Vol. 41, No. 13, September 23, 1955. 8 pages. View this issue
Evacuation claims were the main business of this eight-page issue. The House Judiciary Subcommittee on Claims was about to hold special hearings in San Francisco and Los Angeles, and the front page profiled its members, including Chairman Thomas J. Lane and Congressmen Willis, Miller and Burdick. An editorial welcomed them and urged Issei and Nisei to attend. Mike M. Masaoka pressed for early enactment of the Lane-Hillings claims bill, answering Justice Department objections and noting that claimants were aging and evidence was disappearing.
Elsewhere, Sinataro Takaki, an 88-year-old Issei, helped six countrymen become citizens at a naturalization in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho. Harry Honda wrote about Los Angeles smog, and Larry Tajiri looked at why Scene magazine folded. Other items cover the Fresno City Commission tabling a fair employment practices bill and a $10,000 gift from Hiroshi Sakuma to the Southern California Japanese Christian Church Federation.
What’s in this issue
Community
- Welcome to California, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The House Judiciary Subcommittee on Claims will hold evacuation claims hearings in San Francisco and Los Angeles next week. The editorial welcomes the congressmen and staff and urges Issei and Nisei to attend.
- Fresno FEPC tabled, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The Fresno City Commission voted 4-3 to table a proposed fair employment practices bill. The measure had been introduced by Ted C. Wills and others.
- Hiroshi Sakuma donates $10,000 to Church Federation, by P.C. Staff, page 7. Hiroshi Sakuma gave $10,000 to the Southern California Japanese Christian Church Federation after attending its summer session. The gift will fund the Federation’s social welfare work through annual dividends.
Commentary
- Gasoline-Vapors Plus Ozone, by Harry Honda, page 1. The writer describes Los Angeles smog as a mixture of gasoline vapor and ozone that has worsened recently. Experts link the problem to air pollution common in major cities worldwide.
- Scene magazine’s demise and the limits of Nisei publishing, by Larry Tajiri, page 8. Tajiri reflects on the failure of Scene magazine, which folded after years of financial strain and unclear editorial direction. He argues that the small Japanese American population could not support a publication of that kind.
National
- Early enactment of Lane-Hillings claims bill in next session urged, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Mike Masaoka urged the House Judiciary Subcommittee to enact the Lane-Hillings evacuation claims bill early in the next session of Congress. His statement cited the subcommittee’s prior recommendations on evacuation claims.
- Four congressmen and staff to arrive for West Coast special claims hearings, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The House Judiciary Subcommittee on Claims arrives in San Francisco for evacuation claims hearings during the final week of September. The article profiles the committee members, including Chairman Thomas J. Lane and Congressmen Willis, Miller, and Burdick.
- Issei alien aids others become naturalized, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Sinataro Takaki, an 88-year-old Issei, helped six countrymen become American citizens by explaining the oath and interpreting at their naturalization in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho. Takaki himself has never become a citizen.
- Masaoka pleads for early enactment of claims bill, by Mike M. Masaoka, page 5. Masaoka’s testimony addresses Justice Department objections to the Lane-Hillings bill, including compromise settlements, fair rental value, and management expenses. He urges prompt enactment because claimants are aging and evidence is disappearing.
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