Evacuation claims checks and Issei citizenship, August 1953

Vol. 37, No. 7, August 14, 1953. 8 pages. View this issue

Evacuation claims payments led the news as the President signed a supplemental appropriations bill with $8,164,462.92 for awards. Mike Masaoka of the JACL Washington Office met Justice and Treasury officials to speed the checks to claimants, and a later story covered possible amendments for the roughly 4,000 larger claims. Refugee and immigration questions ran alongside: the JACL asked President Eisenhower for 3,000 non-quota visas for Japanese flood victims, and a resolution sought to stop the deportation of Peruvian Japanese. Tamotsu Murayama wrote about a citizenship denial under the new McCarran Act.

Other pages followed the Issei who were preparing for naturalization, including 175 who filled the Sacramento City Council chambers and thirty in Idaho. Nisei Week plans, the Berkeley Talent-Vision benefit and a Covina housing dispute also appear, along with sports pages, Larry Tajiri’s road trip through Wyoming and his column on all-white housing developments, and an editorial titled Place of Our Choice.

What’s in this issue

National

• Treasury Starts Mailing Checks This Week to Evacuation Claimants, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Following presidential signing of a supplemental appropriations bill with $8,164,462.92 for evacuation claims, Mike Masaoka conferred with Justice and Treasury officials to expedite checks. Checks are expected in the mails within ten days or by the end of the week unless unforeseen difficulties arise.
• Japan Flood Victims Qualify as Refugees for Non-Quota Visas, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The JACL urged President Eisenhower to immediately make 3,000 special non-quota immigrant visas available to Japanese flood victims under the Refugee Relief Act. Masaoka argued that the flood victims qualify under the act’s definition of refugee, including natural calamity.
• Clarifying Amendments to Evacuation Claims Law Being Studied; Compromise Proposed for Claims Over $2,500, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Mike Masaoka met Justice Department officials about the remaining roughly 4,000 larger evacuation claims. He discussed possible clarifying amendments, including corporate and non-profit claims and late-postmarked filings.
• New Jersey Congressman Seeks Ban on Deportation of Peru-Japanese, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Rep. T. Millet Hand introduced a joint resolution, drafted by Masaoka, to suspend deportation of stranded Peruvian Japanese and adjust their status to permanent residents without charging Japan’s quota. Masaoka called them among the most unfortunate wartime victims in the Western Hemisphere.

Community

• Two Nisei Serve on Denver City Planning Group, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Mrs. Mitsu Matsuda and Min Yasui represented the Denver JACL on the Citizens Committee on City Planning as zoning ordinances were revised for metropolitan growth. The committee includes two Nisei among its 250 members.
• Sacramento City Council Chambers Filled by Nisei and Issei Studying for Citizenship, by James Matsufuji, page 1. About 175 Japanese Americans, many aliens preparing for naturalization, attended a Sacramento City Council session arranged by the JACL chapter. Each agenda item was interpreted for the Issei, and the mayor praised their wartime loyalty.
• Stockton Family Reunited With Dad After 20 Years Under New McCarran Law, by P.C. Staff, page 1. George Nagata returned to Stockton after 20 years in Japan, becoming one of the first Japanese aliens admitted under the Walter-McCarran Act. He had been a missionary educator in Tokyo with his wife, and their sons rejoined him.
• Three Emcees Set for Nisei Week Coronation Rites at Palladium, by P.C. Staff, page 3. George Furuta, Paul Bannai, and Lane Nakano will emcee the Nisei Week Coronation Ball at the Hollywood Palladium. Kinuko Ito, Miss Japan of 1953, will be introduced as a guest.
• Photographer Richard Ito Wins Grand Prize, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Los Angeles photographer Richard Ito won the grand prize at the Western Professional Photographers convention in Long Beach with a portrait titled Wise Are the Aged. He beat 1,000 entries from 11 Western states.
• Nisei Chapters Report Local Events, by P.C. Staff, page 4. Several JACL chapters reported on summer outings, farewell dinners, and fundraisers including Chicago’s Operation X and Eden Township’s beach party. Brief notes covered members’ moves and social events across the region.
• Berkeley JACL Prepares for Talent-Vision, by P.C. Staff, page 4. The Berkeley JACL will hold Talent-Vision, a benefit entertainment program featuring Nisei artists, on September 26 at Berkeley High School Little Theater. The event is billed as the gayest entertainment festivity of the Bay Area.
• Thirty Southwestern Idaho Issei to Be Naturalized, by P.C. Staff, page 4. Thirty Issei from Southwestern Idaho are expected to receive citizenship at Boise district court on August 25. It will be the largest Issei group processed by the local Immigration and Naturalization Service office.
• Portland Nisei Honored on New Red Cross Assignment in Tokyo, by P.C. Staff, page 4. Mary Minamoto was honored at a Portland JACL farewell dinner before her two-year assignment at Far East Red Cross headquarters in Tokyo. She is the first Nisei Red Cross employee sent overseas.
• Central California District Council Parley Nov. 15, by P.C. Staff, page 4. Fresno attorney Jin Ishikawa is general chairman of the Central California District Council convention on November 15 at the Hotel Californian. Chapters were assigned responsibility for different convention arrangements.
• East Los Angeles Couple Fights Anti-Japanese Housing Sentiments, by P.C. Staff, page 5. Henry and Marvel Miyata were rejected as tenants at Cypress Plaza in Covina because of their ancestry until JACL legal counsel Frank Chuman intervened. After renewed application and conferences, the loan association approved them.
• Northern California-Western Nevada District Council Homecoming Banquet, by Haruo Ishimaru, page 5. The San Francisco JACL hosted the National JACL homecoming banquet and District Council quarterly meeting, welcoming National Headquarters back to San Francisco. Speakers included National Director Masao Satow and Mike Masaoka, and about 40 newly naturalized Issei were recognized.
• Remarriage Problem Due to Picture Bride Marriages in Hawaii, by P.C. Staff, page 6. Some Issei married by proxy under Japanese custom in Hawaii may need to remarry to qualify for Social Security and naturalization. Officials say the legal status depends on whether the marriage was valid under Japanese law and any divorces were legal.
• Toronto Nisei Honored, by P.C. Staff, page 6. Brief community notes covered several Nisei events and honors. Content is limited to short announcements.

Military & Veterans

• Operation Big Switch Gladdens Hearts in Hawaii, by Lawrence Nakatsuka, page 1. Five Hawaii-connected servicemen, including three Nisei, were released from Communist prisoner of war camps in Korea during Operation Big Switch. Families in Honolulu and Ketchikan expressed joy at their homecomings while noting others remain held.
• Five Teams Sign for California Diamond Honors, by P.C. Staff, page 6. Five Nisei softball teams, including Los Angeles Nisei Trading and Sacramento Valley Nisei All-Stars, entered a Labor Day Nisei baseball tournament in Lodi. Two top-class teams declined the invitation.

Incarceration & Redress

• Colorado Nisei Cited for Bravery in Korea, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Cpl. Charles Mitamura of Ft. Lupton, Colorado, received the Bronze Star for rescuing a wounded soldier under fire near Schui Ryong, Korea. He was praised for his calm demeanor and courage.

Commentary

• Communist Party Gains Ground in Japan Through Schools, by Tamotsu Murayama, page 3. The Japanese Public Security Investigation Agency reported rapid Communist Party growth, with about 100,000 members and cells in schools. Murayama attributes the expansion to teachers who infiltrate PTAs and civic groups and to early Occupation-era coddling of the party.
• Citizenship Tragedy, by Tamotsu Murayama, page 3. Howard Brazee, a former San Francisco newspaperman who worked for the U.S. Occupation, was denied citizenship under the new McCarran Act because his six-year residence in Japan interrupted his U.S. residency. Murayama notes the irony that his work could have made him an early naturalized Japanese American.
• Editorial: Place of Our Choice, by P.C. Staff, page 8. The editorial argues that minority housing gains came through the sacrifices of unsung heroes who resisted pressure and threats in all-white neighborhoods. It credits those who held firm with widening housing choices for Japanese Americans.
• Nisei Week, by Harry K. Honda, page 8. Honda previews the thirteenth Nisei Week Festival and its coronation ball at the Palladium, noting the queen contest and parade were scaled back. He also comments on Miss Japan Kinuko Ito’s poise compared with Nisei women.
• The Great American Tourist, by Larry Tajiri, page 8. Tajiri describes a family road trip through Wyoming and Yellowstone, visiting Doc and Masako Ota and the Takaichis in Cody. He also profiles Hideo Kano, a longtime Cody resident and last evacuee there.
• All-White Housing Pattern, by Larry Tajiri, page 8. Tajiri examines Lakewood, California, and other planned developments that exclude non-white buyers despite legal changes. He warns that such all-white housing patterns threaten the future of Japanese Americans in Southern California.

Sports

• Kono Heads for Stockholm Meet, by P.C. Staff, page 6. Tommy Kono, Olympic gold medalist, will compete in the world weightlifting championships in Stockholm after gaining weight to lift in the light-heavyweight class. The trip is financed by Bob Hoffman.
• Toronto Netters Win 13-6 Over New York Nisei Tennis Club, by P.C. Staff, page 6. The Toronto team beat the host New York Nisei Tennis Club 13-6 in matches at the Fleet Tennis and Swim Club. John Tanaka won the feature singles against Ken Shimizu.
• Both Young and Old Win in Detroit Fish Derby, by P.C. Staff, page 6. Children and adults competed in the second annual Detroit JACL fishing derby at Walt’s Livery on Pontiac Lake. The top catch was a 10 lb. 14 oz. German Brown trout caught by Henry Hara in the North Platte river.
• L.A. Softball Teams Ousted in First Round, by P.C. Staff, page 6. Two Nisei softball teams, LABCC and La Glen Nursery, were eliminated in the first round of the Minor Division City softball championships. Each lost narrow games to opposing teams.
• Record Turnout of 160 in Nisei Week Golf, by P.C. Staff, page 6. A record 160 Nisei golfers, including out-of-town entrants, registered for the Nisei Week golf tournament on August 23 at Baldwin-Fox Hills courses. Registration closed early due to full fields.

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