Nisei win seats in Hawaii’s 1950 elections

Vol. 31, No. 19, November 11, 1950. 8 pages. View this issue

Hawaii’s territorial elections led this eight-page issue. Lawrence Nakatsuka reported that 21 of 30 Nisei candidates won, and that three Nisei will serve together in the territorial senate for the first time. Also on the front page, JACL chapters were urged to plan membership drives, and a new naturalization bill was expected to remove race as a bar to citizenship. Elmer R. Smith wrote on JACL’s wartime work during resettlement, and I. H. Gordon looked at how the McCarran Act affects naturalization applicants.

Elsewhere, veterans of the 442nd described filming MGM’s Go For Broke, and the people of Bruyeres again paid tribute at the JACL memorial to the 442nd’s dead. Bill Hosokawa’s column examined Nisei in Japan seeking to restore their American citizenship. The sports page followed Nisei football players, and the last pages carry chapter news from Gardena, Denver, Snake River and Spokane.

What’s in this issue

Community

• Nisei Win Two Senate Seats, Nine House Seats and Ten Board Seats in Hawaii Elections, by By LAWRENCE NAKATSUKA, page 1. Twenty-one of 30 Nisei candidates won in Hawaii’s territorial elections, including two state senate seats and nine House seats. Tom Okino, Tsukiyama, and Ansai will serve together in the upper chamber for the first time.
• Yasui, Ando Named for Governing Board of Denver Council, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Min Yasui and Toshio Ando were nominated for the executive board of the Denver Unity Council. Yasui has been acting president since Dr. Eugene Link resigned.
• Udo Will Face Murder Charge at Dinuba Trial, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Haruo Udo, 30, will go on trial December 11 for the knife murder of Henry Stanley in a farm workers’ camp. Udo has pleaded not guilty.
• Music Club Gives Successful Third Annual Concert, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Three Nisei artists performed at the Chicago Japanese American Music Club’s third annual concert. Proceeds fund scholarships for music students.
• Saburo Kido to Speak to Placer JACL, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Saburo Kido will be the main speaker at the Placer County JACL’s first postwar annual dinner. The chapter’s dinner will help public relations and recognize community supporters.
• Maryknoll Sisters Teach Race Tolerance at Seattle School, by P.C. Staff, page 3. The Maryknoll school in Seattle reopened its kindergarten to teach racial tolerance among children of many races. The school had closed during the wartime evacuation of Japanese Americans.
• Menlo Park Girl Wins Scholarship in Physical Therapy, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Marion H. Kaneko of Menlo Park received a National Foundation for Infantile Paralysis scholarship in physical therapy. She is studying at the Mayo Clinic.
• Two Teams Hit 3000 Series in Chicago League, by P.C. Staff, page 7. Two Chicago Nisei men’s bowling teams achieved 3000 series, including handicap, in the league on November 8. Nisei Liquor and Seto’s Bar-B-Q both posted big series.
• Name Nisei as Recreation Official in Montana City, by P.C. Staff, page 7. Marjorie Matsushita was named assistant director of recreation in Great Falls, Montana. She will run adult programs and girls groups, having previously served as a playground supervisor in Yakima.
• Dr. Sakada on TV, by P.C. Staff, page 7. National JACL President Dr. Randolph Sakada appeared on WBKB’s Ulmer Turner newscast to discuss the status of Japanese Americans and the Chicago national convention.
• Gardena Valley Community Will Use Ex-Gakuen Building, by P.C. Staff, page 8. A new non-profit corporation acquired the former Moneta Gakuen building in Gardena for community activities. JACL members and Issei will serve on the eleven-member board of directors.
• Denver’s Redevelopment Will Affect Japanese Americans, by P.C. Staff, page 8. Denver’s urban redevelopment survey will examine housing across the city, affecting 319 Japanese American families. Nearly 60 percent of Japanese Americans in the city live in substandard housing.
• Snake River JACL To Hold Desert Thanksgiving Day Dance, by P.C. Staff, page 8. The Snake River JACL will hold a Thanksgiving dance in a ballroom with a George Shurtleff orchestra. Organizers promise an evening of dancing for the community.
• Spokane Chapter Will Hold Meeting, by P.C. Staff, page 8. The Spokane JACL chapter planned a social meeting and began its 1951 membership campaign, becoming among the first chapters to sign up members. Toshio Shiosaki was named general chairman.

JACL

• Urge Local JACL Chapters to Plan Membership Drives, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Masao Satow urged chapters to prepare membership drives to begin by November, with campaigns already underway in several cities. He suggested point-based membership contests and pushing PC subscriptions.

National

• New Naturalization Bill Expected to Eliminate Racial Bar, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The JACL Anti-Discrimination Committee will have Rep. Francis Walter introduce a bill removing race as a bar to naturalization. Such a bill would affect 85,000 to 90,000 aliens, mostly Japanese.
• ADC Urges Favorable Senate Action on Statehood Bills, by P.C. Staff, page 3. The JACL Anti-Discrimination Committee urged the Senate to approve statehood for Hawaii and Alaska, already passed by the House. The ADC argued Hawaii has proven capable of effective self-government.
• Report Attempt to Win Nisei Votes with Evacuation Issue Fails in Hawaiian Election, by By LAWRENCE NAKATSUKA, page 4. Hawaiian Democrats claimed candidate William Cobb helped prevent internment of Japanese in Hawaii, but Gen. Emmons disputed this. Republican Delegate Farrington won decisively.

Military & Veterans

• Hawaiian GIs Get Bronze Star Medals for Heroic Action, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Pfc. Henry Iwasaki and Pfc. Ernest Horinouchi were among nine soldiers awarded the Bronze Star for heroism in Korea. Two other Hawaii Nisei also received the medal.
• Colorado Nisei Soldier Dies in Korean War, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Pfc. Haruo Tomita, previously listed as missing in action, was confirmed dead in Korea. He is survived by two sisters and his remains are expected to arrive for funeral rites.
• Movies More Complicated Than Battle, Say 442nd Veterans, by James Padgitt, INS, page 1. Veterans of the 442nd who acted in MGM’s Go For Broke describe re-enacting their Vosges battle on film. They found the filming more complicated than the actual fighting.
• Citizens of Bruyeres Again Pay Tribute to Nisei Heroes at JACL Memorial in France, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Townspeople of Bruyeres held their annual ceremony at the JACL memorial honoring 442nd dead. Mayor Louis Gillon thanked the JACL for its donation and awaited an American flag.
• Dedicate Monument to Oregon Nisei War Dead, by P.C. Staff, page 2. A monument honoring 15 Nisei from Oregon who died in World War II was dedicated in Portland’s Rose City cemetery. Mayor Dorothy McCullough was the main speaker at the ceremony.

Arts & Entertainment

• Embroidered Portraits Win Blue Ribbons for Issei Artist, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Susumu Shinozaki, an Issei patient at Rancho Los Amigos, creates lifelike embroidered portraits and landscapes. Five of his works won prizes at the Los Angeles County Fair.
• Kathleen Date’s Sculpture Shown in Coast Gallery, by P.C. Staff, page 7. Kathleen S. Date, who began sculpting at a Berkeley evening class, has exhibited at the Berkeley Community Theater and public library. Her work is currently on view at the Launderay art gallery.
• First Performances of Four Songs Planned by Soprano, by P.C. Staff, page 8. Soprano Ruby Yoshino will premiere four new songs by three American composers at Kimball Hall on November 17. She will also perform Japanese songs and works by classical composers.

Commentary

• Canadian Nisei’s Career as Dentist Delayed by U.S. Wartime Mass Evacuation, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Dr. Bob Hiroshi Akaye, a Canadian citizen caught in the American evacuation, was delayed for years before establishing a dental practice in Toronto. He eventually earned his degree and fellowship in oral surgery.
• A Blueprint for Ghettos, by P.C. Staff, page 4. The editorial argues California’s Proposition 10, requiring votes on public housing, is a dodge that preserves racial ghettos. It warns the measure may spread to other states.
• Houses for Hiroshima, by P.C. Staff, page 4. Volunteer efforts from many countries built homes in Hiroshima for families displaced by the atomic bomb. A similar project is underway in Nagasaki as a demonstration of intercultural understanding.
• Gooks and ROKs, by P.C. Staff, page 4. A reader note from Bill Hosokawa clarifies that ROK stands for Republic of Korea and is now used with respect for South Korean troops. The term gook was originally used for all Koreans.
• Issei Is Rep. Walter, by P.C. Staff, page 4. The editorial analyzes election results and their impact on hopes for naturalization legislation. It notes losses of supporters like Rep. Helen Gahagan Douglas and Sen. Elbert Thomas.
• Vagaries, by P.C. Staff, page 4. A column of miscellaneous notes on Nisei in entertainment and sports, including MGM’s Go For Broke production and Nisei performers in Tokyo File 212. It also mentions Carl Iwasaki photographing for Life magazine.
• Nisei Expatriates in Japan, by Bill Hosokawa, page 6. Hosokawa examines Nisei in Japan seeking restoration of American citizenship, focusing on those who lost it by voting in Japanese elections. He notes courts have restored some cases while the State Department remains strict.
• New McCarran Law Imposes Obstacles on Naturalization, by By I. H. GORDON, page 6. The McCarran Act imposes new burdens on naturalization applicants, including stricter literacy requirements and a ten-year bar for certain security-related associations. Civil liberties attorneys warn it may also expose aliens to deportation.
• Hutch Aoki Will Pilot New Boat in Lake Mead Regatta, by P.C. Staff, page 7. Salt Lake City speedboat driver Hutch Aoki will race his new aluminum boat The Flying Ute at the Lake Mead regatta. He has won honors in races on lakes in Colorado, Montana and Utah.

In-Depth

• Wartime Activity of JACL Helped Lay Groundwork for Acceptance of Evacuee Group, by By ELMER R. SMITH, page 5. JACL wartime activities during relocation focused on public relations, education, and financial assistance for evacuees. The organization created the JACL Credit Union in 1943 to help resettlers obtain loans.

Sports

• Big Nisei Tackle Is Defensive Star, by P.C. Staff, page 6. Aki (Jam) Kajioka, a 250-pound tackle at Modesto College, earned praise for his defensive play in a scoreless tie with El Camino. Several other Nisei players across jaycee and high school football were also noted.
• Watanabe Named Player of Week, by P.C. Staff, page 6. Toby Watanabe, fullback for Seattle’s undefeated Franklin Quakers, was named Seattle Times Player of the Week. Bob Hamatake of Tooele high school was also praised for his line plunges.
• Fibber Hirayama Gets Bulldog Award, by P.C. Staff, page 6. Fibber Hirayama of Fresno State was named Bulldog of the Week after the College of Pacific game. He had already won baseball honors including the California Collegiate batting title.
• Two Nisei Star for Title-Bound Fowler, by P.C. Staff, page 6. Tom Yamanaka and Tommy Sanwo starred for undefeated Fowler high school as it heads for the Sequoia loop title. Ralph Kubota also led Compton to a big win with long runs.
• Hayashida Kicks Seven Straight, by P.C. Staff, page 6. Cliff Hayashida kicked seven straight conversions as Berkeley beat Polytechnic 55 to 20. Berkeley had not lost a league game in five years.
• Goto Is Candidate for Stanford Varsity, by P.C. Staff, page 6. George Goto, a former Placer College star named junior college player of the year, is a Stanford transfer hoping for the varsity roster. He is also expected to pitch for the baseball varsity.

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