Evacuation claims, a 442nd reunion and immigration bills in Congress

Vol. 37, No. 5, July 31, 1953. 8 pages. View this issue

Congress was heading toward adjournment, and the news from Washington was about money and immigration. The Senate Appropriations Committee reported out a bill that includes evacuation claims awards, and Mike Masaoka’s newsletter and Senate testimony followed JACL’s work on last-minute bills. An editorial put the awards for fiscal years 1952 and 1953 at $8,072,696. Another story covered about $91,766 in larger awards for twelve claimants. Immigration measures included a bill that moved into conference over 200,000 distressed aliens and a resolution to admit 500 adopted orphans.

Veterans of the 442nd Regimental Combat Team chose Seattle for their 1958 reunion. Elsewhere, Pvt. Roy Miyasaki received the Distinguished Service Cross after his death in Korea. Larry Tajiri wrote about the Korean truce and about friends of the Nisei, and Tamotsu Murayama looked at debate in Tokyo over U.S. aid. A Decade Ago revisits 1943.

What’s in this issue

Military & Veterans

• Seattle Next Site of 442nd RCT 15th Anniversary Reunion in ’58, by Lawrence Nakatsuka, page 1. The 442nd veterans selected Seattle as the site of their next reunion in 1958 after the 10th anniversary reunion in Hawaii. Delegates praised the enduring friendship forged during wartime service.
• Posthumously to Receive Distinguished Service Cross, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Pvt. Roy Miyasaki of Sugar City, Idaho, was posthumously awarded the Distinguished Service Cross for heroism in Korea. The medal was presented to his brother at the Naval Ordnance Plant in Pocatello.
• Unofficial 442nd Historian, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Margaret Makino spent ten years compiling twelve scrapbooks chronicling the 442nd Regimental Combat Team. Her project was completed with the team’s 10th anniversary reunion.

National

• House DP Immigration Bill Heads to Conference, by P.C. Staff, page 1. A bill to admit over 200,000 distressed aliens moved into Senate-House conference after both chambers passed versions. The House version included 2,000 Japanese nationals, which the Senate omitted.
• Equal Consideration for Japanese in Trading With Enemy Act Amendments, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Mike Masaoka urged a Senate subcommittee to treat Japanese and German former enemy nationals equally in Trading with the Enemy Act amendments. Sen. Dirksen pledged to include the Japanese in the amended bills.
• Strandee First Suit Under New Naturalization Law, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Aiko Matsuo filed the first suit under the Walter-McCarran Act to reestablish citizenship after losing it while living in Japan. She argues her teaching posts did not require citizenship and that she acted under duress.
• Evacuation Claims Over $2,500 Considered by Congress, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Congress is considering evacuation claim awards exceeding the $2,500 departmental limit, totaling about $91,766 for twelve claimants. JACL said the awards may set a precedent for other large evacuation claims.

Incarceration & Redress

• Congress Approves Adoption of 500 Orphans, by P.C. Staff, page 1. A joint resolution admitting 500 adopted orphans under 10 years old was sent to the White House for signature. JACL’s Mike Masaoka said it eliminates the need for several hundred private bills.

Commentary

• Washington Newsletter: Congress Adjourns, by Mike Masaoka, page 2. Masaoka reports that Congress is working to finish its business and adjourn by July 31 after the Korean armistice. He notes JACL must monitor last-minute bills that could harm persons of Japanese ancestry.
• Japan MSA Discussions, by Tamotsu Murayama, page 3. Murayama examines the controversy in Tokyo over U.S. Mutual Security Aid and the government’s failure to explain it to the public. He argues the lack of clarity is fueling public mistrust of the Yoshida government.
• Very Truly Yours: Tis a Privilege, by Harry K. Honda, page 5. Honda reflects on the spread of television to mountain communities in Colorado and Southern California’s abundance of channels. He also comments on the heavy volume of TV commercials.
• Ex-War Correspondent Says: Vagaries, by Larry Tajiri, page 5. A former war correspondent reflects on the Korean truce, arguing the years of fighting were wasted if the country treats the armistice as a final solution. He warns that the truce is a temporary respite and the nation must remain prepared.
• Friends We’ve Never Met, by Larry Tajiri, page 7. Tajiri recalls correspondents and allies who defended Nisei citizen rights during his decade editing the Pacific Citizen. He highlights editor Frank Orr of the Watsonville Register-Pajaronian and veteran Bill Kent.
• Editorials: Alien Enlists, by P.C. Staff, page 8. A new June 30 law allows aliens who serve honorably in U.S. armed forces for 90 days to be naturalized. The editorial explains the law’s two categories of eligible aliens, including visiting students who enlist.
• Editorials: Claims Payment, by P.C. Staff, page 8. Reports indicate Congress will approve the $8,072,696 in evacuation claims awards for fiscal years 1952 and 1953. The editorial urges claimants with larger losses to retain legal counsel to present their cases.
• A Decade Ago, by P.C. Staff, page 8. A retrospective of 1943 items includes protests over the film Air Force and Gen. David Barrows favoring Nisei in the Army. It also notes the Native Sons of the Golden West amended their position on Nisei citizenship.

Community

• Arrest Nisei in Phony $14,000 Gold Bar Deal, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Police arrested Elia Kim, alias James Tanaka, in connection with a 1951 bunco scheme that cost an El Cerrito florist $14,000 in phony gold bars. Three other men and a woman are still sought.

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