishimaru said the plan may be adopted nationally during the biennium.
• Nisei Actor Fired from Pueblo Role Organizes Own Picket Line, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Clifford Arashi, a Japanese American actor fired from a North Korean colonel role in the Arena Stage production of Pueblo, led a protest picket on opening night. The Arena Stage contends he did not satisfy the director.

National

• JACL Rebuts JACP Charge of Undue Pressure Tactics, by P.C. Staff, page 1. National JACL President Raymond Uno rebutted a charge that the book Japanese Americans: The Untold Story was rejected due to pressure from a small minority. Uno argued the JACL and Buddhist Churches of America represent most of the community.
• JACL Supports Nisei Complaint of Theater Bias, by P.C. Staff, page 2. The JACL urged the District of Columbia Human Relations Commission to act on the complaint filed by actor Clifford Arashi over his firing from Arena Stage’s Pueblo. National chairman George Takei told the commission the case raised discrimination concerns.
• Census Questions Considered Invasion of Privacy by Four in Hawaii, by Allen Beekman, page 2. Four Hawaii residents were charged with refusing to answer 1970 census questions they considered an invasion of privacy. Federal officials say only five individuals objected strongly enough to be prosecuted.

Incarceration & Redress

• Subversion? Documentary on Evacuation Earns Plaudits from Nisei, by Edison Uno, page 3. Edison Uno reviews Subversion?, a KQED documentary by Barry Brown tracing the history of Japanese American detention camps. He praises its authentic footage and emotional impact while noting it is difficult to fit so much history into thirty minutes.

In-Depth

• Dire Fate for Tokyo? Earthquake Predictions Warn of Major Quake, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Seismologist Dr. Hiroshi Kawasumi warns that a major earthquake could strike the Tokyo area within the next seven years and could cause widespread fire damage. High-rise and factory safety concerns are also raised.

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