Final evacuation claims, human rights day and Bill Hosokawa’s honor

Vol. 47, No. 23, December 5, 1958. 8 pages. View this issue

The last awards under the Evacuation Claims Act of 1948 led the news. The Japanese Claims Section told the JACL Washington Office that its final 144 awards totaled $1,264,863.16, and that it had settled 26,552 claims in all. A Milwaukee Journal editorial reprinted on page 2 reflected on that closing chapter of wartime property losses. On the front page, an editorial marked the 10th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Nisei journalist Bill Hosokawa received the JACL Nisei of the Biennium scroll at a banquet in Denver, and his column From the Frying Pan appeared on page 3.

Elsewhere in the eight pages are a Los Angeles realty board accused of race discrimination, a UN official’s comparison of wartime treatment in Canada and the United States, and Mike Masaoka’s Washington newsletter. Chapter news came from Chicago, Fresno, Watsonville and Cleveland, and the sports page covered the Mountain Plains JACL bowling tournament won by Denver.

What’s in this issue

Incarceration & Redress

• Declaration of Human Rights, by H.H, page 1. The United Nations marks the 10th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, adopted without dissent in 1948. The editorial notes that while the declaration has influenced the world, many of its 30 articles remain goals yet to be reached in certain countries.
• Final evacuation claims award $1.2 million to 144, by JACL News Service, page 1. The Japanese Claims Section, before its liquidation, notified the JACL Washington Office of its final awards under the Evacuation Claims Act of 1948. The 144 awards total $1,264,863.16 and the section settled 26,552 claims overall.
• Washington newsletter on election committee assignments, by Mike Masaoka, page 7. Masaoka reviews how the November elections will reshape major House and Senate committee assignments for the 86th Congress. He notes which Republican members retired or were defeated and the impact on the Judiciary Committee.

JACL

• Bill Hosokawa receives JACL’s highest honor at Denver banquet, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Nisei journalist Bill Hosokawa received the JACL Nisei of the Biennium scroll at a Mountain Plains district council banquet in Denver. In his address he described the value of American foreign aid and Nisei skills in Asia.
• Official notices to JACL chapters on 1959 membership cards and listings, by Mas Satow, page 2. National Director Mas Satow sent chapters the 1959 membership cards and information on the 1000 Club listings. He asked chapters to make a final effort to reach 1958 membership goals.
• Hosokawa testimonial banquet, by Masao Satow, page 4. Masao Satow recaps the Mountain Plains district meeting and the banquet honoring Bill Hosokawa in Denver. He also reports on JACL bowling activities and on the national board’s plans.
• Washington D.C. JACLers prepare for election, Christmas party, inaugural, by P.C. Staff, page 5. The Washington D.C. JACL announced its 1959 cabinet nominees, with Hisako Sakata as the lone candidate for chapter president. The chapter also planned a Christmas party and January installation dinner.

Community

• Southwest L.A. realty board accused of race discrimination, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Mrs. Elsie Endo alleges she was dismissed from the O.R. Brown real estate office after the Southwest Realty Board told the office manager she should be let go for being of Japanese ancestry. Local groups including the JACL have expressed interest in the case.
• Nisei donates 2 acres of rutabagas to scouts, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Roy Mayeda of Brighton donated two acres of rutabagas to Boy Scout Troop 109 so the troop can earn money for a two-week West Coast tour. Scoutmaster Bob Anderson expects the project to net about $100.
• Contra Costa Nisei high in voter registry, by P.C. Staff, page 1. A Contra Costa JACL telephone committee found that 99 percent of contacted chapter members were registered voters, with East Contra Costa county reaching 100 percent. The committee was headed by Mrs. Chizu Iiyama.
• Chicago JACL warns residents of slick agent peddling cemetery lots, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The Chicago JACL warned Japanese residents about a salesman offering free cemetery lots who pressured people into signing contracts requiring monthly payments. The chapter urged people to decline signing any papers without an attorney present.
• Frank O’Dwyer sells El Centro ranch for over $1 million, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Frank O’Dwyer sold his 1,055-acre Imperial Valley ranch to Tom Bunn and Takeo Yuki for a reported price over one million dollars. Bunn and Yuki also sold their adjoining ranch to Joe S. and Sumi Akiyama.
• Marielle Tsukamoto, active Florin co-ed, named AWS president at College of Pacific, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Marielle Tsukamoto of Florin, daughter of active Florin JACLers, serves as president of the Associated Women Students at the College of the Pacific. She is a student-body vice president and an education major with a strong record of extracurricular activity.
• East L.A. Nisei named to Democratic central committee, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Arthur Takei was named to the Los Angeles County Democratic central committee from the 60th Assembly District. The appointment was announced by Congressman Dunne.
• Downtown L.A. JACL to hear smog control speaker, by P.C. Staff, page 4. John W. Mann of the Los Angeles County Air Pollution Control District will address the Downtown L.A. JACL luncheon on December 9. The meeting is open to the public.
• Yamasaki to design new college campus, by P.C. Staff, page 4. Minoru Yamasaki has been appointed consulting architect for a $10-million development program at Carleton College in Northfield, Minnesota, which includes six new buildings.
• Louie Hayashida to head Watsonville chapter, by P.C. Staff, page 4. Louie Hayashida was installed as 1959 president of the Watsonville JACL at a ceremony at the Aptos Beach Inn. Other cabinet members were also named.
• Burglars break into Cathay Post; $910 stolen, by P.C. Staff, page 4. Burglars broke into the Cathay Post of the American Legion on November 23, opening the safe and the vending machines and taking $910. Post manager Sam Momii said the post had been burglarized five times in recent months.
• Fukuba wins Aromas school board election, by P.C. Staff, page 4. Henry Fukuba was elected to a four-year term on the Monterey County committee on school district organization. He succeeds Paul Rubis, who represented supervisorial district No. 1 for the past four years.
• Cleveland JACL talent show launches scholarship fund, by P.C. Staff, page 4. The Cleveland JACL’s community talent show raised nearly $250 toward a scholarship fund for young people of Japanese descent. The chapter will continue the drive, with contributions sent to the treasurer.
• George Takaoka elected Fresno JACL president, by P.C. Staff, page 4. George Takaoka was elected president of the Fresno JACL and will be supported by a slate of officers. The chapter plans to emphasize a Jr. JACL program in the coming year.
• Denver hair stylists return from Hawaii tour, by P.C. Staff, page 4. George and Bernice Ohashi returned from a month in Hawaii after being invited by the Honolulu Hair Dressers Association. George Ohashi serves as president of the Colorado State Hair Fashion Committee.
• Nisei social workers attend Tokyo conference, by P.C. Staff, page 4. Four San Jose social workers, three of them Nisei, attended the International Conference of Social Work in Tokyo. The group was recognized by the Santa Clara Chapter of the National Association of Social Workers.
• Nisei invest in new Stockton bowling alley, by P.C. Staff, page 4. Several Nisei are among the investors and directors of the newly opened 32-lane Pacific Bowl in Stockton. A swimming pool is planned for the premises next summer.
• Spirit of Chicago JACL’s 14th inaugural dinner-dance, by P.C. Staff, page 5. Chicago JACL held its 14th annual inaugural dinner-dance at the Edgewater Beach Hotel with about 250 attending the banquet. Dr. Frank Sakamoto’s chapter honored community groups and presented awards including the Public Service Award to Chicago detective Frank Pape.
• Denver JACL Mile-Hi bowler scores first 300 at Holiday Bowl, by P.C. Staff, page 6. Yone Deguchi of Pasadena bowled a perfect 300 game at Holiday Bowl, qualifying for a national JACL gold medal. He received prizes including a new car from sponsors.
• Housewife sentenced to 9 years in jail for fraud, by P.C. Staff, page 6. Federal Judge John C. Bowen sentenced Tanya Ellis to nine years for defrauding Hawaiian residents of $227,000 with a false inheritance story. She pleaded guilty to two counts of mail fraud.

National

• UN official says treatment of Japanese in Canada during WW2 worse than U.S., by P.C. Staff, page 1. UN official Dr. H.L. Keenleyside told a Winnipeg human rights conference that discrimination persists in Canada and that treatment of Japanese Canadians during World War II was worse than that accorded Japanese Americans. He cited cases of racial exclusion involving prominent figures.
• President to be asked to call conference on problems of bombing, terrorism, by Mike Masaoka, page 8. JACL National President Shigeo Wakamatsu directed a letter to President Eisenhower urging a special White House Conference on bombings and terrorism. The letter cites WRA community-level educational work as a model for combating prejudice.

Military & Veterans

• Sheila Sakamoto may be home for Christmas, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Seven-year-old Sheila Sakamoto of Wailuku has recovered from open heart surgery at Texas Children’s Hospital in Houston and may return home for Christmas. Her trip was financed by the 442nd Veterans Club and friends.
• Hula hoops fad hits Japan, by Tamotsu Murayama, page 7. The American hula hoop craze reached Japan almost immediately, with hoops selling for 275 yen and Japanese press and television promoting the trend. Hula-hooping contests were even staged at geisha parties.

Commentary

• Sordid tale of mistreatment of our Nisei nearing an end, by Milwaukee Journal, page 2. A Milwaukee Journal editorial reprinted in the Pacific Citizen reflects on the government’s final settlement of Nisei wartime property losses, totaling nearly $37 million. It praises the restraint of West Coast Nisei and notes the contributions of Japanese Americans who resettled in inland cities.
• Ye Editor’s Desk, by Harry K. Honda, page 2. The editor describes arrangements for JACLers to buy tickets to the musical Flower Drum Song in New York ahead of the 1959 convention. He also comments on a Los Angeles Examiner column about anti-German stereotypes in film and television.
• From the Frying Pan, by Bill Hosokawa, page 3. Hosokawa offers vignettes about successful Nisei professionals, a Nisei geophysicist working in Guatemala, and a Nisei cinematographer. He also shares humorous anecdotes about his daughter Christie’s homemade fortunes.

Sports

• Kenji Yabe all-conference center, by P.C. Staff, page 6. Kenji Yabe of Colorado State College was named first-team center on the Rocky Mountain Conference all-star team. The column also notes Nisei players in the Rose Bowl and several high school all-star selections.
• Denver wins Mountain Plains JACL bowling tournament, by P.C. Staff, page 6. Denver took the team event with a 3028 series in the sixth annual Mountain Plains JACL bowling tournament held at Dahlia Lanes. Fred Kiyotake won the AA singles and Tom Shibao took the all-events.
• 28-pounder wins Cortez JACL derby, by P.C. Staff, page 6. Tsutomu Sugiura won a portable television in the Cortez JACL fish derby and also took a cash prize in the Eastbay Derby with a 28-pound bass. The chapter plans its next derby for November 1959.
• Bill Matsumoto heading ’59 NoCal golf tourney, by P.C. Staff, page 6. Bill Matsumoto will chair the 1959 Northern California Nisei Golf Association tournament, hosted by the Sacramento Kagero and Sacramento Nisei Golf clubs. Place and dates remain to be determined.

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