Stranded Nisei, Korea casualties and a hero’s medal, 1952

Vol. 34, No. 1, January 5, 1952. 8 pages. View this issue

The Supreme Court’s ruling on two Nisei stranded in Japan during World War II led this eight-page issue. The court set aside a Hawaii ruling that had restored citizenship to Kiyokuro Okimura and Hisao Murata and sent the cases back for further findings. The JACL ADC and attorney A. L. Wirin explained what it meant for other strandees, and an editorial on page 4 took up their plight. The front page also reported that Rokusuke Otomo of Los Angeles accepted the Distinguished Service Cross for his son, Lieut. Bill Masayoshi Otomo, killed in Korea, along with casualty lists and news of Nisei prisoners of war.

Elsewhere, Larry Tajiri wrote about Kabuki coming to New York, and Bill Hosokawa proposed a national midwinter holiday. JACL chapters elected officers, and the JACL ADC joined a brief against restaurant segregation. Issei were reminded to register their addresses, Two renunciants from Tule Lake returned from Japan, and sports pages followed Ford Konno and a 701 bowling series.

What’s in this issue

Military & Veterans

• Father Receives Medal for Hero Son, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Rokusuke Otomo of Los Angeles accepted the posthumous Distinguished Service Cross and Bronze Star for his son, Lieut. Bill Masayoshi Otomo, killed in Korea. The citation praised Otomo’s courage and leadership in preventing an enemy breakthrough.
• Nisei Casualties Reported: 10 Nisei Soldiers Killed, Wounded in Korea, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The Department of Defense reported ten Nisei casualties in Korea for the last two weeks of 1951, including killed, died of wounds, and wounded soldiers. The list was provided to the Washington JACL Anti-Discrimination Committee.
• New Mexico Wife Learns Husband Is War Prisoner, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Mrs. Tsuruko Terry Miyamura learned her husband, Cpl. Hiroshi Miyamura, was on a prisoner of war list released by the Chinese Communists. He had previously been reported missing in action.
• Nisei Veterans Return from Korea, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Three Nisei Korean war veterans from Northern California arrived in Seattle aboard the transport Gen. Simon B. Buckner. They were among servicemen returning from the Korean theater.
• Three Northern California Nisei GIs Killed in Korea, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Pfc. Togo Okamura, Pfc. Calvin T. Shimata of San Francisco and Cpl. Jackson Tsuboi of Oakland were killed in action in Korea. Details are given on each soldier’s background and service.
• Former Seattle Kendo Group Gives Hall to Nisei Veterans, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The Hokubei Butokukai transferred its Seattle kendo hall to the Nisei Veterans Committee at a dinner ceremony. The building will be remodeled and dedicated as a memorial to 55 Seattle Nisei soldiers killed in World War II.
• Eighteen Hawaii Nisei GIs Named on War Prisoner List, by P.C. Staff, page 7. The Hawaii Times reported that 18 of 26 American soldiers of Japanese ancestry listed as prisoners of war by Chinese Communists in Korea were Hawaii residents. Names and families were given for each.
• Tsukimura Receives All-League Honor, by P.C. Staff, page 7. Hiro Tsukimura of Fowler High was unanimously selected as a guard on the Northern Shasta division all-star football team. His defensive play was a major reason for Fowler’s successful season.
• Hawaii Veterans Dedicate Cemetery, by P.C. Staff, page 8. The 442nd Veterans Club of Hilo completed the Hawaii County Veterans cemetery after 8,370 man-hours of work. Governor Long dedicated the cemetery on Dec. 23.

National

• Supreme Court Sets Aside Ruling Restoring Citizenship to Two Wartime Strandees, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The Supreme Court vacated a Hawaii district court ruling restoring citizenship to Kiyokuro Okimura and Hisao Murata, who served in the Japanese army. The case was remanded for specific findings on whether their service was under duress.
• Nisei Student Killed in Crash of Air Liner, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Frank Noro, a Nisei Harvard graduate student en route home to St. Petersburg, Florida, was among 56 killed when a nonscheduled transport crashed after takeoff from Newark. A cousin attended the funeral services.
• Strandees Must Take Individual Action, Is View, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Attorney A. L. Wirin said each Nisei strandee seeking to regain citizenship must pursue an individual court case following the Supreme Court ruling. The high court’s decision did not provide a sweeping resolution for all strandees.

Community

• 800 Babies Born in Los Angeles to Japanese Ancestry Parents During 1951, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The Rafu Shimpo estimated that 800 babies were born in Los Angeles to parents of Japanese or part-Japanese ancestry in 1951. That figure represents about two percent of total births in the city.
• William Mine Named New President by Watsonville JACL, by P.C. Staff, page 1. William Mine was elected president of the Watsonville JACL for 1952. Other officers were named to complete the chapter cabinet.
• Oldest Issei Dies in Los Angeles at Age of 99, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Yahichi Yahiro of Hawthorne, believed to be the oldest Issei in the United States, died on Christmas Eve at age 99. He had arrived in Hawaii in 1886 and moved to Southern California in 1906.
• Legal Showdown Nears Over Government Subversives List, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Two groups challenged the Attorney General’s subversive organization list in court, a case with implications for persons of Japanese ancestry. The JACL ADC said it would follow the litigation closely.
• Los Angeles JACL to Help Issei Report Addresses, by P.C. Staff, page 3. The JACL regional office and local chapters offered free registration help for Issei required to report addresses under the McCarran Act. Service dates and locations were announced.
• Wyoming Bussei to Attend Meet, by P.C. Staff, page 7. Nisei from the Worland-Lovell-Powell area planned to attend the Young Bussei League conference in Denver. The report came from the Northern Wyoming JACL.
• Military Clearance No Longer Needed by Japan-Bound Issei, by P.C. Staff, page 7. The State Department informed JACL ADC that resident Japanese nationals no longer need military clearances to visit Japan temporarily. Issei must still obtain income tax clearances and re-entry permits.
• Nisei Will Teach Ohio State Courses, by P.C. Staff, page 7. Dr. Frank Inouye, a Ph.D. in history from USC and Ford Foundation grant recipient, accepted a temporary appointment at Ohio State University to teach western civilization courses.
• Pocatello Chapter Dinner Dance to Install Officers, by P.C. Staff, page 8. The Pocatello JACL held its annual dinner dance and installed George Sato as president. Speakers praised the Nisei contribution to the American way of life.
• JACL Official Warns Nisei on Effect of Proposal to Outlaw Civil Rights Laws, by P.C. Staff, page 8. Haruo Ishimaru warned that the proposed California Freedom of Choice initiative would legalize racial discrimination and restrictive covenants. He said Mike Masaoka urged chapters to oppose it.
• Family to Get Back Payment, by P.C. Staff, page 8. The Sato family won a $5,500 judgment in Los Angeles Superior Court after a realty salesman misappropriated their house down payment. Attorney Frank Chuman represented the plaintiffs.
• Conference Planners to Hold Meeting, by P.C. Staff, page 8. Central California YPCC conference planners were to meet Jan. 6 at the Fresno Japanese Methodist Church to plan the March conference. Committee chairmen and advisers were also announced.
• Sen. Douglas Promises Aid for Issei Citizenship Bill, by P.C. Staff, page 8. Senator Paul Douglas pledged to support equal naturalization and immigration rights for Japanese and other Asians in a meeting with a JACL delegation. The delegation was led by National JACL President Dr. Randolph Sakada.
• Ogden Chapter Aids Alien Registration, by P.C. Staff, page 8. The Ogden JACL and Commercial Club assisted Issei with annual alien registration at the Ogden post office on specified January dates. Service hours were announced.

Incarceration & Redress

• Duress Cannot Be Assumed in Japanese Army Service of Strandees, Says Court, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The JACL ADC Washington office said the Supreme Court declined to assume duress in cases of Nisei who served in the Japanese army. Legislative director Mike Masaoka noted the court ordered further factual findings in the Okimura and Murata cases.
• File Petition for High Court Hearing in Citizenship Case, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Mariko Kuniyuki of Seattle petitioned the Supreme Court to review a Ninth Circuit ruling that she lost citizenship by voting in postwar Japanese elections. It is the only case in the country to hold loss of citizenship under those circumstances.
• Tokyo Rose Plea to Be Taken to Highest Court, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Counsel for Iva Toguri d’Aquino announced an appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court after the Ninth Circuit rejected her petition for rehearing on her treason conviction.
• Two Renunciants Return to U.S. From Japan, by P.C. Staff, page 8. Yoshio Kawato and George Akira Tanaka, who renounced citizenship at Tule Lake as minors, returned to the United States after a Circuit Court ruling. They received U.S. passports after applying at consular offices in Japan.

JACL

• Board of Officers Replaces Cabinet of Ogden JACL, by P.C. Staff, page 3. The Ogden JACL will replace its cabinet with a board of officers for 1952, with members elected from a nominee list. The nomination committee announced candidates for each category.
• JACL Joins 21 Groups in Suit Over Restaurant Segregation, by P.C. Staff, page 3. The JACL ADC joined 21 organizations in a friend-of-the-court brief supporting a congressional act barring restaurant discrimination in Washington, D.C. Mike Masaoka said fighting for others’ rights is fighting for one’s own.
• N.Y. Chapter Studies Bias, by P.C. Staff, page 3. The New York City JACL chapter formed a committee to examine reports of racial discrimination by insurance companies. Members were invited to report their experiences.
• Moto Asakawa Heads San Diego Chapter, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Moto Asakawa was elected president of the San Diego JACL, and other officers were named. The chapter’s first activity of the year was a New Year’s dance.

Commentary

• Plight of the Strandees, by P.C. Staff, page 4. The editorial notes that some 5,000 Nisei remain stranded in Japan and must file individual petitions to regain citizenship. It urges a judicial method to expedite these cases and comments on the Supreme Court dissents.
• Kabuki and Main Street, by Larry Tajiri, page 4. Tajiri discusses plans by Joshua Logan to bring Tokyo’s Kabuki Theater to New York for a goodwill tour. He traces earlier American interest in Japanese drama from Kawakami to the Little Tokyo Players.
• A Reminder on the Issei, by P.C. Staff, page 4. The editorial reminds readers that Issei must register addresses annually under the law, a reminder of their statelessness. It argues citizenship for this group is long overdue.
• End Result of Racism, by P.C. Staff, page 4. The editorial describes a series of bombings and murders against Negro, Jewish and Catholic groups in Florida. It compares the situation to the attacks on Japanese Americans in California in the mid-1940s.
• Opponents of Cultural Diversity Present a Distorted Picture, by Elmer Smith, page 5. Smith argues that claims linking cultural diversity to maladjustment and crime misrepresent the evidence. He contends discrimination and slum conditions, not cultural difference, drive higher minority crime rates.
• A National Midwinter Holiday, by Bill Hosokawa, page 5. Hosokawa criticizes the commercialization of the year-end gift-giving season and proposes a national midwinter holiday. He reflects on his young son’s enjoyment of Christmas toys.

Arts & Entertainment

• Vagaries, by P.C. Staff, page 5. A column of Hollywood and Broadway notes covers a possible revival of Messer Marco Polo with Shirley Yamaguchi, the MGM film Go for Broke! making critics’ top-ten lists, and Nisei art director Eddie Imazu’s work.

Sports

• Ford Konno Honored Among 1951 Headliners, by P.C. Staff, page 6. Ford Konno was honored as the outstanding male swimmer of 1951 by the Los Angeles Times. Other Nisei athletes in sports news included basketball, football and bowling competitors.
• Steve Yano Hits 701 Series in Cleveland Play, by P.C. Staff, page 7. Steve Yano bowled a 701 series, the first 700 series in the history of the Cleveland Nisei bowling league. Standings and top averages in the league were also reported.
• Nishita May Sign Pro Ball, by P.C. Staff, page 7. Bill Nishita, star pitcher for the University of California, is expected to sign a professional contract with the New York Yankees or another major league club after the season. Nishita had made the all-CIBA team.

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