Civil rights test cases, Mountain Plains and Hawaii’s basketball favorites

Vol. 29, No. 21, November 19, 1949. 8 pages. View this issue

Civil rights led the news in this 8-page issue. The third National Conference on Intergroup Relations in Chicago recommended test cases against racial and religious discrimination, and Mike Masaoka, JACL ADC legislative director, is a member of the sponsoring association. The JACL also endorsed a Los Angeles resolution barring segregation in redevelopment housing. Bill Hosokawa wrote about the Mountain Plains district convention in Denver, where delegates talked of farming and cattle, and Larry Tajiri reported on a funeral in Austin, Nevada.

Also inside: Iva Toguri d’Aquino left San Francisco for the federal prison at Alderson, Va., and Masaoka welcomed Oscar L. Chapman as Secretary of Interior. Togo Tanaka’s postscript took up incentive pay. The sports pages followed Jimmy Miyasato of Weber College and Min Yokoyama of Ontario, Oregon, and previewed the first national Nisei basketball tournament in Chicago.

What’s in this issue

Incarceration & Redress

• Test Cases to Clarify Civil Rights of Minority Groups Urged at Conference, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The third National Conference on Intergroup Relations in Chicago recommended filing test cases on racial and religious discrimination as a method of advancing civil rights. Mike Masaoka, JACL ADC legislative director, is a member of the sponsoring association.

Military & Veterans

• Mrs. d’Aquino Plans to Remain in United States After Serving Term, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Iva Toguri d’Aquino, convicted of treason for her wartime Tokyo Rose broadcasts, departed San Francisco for the federal women’s prison at Alderson, Va. She said she intends to remain in the United States after serving her sentence while her appeal proceeds.
• Nisei Soldier Goes AWOL, Finally Located on Guam, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Pvt. S. Okawani of Honolulu went AWOL from the 25th Infantry Division in Japan after a furlough and was later found on Guam. He had survived for months by living on fruit and mingling with troops undetected.

National

• Masaoka Hails Appointment of Chapman as Secretary of Interior, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Mike Masaoka, JACL ADC legislative director, congratulated Oscar L. Chapman on his appointment as Secretary of Interior. Masaoka cited Chapman’s record of helping Nisei, including his work supervising the WRA program and the Evacuation Claims law.
• JACL Endorses Resolution Barring Bias, Segregation in Municipal Housing Projects, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The JACL endorsed a Los Angeles City Redevelopment Agency resolution prohibiting racial discrimination or segregation in redevelopment projects. Sam Ishikawa urged that discrimination be barred in deeds, leases and contracts.
• Nisei Consular Employee Among Five Held by Chinese Reds, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Shiro Tatsumi, a Nisei mechanic on the U.S. consulate staff at Mukden, is among five staff members reportedly held incommunicado by Chinese Communist authorities. The State Department called the charges against them absurd and fantastic.
• U.S. Internee, Now in Japan, Wants to Sue for 81 Billions, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Magaru Murakawa, a Hawaii native living in Japan, plans to seek reinstatement of his U.S. citizenship to sue the government for $81 billion in damages from his wartime internment. He claims the government owes him for 51 months of wasted life.

JACL

• Eastern JACL Council Meets in Washington, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The JACL Eastern District Council met in Washington on Nov. 12 and 13 with a dinner and dance featuring Arthur Gaeth and Robert M. Cullum. Officers were chosen and district projects, including a combined ADC fund drive, were discussed.
• Candidates for JACL National Posts Named by Committee Official, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Ira Shimasaki named candidates for national JACL offices at the Eastern district council meeting, to be submitted to the national nominating committee. The district council also endorsed Midwest choices for national president.
• JACL Award Cites Movie, by P.C. Staff, page 3. The National JACL presented an award to producer Stanley Kramer for the film Home of the Brave in recognition of its contribution to improving race relations. The presentation was made in New York City by JACL vice-president Thomas Hayashi.

Sports

• Japanese Film Star Makes Friends on Hawaiian Visit, by Brownie N. Furutani, page 2. Kinuyo Tanaka, first lady of the Japanese screen, concluded a personal appearance tour in Hawaii and will continue to Hollywood to study make-up and American film techniques. She discussed the Japanese film industry’s recovery, her acting career, and her favorite films and hobbies.
• Jimmy Miyasato—Nisei Back of the Year, by P.C. Staff, page 6. Jimmy Miyasato, quarterback for Weber College in Ogden, Utah, is highlighted as a standout junior college player who scored multiple touchdowns in recent games. He was recruited from Honolulu and has also been offered a pro baseball contract.
• Oregon Slope Hails Min Yokoyama, by P.C. Staff, page 6. Min Yokoyama, a 135-pound Nisei fullback, scored all three touchdowns as Ontario, Oregon high school beat Weiser, Idaho. He has been the team’s scoring leader all season.
• Install Hawaiian All-Stars as Favorites in National Nisei Invitational Basketball Meet, by P.C. Staff, page 7. The Hawaiian Nisei Athletic Union team is favored in the first national Nisei basketball tournament in Chicago on Nov. 26 and 27. Rosters for the Hawaii, Berkeley, Chicago and Salt Lake teams are announced.

Community

• Richard Akagi Named Midwest Regional Representative, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Richard Akagi was named JACL Midwest regional representative in charge of the Chicago office, succeeding Tats Kushida who was transferred to Los Angeles. Akagi has been an active New York chapter member and a Volunteer with the JACL eastern office.
• St. Louis JACL Will Sponsor Festival Next Week, by P.C. Staff, page 2. The St. Louis JACL will sponsor a Japanese Festival featuring flower arrangement, games, music, displays, and films at the Thimble Baptist Church on Dec. 4. The event is designed to introduce church groups studying Japan to Japanese culture.
• Welcome Prominent Buddhist Visitors to New York City, by P.C. Staff, page 2. New York City hosted Abbot Kocho Otani of Kyoto Kongwanji and Rev. Noboru Shoji Tsunoda of Denver during the same week in late October and early November. Rev. Tsunoda spoke at several venues on his traveling ministry tour.
• Spokane Will Hold Northwest Council Meet, by P.C. Staff, page 3. The Pacific Northwest JACL district council reorganization meeting will be held Dec. 3 and 4 in Spokane, hosted by the Spokane chapter. Mike Masaoka and Masao Satow will attend a banquet and business sessions including a discussion of evacuation claims.
• Puella Societa Will Fill Xmas Baskets, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Members of the Puella Societa in Sacramento are selling Christmas cards to fund baskets for needy families in December. The club also named a nominating committee for the coming year’s officers.
• Nisei Y-Lites Announce Date of Harvest Carnival, by P.C. Staff, page 3. The Nisei Y-Lites of Glendale, Arizona will hold their third annual harvest carnival and talent show on Dec. 3. Proceeds will fund CARE packages to Japan and delegates to a YWCA conference.
• Occupation Love Story Has Happy Ending in Utah City, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Akio Kato of Ogden and Sadae Aoki of Tokyo married in Oakes after Congress passed a special bill allowing the Tokyo bride to enter the United States. The couple met while Kato served with the Occupation force in Japan.
• New Mountain Plains JACL District Council Organized, by P.C. Staff, page 3. The Mountain Plains district council of the JACL was officially organized at a Denver convention with delegates from six states. Pat Okura of Omaha was named chairman and a cabinet was installed.
• Testimonial Dinner Given for Midwest JACL Official, by P.C. Staff, page 3. The Chicago JACL chapter held a testimonial dinner on Nov. 11 honoring Tats Kushida, Midwest regional representative for 33 months. Speakers and guests praised his work and he was presented with gifts.
• Auxiliary Elects Cabinet Officers, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Mrs. Lessie Yamamoto was elected chairman of the Salt Lake JACL women’s auxiliary on Nov. 13. The new cabinet will be installed at a dinner on Jan. 22.
• Nisei Soldier Goes AWOL, Finally Located on Guam, by Larry Tajiri, page 4. Brief notes on Nisei professionals and artists, including Shugo Seno’s package design work in New York and William Sasegawa’s Philadelphia advertising agency. The column also covers Ben Yoshioka’s work in Washington and Ruby Yoshino Schaar’s audition for South Pacific.
• Intermountain JACL to Hold District Convention in Ogden, by P.C. Staff, page 7. The Ogden JACL will host the fifth annual Intermountain JACL district council convention on Nov. 25 to 27 at the Hotel Ben Lomond. The program includes bowling, a queen contest, banquets, and a farewell ball.

Commentary

• Lump Sum Payments for Evacuees, by P.C. Staff, page 4. The Los Angeles County Conference on Human Relations called for broader evacuee compensation and a $2,000 claims allowance, but the JACL ADC withheld support to protect the existing claims program. The editorial argues criticism of administrative procedures may be premature given that lump sum payments were judged politically unfeasible.
• Growing Awareness of Race Caricatures, by P.C. Staff, page 4. The University of California bookstore student committee recommended removing Little Black Sambo from its shelves. The editorial sees this as evidence of a growing awareness of racial caricatures in children’s literature.
• White Australia: Ad Nauseum, by P.C. Staff, page 4. Australia’s immigration minister vowed to block Japanese athletes from Olympic competition in Australia. The editorial notes possible consequences for Nisei athletes in U.S. Olympic programs and Australia’s restrictive immigration policies.
• Funeral in a Mountain Town, by Larry Tajiri, page 4. The town of Austin, Nevada turned out in force for the funeral of Harry Nakashima, a longtime hotel operator killed by a truck while shoveling snow. The column recalls Austin’s mining-boom past and Nakashima’s role in the community.
• Some Notes on Folk Heroes, by Larry Tajiri, page 4. The column reflects on how Western folk heroes are romanticized despite their violence, and notes the relative absence of Issei from frontier legend. It concludes by observing that the 1942 evacuation may someday become folklore, and critiques the racist Hashimura Togo caricature.
• The Mountain Plains Convention, by Bill Hosokawa, page 6. Hosokawa reflects on the Mountain Plains JACL district council founding convention in Denver, focusing on the delegates’ everyday talk of farming, cattle, and crops. He argues the Nisei of the heartland are fundamentally part of the American mainstream.
• Togo Tanaka’s Postscript: A Nisei Worker Encounters Incentive Compensation, by Togo Tanaka, page 6. A Chicago Nisei who once worked for Japanese employers on the West Coast now prefers incentive-based compensation at his current firm. He warns his future son against working for Japanese employers, while the column notes the broader spread of incentive pay.

In-Depth

• Vagaries, by Larry Tajiri, page 4. A miscellany of notes covering a Toshio Mori story translated into Danish, Sono Osato’s cancelled Broadway return, and Columbia Pictures publicity for Tokyo Joe. The column also reports on Dillon Myer’s new post and other Nisei news.

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