The Judd bill hearings and the ‘Tokyo Rose’ trial

Vol. 29, No. 4, July 23, 1949. 8 pages. View this issue

Two stories ran side by side in this 8-page issue. One was the Senate subcommittee hearing on the Judd bill for equality in naturalization and immigration, where witnesses including Mike Masaoka, General Eichelberger and Edward J. Ennis urged passage. The other was the San Francisco treason trial of Iva Toguri d’Aquino, where Kenkichi Oki and George Mitsushio testified against her, and Marion Tajiri reported on it. Wayne Collins later pressed Mitsushio on cross-examination.

Also inside: an editorial on the death of Supreme Court Justice Frank Murphy, a column by Togo Tanaka on the Issei press, and Justice Department reports on evacuation damage claims. Sports pages cover Bill Shundo’s release from pro baseball and Wally Yonamine signing with the San Francisco 49ers. Bill Hosokawa profiled a Denver auctioneer, and a Manhattan restaurant owner’s story appeared on page 5.

What’s in this issue

Incarceration & Redress

• Witnesses Charge Eight Overt Acts to “Tokyo Rose”, by By MARION TAJIRI, page 1. Former Radio Tokyo officials Kenkichi Oki and George Mitsushio testified against Iva Toguri d’Aquino at her San Francisco treason trial. Their testimony described the purpose of the Zero Hour program and her alleged participation in scripts and broadcasts.
• Witness Backtracks on Earlier Testimony About “Tokyo Rose”, page 3. Under cross-examination by defense attorney Wayne Collins, George Mitsushio admitted he was not present for a broadcast he had earlier described. Collins also challenged his memory of dates and his renunciation of citizenship.
• Report Evacuation Damage Claims Total $18 Millions, page 7. Mangum Weeks of the Justice Department reported that evacuation damage claims under Public Law 886 total $18 million. He announced the opening of a Los Angeles field office and planned offices in other Japanese American population centers.
• Early Filers May Receive Evacuation Claims Payment In Fall, U.S. Official Believes, page 8. Justice Department official Mangum Weeks said early claimants under the evacuee claims law may receive payment in the fall. He explained claim processing, the ‘first filed, first served’ policy, and planned field offices in Los Angeles and San Francisco.
• Report Gen. DeWitt Afraid of Damage Suits by Evacuees, page 8. According to San Francisco Chronicle columnist Herb Caen, retired General John DeWitt wants assurance that evacuees have no legal claims against him before moving back to San Francisco. The item reports his lawyers are checking for possible legal action.

National

• Overwhelming Support Voiced By Witnesses for Judd Bill Before Senate Subcommittee, page 1. Witnesses at a Senate subcommittee hearing urged passage of the Judd bill for equality in naturalization and immigration. Mike Masaoka’s impassioned plea drew applause, while Chinese American and military witnesses also spoke in support.
• Noted Witnesses Appear Before Senate Committee, page 2. Senate subcommittee hearings on the Judd bill featured testimony from Rep. Judd, State Department officials, General Eichelberger, and others backing repeal of racial bars in immigration and naturalization. Several groups raised objections to the bill’s colonial and West Indies provisions.
• Ennis Hails Wartime Record of Issei in Senate Testimony, page 2. Edward J. Ennis praised the wartime cooperation of Japanese Americans and urged equality in immigration and naturalization before a Senate subcommittee. He argued that evacuation was based on fear rather than factual necessity.

Commentary

• Mr. Justice Murphy, by P.C. Staff, page 4. The editorial mourns Supreme Court Justice Frank Murphy, who died July 18, and reviews his opinions favorable to Japanese Americans. It highlights his dissents and concurrences condemning racism in the evacuation and alien land laws.
• Issei Editors Take Middle Course, by Togo Tanaka, page 4. Tanaka observes that postwar Japanese American newspapers have moved toward the political center compared with prewar days. He cites the Rafu Shimpo and Chicago Shimpo as examples and discusses Editor Bob Fujii’s warnings about extreme right-wing threats.
• Rep. Yates Declares Support for Citizenship for Issei, page 7. Congressman Sidney R. Yates, in a Chicago radio address, urged passage of the Judd bill stalled in the Senate Judiciary Committee. He praised Japanese Americans and pledged to keep fighting for their citizenship rights.

Community

• Evacuation’s Great Losses Are in Human Resources, by M.O.T., page 4. Social worker Fred Hoshiyama argues that the greatest losses from evacuation are the human costs, including rising juvenile delinquency among Nisei teens. He links these problems to broken family and community life during the war years.
• Jack Shigetomi, Auctioneer, by Bill Hosokawa, page 6. Hosokawa profiles Colorado Nisei auctioneer Jack Shigetomi, whose witty salesmanship impressed a crowd at a Denver auction. The column notes that Shigetomi was accepted by the audience as a skilled auctioneer rather than as a ‘Jap auctioneer.’

Arts & Entertainment

• Miyako Restaurant in Manhattan Serves Japanese Cuisine to New York Celebrities, by Roku Suschore, page 5. The article profiles the Miyako, a Japanese restaurant in midtown Manhattan, and its 72-year-old owner Kazuhei Tsukada. It traces his 31-year path from immigrant laborer to restaurateur and his views on Nisei opportunities in the restaurant business.
• Chicago Bills Attorney Wins Case Involving Purchase of Home, page 8. Nisei attorney Wiley Higuchi won a Chicago Municipal Court case involving a house purchase in South Shore, and the Illinois Appellate Court upheld the decision. The item notes both Higuchi and his client are De Paul Law alumni.

Sports

• Race Prejudice Forced Shundo from Pro Baseball, page 6. Bill Shundo, a Nisei outfielder signed by the Chicago White Sox, was released from Bisbee after fans subjected him to racial abuse and refused to attend games. Columnist ‘Kango’ argues the front office yielded to fan prejudice.
• San Francisco 49ers Sign Wally Yonamine for Backfield, page 6. The San Francisco 49ers signed Hawaiian triple-threat back Wally Yonamine, the first Japanese American in football’s major leagues. His performances with the Honolulu Warriors influenced the decision.

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