Nisei scholarship, veterans and evacuee claims in December 1951

Vol. 33, No. 23, December 15, 1951. 8 pages. View this issue

A scholarship award opened the December 15, 1951 issue. Governor Howard Pyle presented the Pvt. Ben Masaoka Memorial Scholarship to Cherry Tsutsumida of Glendale, Arizona. Mrs. Haruye Masaoka gives it in memory of her son, killed in France in 1944 while serving with the 442nd Regimental Combat Team. Nearby front-page stories covered the Korean War casualty list, a Honolulu family’s word of their son held by Chinese forces, and evacuee property claims, including a federal jury’s acquittal of Yujiro Sakuragi. Larry Tajiri’s editorial “Profiteers in Prejudice” took on a proposed California ballot initiative.

The columns of Bill Hosokawa ran on page 5, with a humorous look at Santa Claus and a warning about confidence schemes. Elmer R. Smith wrote on social stratification and Japanese Americans. Elsewhere in the eight pages: Issei address reports under the 1950 Internal Security Act, JACL chapter elections, a Nisei theater group praised by Bay Area critics, and sports, including a possible Olympic race for Ford Konno.

What’s in this issue

Military & Veterans

• Governor Pyle Gives Masaoka Scholarship Award to Nisei Student, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Cherry Tsutsumida of Glendale, Arizona received the Pvt. Ben Masaoka Memorial Scholarship from Governor Howard Pyle at a ceremony in Phoenix. The $200 award, given by Mrs. Haruye Masaoka in memory of her son killed with the 442nd, was selected by a University of Utah faculty committee.
• Report Three Nisei Killed in Korea War, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The Department of Defense notified the JACL ADC that seven more Nisei were added to the Korean casualty list, including killed, missing, and wounded soldiers. Names and families are listed for each.
• Final Rites Held for Fever Victim, by P.C. Staff, page 7. Final services were held in Los Angeles for Pfc. Edward Oshiro, who died in a Tokyo hospital of Manchurian fever contracted on the Korean front. The Los Angeles Veterans Coordinating Council arranged the service.
• Secretary Chapman Recalls Record of Nisei Fighting Units, by P.C. Staff, page 8. At the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu, Interior Secretary Oscar Chapman praised the gallantry of the 100th Infantry Battalion and 442nd Regimental Combat Team. Vice President Alben Barkley also spoke in favor of statehood for Hawaii.

National

• Tamakis of Honolulu Hear From Son Held by Chinese, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The Tamaki family of Honolulu received a letter and heard a Peiping radio broadcast purportedly from Pfc. Yoshio Tamaki, a POW held by Chinese Communists. The family believes the message was prepared propaganda.
• Colorado Evacuee Couple Receives Claims Payment, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Masasuke and Mrs. Kido of Boulder, Colorado received $800 in evacuation loss claims under the new compromise procedure. They expressed appreciation to the JACL ADC for expediting the claims program.
• Federal Court Jury Acquits Evacuee in Claims Fraud Case, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Yujiro Sakuragi, 69, of San Francisco was acquitted by a federal jury after a seven-and-a-half-day trial on charges of defrauding the government in an evacuation property claim. Attorneys Mas Yonemura and Reynold Colvin defended him, and the verdict was reached after 20 minutes of deliberation.
• Urge Justice Department Seek Special Appropriation To Pay for Evacuee Claims, by P.C. Staff, page 2. The JACL Pacific Southwest District Council passed a resolution urging the Justice Department to seek supplemental funding beyond the $500,000 appropriation to pay all pending evacuee claims. It also asked for additional staff and clarification on valuation and compromise procedures.
• Denver Chapter Will Aid Issei on Registration, by P.C. Staff, page 3. The Denver JACL appointed attorney Toshio Ando to chair a committee assisting Issei with the mandatory alien registration under the McCarran Internal Security Act between January 1 and 10, 1952. Forms will be available January 2.
• Issei Must Make Address Reports Next Month Under 1950 Internal Security Act, by P.C. Staff, page 3. All aliens residing in the United States, including Issei, must submit current address reports through any Post Office between January 1 and 11, 1952. Failure to comply may result in fines or imprisonment.

Incarceration & Redress

• Recall Nisei Risked Life to Deliver Coded Warning of War in Hawaii on Dec. 7, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Nisei messenger Tadao Fuchikami carried a top-secret warning of an imminent Japanese attack through air raid conditions to Fort Shafter on December 7, 1941. He later recounted the harrowing ride in a radio broadcast.

Community

• Father Dai Takes Leave for Studies, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The Rev. Daisuke Kitagawa, director of the Japanese American Community Center in Minneapolis, will take an eight-month leave for graduate study at the University of Chicago Divinity School. He is also resigning as chairman of the Minneapolis Mayor’s Council on Human Relations.
• Ogden Chapter Organizes Special Veterans Committee, by P.C. Staff, page 2. The Ogden JACL chapter formed a veterans affairs committee chaired by Harry H. Sugihara to coordinate activities of WWII and Korean conflict veterans. The committee will keep members informed on veterans regulations and cooperate with other veterans groups.
• Denver Mothers Will Invite Orphans to Annual Party, by P.C. Staff, page 7. The Denver Nisei Mothers Club will host its annual Christmas party for orphans from local dependent homes on December 16 at the Denver Christian Center. Mrs. Robert Horiuchi is chairman.
• Denver JACL Will Obtain Blood Donors, by P.C. Staff, page 7. The Denver JACL designated Mrs. Tsuyako Takata to lead a blood donor drive supporting the Red Cross campaign for soldiers in Korea. The chapter’s quota is 400 pints per week.
• French Camp JACL Hosts Japan Sailors, by P.C. Staff, page 7. The French Camp JACL hosted 49 sailors from the Japanese ship Higashi Maru during a bazaar while the ship loaded rice at the Port of Stockton. Issei attendees learned about conditions in Japan from the sailors.

JACL

• Denver JACL Will Accept Chicago Chapter’s Challenge, by P.C. Staff, page 2. The Denver JACL, with 500 members in 1951, agreed to a membership race with Chicago but proposed competing on a percentage basis rather than total membership. Denver officials argued the Japanese American population comparisons favored a fairer contest.
• Elect Dr. Kadonaga to Lead Alameda JACL Chapter, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Dr. Roland S. Kadonaga was elected president of the Alameda JACL chapter for 1952 at its annual election meeting. The full slate of officers was unanimously adopted on the nominating committee’s recommendations.
• Eastern Area Leaders Plan District Parley, by P.C. Staff, page 2. JACL Eastern District Council chairman Aki Hayashi called a special cabinet and chapter presidents meeting to review the past year and plan 1952 activities. The agenda includes preparations for the national convention in San Francisco in June.
• Elect Okuda President of Seattle JACL, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Kenji Okuda, who has taught at the University of Puerto Rico and Franklin and Marshall College, was elected president of the Seattle JACL chapter. A full slate of new vice presidents, officers, and a board delegate was also named.

Commentary

• Legal Steps for Renunciants, by P.C. Staff, page 4. Following the Supreme Court refusal to review the renunciant test case, the ACLU advised that Japanese Americans who renounced citizenship during the war must take individual legal steps to regain status. The process involves applying for a passport and, if denied, obtaining a court order.
• Employment for Minority Workers, by P.C. Staff, page 4. The California State Employment Service eliminated discriminatory racial specifications from its records and reported that minority applicants with professional and technical skills are being accepted by employers in Los Angeles. The editorial urges continued education to broaden acceptance.
• Profiteers in Prejudice, by LARRY TAJIRI, page 4. The editorial condemns America Plus, Inc., a Los Angeles group sponsoring a 1952 California ballot initiative that would allow racial and religious discrimination in housing, employment, and public accommodations. It draws parallels to wartime anti-Japanese groups and notes the initiative’s anti-democratic nature.
• One Born Every Minute, by Bill Hosokawa, page 5. The column describes common confidence schemes such as bogus merchandise sales, rigged poker games in Little Tokyo, fake hotel leases, and phony mining stock sales. It warns readers to watch for these tactics.
• Four Views on Santa Claus, by Bill Hosokawa, page 5. Hosokawa humorously describes how his four children, from age 3 to 14, each view Santa Claus differently. He also reflects on how commercialism has affected the holiday spirit while affirming that the family still enjoys Christmas.
• Social Stratification Influences Lives of Japanese Americans, by Elmer R. Smith, page 6. Smith examines how color prejudice and social stratification in the Pacific Coast region, inherited from earlier settlers, shaped the treatment of Japanese Americans. He traces economic and labor-based discrimination and notes the JACL’s long struggle against it.

Arts & Entertainment

• Vagaries, by P.C. Staff, page 5. This entertainment column covers Shirley Yamaguchi’s first American film Japanese War Bride, the Rashomon screenings in Los Angeles, Reiko Sato’s network radio role, and author Bradford Smith’s new book. It also notes Nisei appointments at Northwest Airlines.
• Three Nisei Bowlers Make Good in Seattle and San Jose Tournaments, by P.C. Staff, page 6. Dr. Jun Kurumada of Salt Lake City won a city doubles bowling championship, while several Nisei bowlers qualified for San Jose’s Big Deal tournament. Sakamoto and others also recorded strong league and tournament results.
• Bay Area Drama Critics Praise Nisei Experimental Players, by Jobo Nakamura, page 7. Bay Area critics praised the Los Angeles Nisei Experimental Group’s performances of the play The Plums Can Wait and classical Japanese Kyogen comedies in San Francisco and Berkeley. The critics singled out playwright Hiroshi Kashiwagi for his dramatic insight.

Sports

• Miyasato Rolls in Championship Bowling Meet, by P.C. Staff, page 6. Hawaiian bowler Taro Miyasato, the only non-continental entrant, finished 20th in his squad at the National All-Star Bowling tournament in Chicago. He scored 1125 across six games.
• Denver JACL Plans Sports Program, by P.C. Staff, page 6. The Denver JACL voted to sponsor a winter basketball league and support the National JACL bowling tournament scheduled for February 29, 1952. Athletic director Dr. George J. Kubo reported on league organization.
• Swimming’s Race of the Century, by P.C. Staff, page 6. Japanese sports writers anticipate a 1500-meter freestyle showdown at the 1952 Helsinki Olympics between Japan’s Hironoshin Furuhashi and Honolulu Nisei Ford Konno. Konno, a student at Ohio State, was named all-American in three events.

Obituaries

• Final Rites Held for Mrs. Furuta, by P.C. Staff, page 7. Final rites were held in Denver for Mrs. Tomi Furuta, 55, at the California Street Methodist Church. Her remains were taken to Oakland for burial by her son George.

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