Korea casualties, a school segregation brief and the immigration act banquet

Vol. 35, No. 22, November 28, 1952. 8 pages. View this issue

News from the Korean War and from the courts filled the front page of this eight-page issue. Reports told of 44 soldiers killed when a transport plane crashed east of Seoul, and of Akira Nakata of Honolulu receiving the Distinguished Service Cross. The JACL filed an amicus curiae brief in the U.S. Supreme Court against the separate-but-equal doctrine in the Kansas school segregation case, and National President George Inagaki said the JACL will keep working with civil rights groups. Dr. Roy Nishikawa made a last call for tickets to the Dec. 6 banquet honoring the Walter-McCarran Immigration Act and its sponsors.

Inside are columns by Larry Tajiri on chapter newspapers and by Bill Hosokawa, who looked back on life in fairground stables after the forced removal. A Stockton Record story described elderly Japanese men living in a county camp, and other pages covered Americanization classes for Issei in San Jose, a Christmas Cheer drive and a church merger in New York.

What’s in this issue

Military & Veterans

• Soldier Killed in Korea Crash of ‘Flying Boxcar’, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Honolulu’s Tsuru-Nakamura and others were among 44 soldiers killed Nov. 15 when a C-46 transport slammed into a mountain east of Seoul. The article also notes Christmas gifts lost in a cargo ship crash off Korea.
• Akira Nakata Receives Distinguished Service Cross, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Honolulu soldier Akira Nakata received the Distinguished Service Cross, the nation’s second-highest military honor, for extraordinary heroism in Korea. Silver Star medals were also presented to others at the same ceremony.
• Honolulu College Grads Finish Ft. Benning School, by P.C. Staff, page 3. University of Hawaii graduates completed Associate Infantry Company Officer courses at Fort Benning and were commissioned second lieutenants. Eight AJA officers from Honolulu are named.

Community

• National Testimonial Banquet Ticket Supply Diminishing, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Dr. Roy Nishikawa issued a last call for Los Angeles residents to purchase tickets for the Dec. 6 National Testimonial Banquet at the Biltmore Hotel. The banquet honors the passage of the Walter-McCarran Immigration Act and its sponsors.
• Nisei Collegians Debate Need for Japanese Language School, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Nisei students at McGill University debated whether to establish a Japanese language school in Montreal, and the judges favored the proposal. Proponents argued it would preserve heritage and enrich Western culture.
• San Jose Issei Attend Americanization Classes, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Issei in San Jose are taking Americanization classes offered in cooperation with the San Jose Adult Education Center. The United Citizens League arranged the classes under attorney Wayne Kanemoto.
• How Does Larimer St. Look Today?, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Denver’s Larimer Street, once a center of Issei-Nisei business, has become somewhat deserted as established businesses close. Some storefronts have changed hands to non-Japanese owners.
• Christmas Cheer Drive to Distribute Gifts Underway, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Younger Nisei of the Club Service Bureau are running the annual Christmas Cheer project, distributing about $1,500 in merchandise to hospitalized and needy Japanese patients. More than 100 clubs contributed.
• Teenagers Donate $175 to Shonien, by P.C. Staff, page 3. The Constituents, a teenage civic group, donated $175 from a community dance to the Shonien Building Fund Drive. The donation was praised as evidence of youth civic responsibility.
• New Yorkers Merge Church Communities, by P.C. Staff, page 3. The Japanese Methodist and Church of Christ (Reformed) congregations in New York merged to form the United Church of Christ (Japanese American). They negotiated purchase of the Fourth Presbyterian Church building.

National

• JACL Joins School Segregation Fight, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The JACL filed an amicus curiae brief in the U.S. Supreme Court urging disavowal of the separate-but-equal doctrine in the Kansas school segregation case. National President George Inagaki said the JACL will keep working with civil rights groups.
• U.S. Employees in Japan Can Gain Civil Service Status, by P.C. Staff, page 2. The Defense Department and Civil Service Commission will test a plan in Japan to bring overseas federal employees under Civil Service. Employees who pass exams would gain seniority stateside.
• MacArthur Private Papers Transferred to Army, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Thirty-two packing cases of documents Gen. Douglas MacArthur brought from Japan have been transferred to Army custody in New York. The transfer followed reports that MacArthur was keeping the papers for a personal history.

Commentary

• Communist Trial Recalls Publication of ‘Doho’, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Government witness Paul Crouch testified at the Smith Act trial about Communist Party activity among Japanese Americans, including the Doho newspaper and a meeting of the Nisei Democratic Club. Crouch said the party went underground after Pearl Harbor.
• Influence of American College Grads in Japan Ushers Free Nation Ideals, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Thomas M. Kaneko, a University of Utah graduate, describes growing Japanese cooperation with free nations, partly due to American-educated Japanese. Kaneko recounts his wartime service in the Japanese army and imprisonment by Russians.
• Chapter Newspaper, by Larry Tajiri, page 8. Larry Tajiri argues that JACL chapter newspapers deserve more recognition, since they maintain member contact and often serve as community newsorgans. He suggests display and competition awards at district and national conventions.
• Nisei: Pronounced Koshi, by Bill Hosokawa, page 8. Bill Hosokawa reflects on Nisei economic advancement after evacuation and notes that hard-won opportunities came at great cost. He recalls wartime hardships including life in fairground stables and early deaths.
• Editorial: L.A. Exhibits Racial Harmony, by P.C. Staff, page 8. An editorial praises Los Angeles County as a true melting pot of races and nations. It argues that a new American identity is being evolved as diverse cultures adjust and merge.

In-Depth

• Stockton’s Aged Japanese Repatriates Live Out Their Years, by Stockton Record, page 2. About 40 elderly Japanese men, indigent and homeless, live in a county camp near Stockton after returning from wartime relocation centers. The county maintains their separate quarters until their numbers dwindle.

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