The 1958 JACL convention in Salt Lake City, and a Nisei judge’s ruling

Vol. 47, No. 10, September 5, 1958. 8 pages. View this issue

The 15th Biennial National JACL Convention in Salt Lake City filled much of this eight-page issue. Convention chairman Rupert Hachiya looked back on the meeting, and Bill Hosokawa recalled the banquet, where an Assistant Attorney General said the wartime evacuation was a mistake made in hysteria. Delegates approved an $82,767 budget, adopted a service pin for long-serving chapter members, and named Mrs. Tomizo (Sue) Joe and Kumeo Yoshinari JACLers of the Biennium. Editor Harry K. Honda explained why delegates chose a subscription increase over a plan to bundle the paper with membership. The front page carried a guest editorial on Tosh Suyematsu, a Nisei justice of the peace in Cheyenne, Wyoming, who fined Quaker pacifist Kenneth Calkins at a missile site.

Elsewhere, Tamotsu Murayama reported on potato farmers in Ontario, Oregon, and Larry S. Tajiri wrote about actor George Shibata in Pork Chop Hill. Mike Masaoka and Henry Mori contributed newsletters, and page 7 covers the Nisei baseball and softball championships and the JACL golf tournament.

What’s in this issue

Commentary

• Nisei justice of the peace and the pacifists, by P.C. Staff, page 1. A Nisei justice of the peace in Cheyenne, Wyoming, fined Quaker pacifist Kenneth Calkins for trespassing at a missile site and harshly rebuked him. The editorial argues the Quakers, whose forebears benefited from Quaker aid during WWII evacuation, should have shown more mercy.
• Very truly yours, by Harry K. Honda, page 5. Editor Honda explains that delegates rejected a ‘PC with Membership’ plan due to cost and instead approved a 50-cent subscription increase and a revived introductory offer. He suggests a special monthly JACLer edition as an alternative and thanks supporters.
• Washington Newsletter, by Mike Masaoka, page 8. Masaoka highlights the 15th Biennial JACL Convention, naming Doub’s evacuation remarks, Congressman Saund’s speech, and Nisei of the Biennium awards as major moments. He also pays tribute to outgoing president Dr. Roy Nishikawa and welcomes Shigeo Wakamatsu.
• The bitter with the sweet, by Milwaukie Review, page 8. The Milwaukie Review editorial praises Americans of Japanese descent for their exemplary citizenship and resilience after wartime incarceration. It notes their rise to become a successful minority group while acknowledging occasional problems.

National

• Snake River Valley potato farmers worry over ‘no price’ and Sansei, by Tamotsu Murayama, page 1. Nisei potato growers in Ontario, Oregon, face bankruptcy and unsold crops because of low prices and worry that Sansei are not interested in farming. Murayama notes Japan’s import needs contrast with American overproduction of foodstuffs.
• Mas Satow named to high post, by P.C. Staff, page 1. National JACL director Masao Satow was appointed to the California Advisory Committee to the President’s Commission on Civil Rights. Senators Knowland and Kuchel and Vice President Nixon had suggested him for the post.
• Job discrimination goes underground for Nisei, study finds, by P.C. Staff, page 3. A San Francisco Council for Civic Unity study found employers discriminate against minorities, including Orientals, in hiring for supervisory posts, though Oriental women are accepted in secretarial roles. The report blames employers’ fear and suspicion for the continuing bias.

Community

• Urae housing for Issei pensioners, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Mrs. Utano Miyoshi of San Francisco has initiated plans for a government-funded public housing home for senior Issei on social security across the Golden Gate in Marin County. Residents would manage it on a mutual help basis, and she is seeking help from the California Japanese Benevolent Society.
• Nisei mayor in city of 7,000 Brazilians, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Tadao Hatashita, a Nisei, serves as mayor of Bastos, Brazil, a city of 7,000 where about half the residents are Japanese. The Japanese community, which helped clear land for coffee plantations, is active in poultry and silk.
• Police cites youth for robbery burglar, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Donald Gima, 16, was awarded a Los Angeles Police Department citation for holding a burglar at gunpoint until police arrived. The suspect later confessed to 15 burglaries.
• San Luis Obispo pioneer reported very sick, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Mrs. Mark Sumida flew to San Luis Obispo to visit her father, pioneer Tameji Eto, who is reportedly very ill. Eto received the Fourth Order of Sacred Treasure from the Emperor last year.
• Washington Nisei passes CPA exam, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Bob Y. Yoshihara was among 39 Washington state candidates who became certified public accountants after passing the May examination. The exam was given simultaneously in 48 states.
• West L.A. auxiliary planning dance benefit, by P.C. Staff, page 2. The West Los Angeles JACL Elks Club auxiliary will sponsor a dance benefit on Oct. 4 for ‘Jobs for Junior,’ a youth employment service that has placed about 250 high school students. Mrs. Tom Watanabe is chairman.
• Fresno committeemen, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Fresno JACL named Jin Ishikawa, Mrs. Faye Kazato and Seiichi Mikami to its community council. The brief notes their appointment.
• Nisei Masons organize international group, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Four Nisei Shriners formed the International Nisei Square Club during the JACL convention in Salt Lake City. They seek contact with other Nisei Masons.
• Carolyn Takao troth revealed in Cincinnati, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Tomi Carolyn Takao, a senior at UC Berkeley, is engaged to Ensign Gene Takashi Izuno of San Francisco. Izuno is stationed at Oxnard, California.
• Los Angeles Newsletter, by Henry Mori, page 7. Mori describes a low-budget family camping trip to Yosemite National Park and reports on the 18th Nisei Week Festival, which netted $273.85. He also notes a planned 24-lane bowling alley in Corona.
• Historical account of Japanese Canadians in British Columbia set for Centennial, by P.C. Staff, page 8. Ken Adachi wrote an 18,000-word history of Japanese Canadians in British Columbia for the provincial Centennial history project. It covers settlement, wartime evacuation, and the return to the coast.
• Tokyo news editor visits boyhood chum in Idaho, by P.C. Staff, page 8. George Yojiro Somekawa, news editor of the Tokyo Asahi Evening News, visited Weiser, Idaho, and was hosted by boyhood friend Mamaro Wakasugi. The brief is a personal visit report.
• Chest surgeon to attend Tokyo parley, by P.C. Staff, page 8. Dr. Fred Y. Fujikawa, a Long Beach chest surgeon, is attending the International Congress of Diseases of the Chest in Tokyo and will present a paper on segmental resection in pulmonary tuberculosis. He will also attend a bronchoesophagology meeting in Kyoto.
• Newsman resigns to resume school studies, by P.C. Staff, page 8. Toyoji Mochizuki resigned as editor of the Chicago Shimpo to study at Columbia University, and Ryoichi Fujii returned to take over the post. The brief reports the editorial change.

JACL

• Nisei Masons organize international group, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Four Nisei Shriners met during the National JACL Convention in Salt Lake City and formed the International Nisei Square Club for mutual contact among Nisei Masons. They invite Nisei Masons to contact any of the four organizers.
• Fowler JACL scholarship awarded to track star, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Shigeru Tokubo, a 1958 Fowler High School graduate and hurdler, received the Fowler JACL scholarship. He plans to study engineering at Fresno State College.
• Impressions of the JACL convention banquet, by Bill Hosokawa, page 2. Hosokawa recounts memorable moments from the JACL convention banquet in Salt Lake City, including Dr. Yatabe’s charge to new officers and Assistant Attorney General Doub’s admission that evacuation was a mistake made in hysteria. He also notes Wakamatsu’s tribute to Jimmie Sakamoto.
• 15th Biennial convention wrap-up, by Rupert Hachiya, page 4. Convention chairman Rupert Hachiya reflects on the 15th Biennial National JACL Convention in Salt Lake City and thanks chapters, delegates, and workers. He hopes the convention strengthened members’ commitment to JACL.
• Hand diaper full of greenbacks to 1000er boss, by P.C. Staff, page 4. At a 1000 Club whing ding during the convention, Kenji Tashiro was honored with a diaper full of gift money. The 1000 Club reported over 1,300 active members and debated doubling life membership fees.
• New service pin for chapter JACLers set, by P.C. Staff, page 4. The National JACL adopted a standardized service pin recognizing long-serving chapter members, with a silver pin suggested. It will replace the previous practice of various awards for chapter service.
• Membership campaign brochures asked, big city solicitation methods explained, by P.C. Staff, page 4. Delegates emphasized the need for simple membership brochures and reviewed city solicitation methods from Chicago and San Francisco. The national membership committee hopes to produce brochures in the coming biennium.
• Accepts ICBM trophy, by P.C. Staff, page 4. San Francisco JACL president Jack Kusaba accepted the ICBM trophy for chapter membership from Chicago president Dr. Frank Sakamoto. The cup was donated by Shig Wakamatsu.
• JACLer of the Biennium, by P.C. Staff, page 5. The Dr. Randolph M. Sakada Memorial Award was split between Mrs. Tomizo (Sue) Joe of Long Beach and Kumeo Yoshinari of Chicago, and a special citation went to Harold ‘Tokuzo’ Gordon. The citations praise their service to youth, chapters, and the Midwest District Council.
• $82,000 budget OK’d for next biennium, by P.C. Staff, page 5. Delegates approved a $82,767 budget for 1959-60, slightly lower than the previous biennium. The budget committee also recommended a budgetary control board to coordinate projects.
• PR between chapter and membership needs boost, by P.C. Staff, page 6. Abe Hagiwara, public relations committee chairman, reported that JACL’s external public relations are strong but internal relations between chapters and members need work. Recommendations include renewed oratorical contest speaking tours and a possible JACL pictorial film.
• Travel pool plan in ‘status quo’, by P.C. Staff, page 6. The national council took no action on the chapter travel pool plan, leaving it in status quo. Suggestions included billing chapters or abandoning the program.

Obituaries

• Buddhist church leader succumbs, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Bishop Enryo Shigefuji, titular head of the Buddhist Churches of America, died suddenly of a cerebral hemorrhage in San Francisco on Aug. 30. He had come to the U.S. in 1934 and led the BCA from 1948.

In-Depth

• International Japanese stamp collectors confab proposed, by Tamotsu Murayama, page 2. A proposal was announced to hold an international Japanese philatelic convention in Tokyo in 1960 to coincide with the centennial of the Kanrin Maru’s 1860 visit to the U.S. The Japanese postal ministry and Japan Air Lines reportedly support the plan.

Arts & Entertainment

• Shibata of ‘Pork Chop Hill’, by Larry S. Tajiri, page 3. Gregory Peck cast Nisei actor George Shibata in ‘Pork Chop Hill’ after Captain Joe Clemmons suggested him as a West Point classmate. Shibata, a former jet pilot studying for the California bar, gave a performance Peck praised as drawing on his real background.
• Newspaperman’s sister Midori, by Larry S. Tajiri, page 3. Tajiri traces the career of Midori Shimanouchi, formerly of the Japanese American News, who rose from secretary to board member at the Mike Todd organization. She accompanied Elizabeth Taylor on European trips and a Riviera vacation.
• Habits of newspaper puzzle games winner revealed, by Tooru Kanazawa, page 3. Henry Kohara, a New York dental technician, won $5,000 in a Herald Tribune puzzle tie-breaker after nearly withdrawing. Kanazawa describes his methods, reference library, and his decision to keep entering contests.

Sports

• Nisei state baseball tournament won by Los Angeles Nisei Trading, by P.C. Staff, page 7. Los Angeles Nisei Trading defeated Li’l Tokio Giants 6-5 to win the sixth annual Nisei state baseball championship in San Jose. Herbie Isono was named the tournament’s most valuable player.
• L.A. team wins 11th softball championship, by P.C. Staff, page 7. The Los Angeles Bucaneers ended their 1958 season with nine wins and one tie, claiming their 11th NAU Major softball title in 12 years.
• Fumio Kasai of Salt Lake wins JACL golf tourney, by P.C. Staff, page 7. Fumio Kasai of Salt Lake City won the National JACL convention golf tournament with a 146 total over 36 holes. Roy Hashitani of Ontario, Oregon, finished second.

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