A Nisei veteran’s letter to Texas and the 442nd’s return home

Vol. 23, No. 7, August 17, 1946. 8 pages. View this issue

A letter from a Nisei veteran led the news. Ex-Sergeant George Otsuka of the 442nd Combat Team wrote to the Houston Press after he was warned away from a farm near Tomball, and asked whether that was Texas’s answer to the 442nd. Nearby, a National Opinion Research Center poll found that two-thirds of Americans still believed false reports of spying by Japanese Americans. The 442nd was deactivated in Honolulu, and 241 Hawaiian veterans came home to a large welcome. Editor Larry Tajiri also wrote to readers about the paper’s rising costs.

Other pages carry a California Supreme Court appeal over the alien fishing law, a Washington JACL vote to back a memorial at Arlington National Cemetery, and Gold Star mothers honored in Portland. Bill Hosokawa profiled Gentaro Suzuki, and Toshio Mori’s short story “The School Boy Hamlet” runs on page 6.

What’s in this issue

National

• A Nisei Asks People of Texas: Is This Your Answer to the 442nd Combat Team?, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Ex-Sergeant George Otsuka, a Nisei veteran of the 442nd who fought in France, wrote to the Houston Press questioning Texas prejudice after he was warned away from buying a farm near Tomball. His letter asked whether such hostility was the reward for the sacrifices made by the 442nd in rescuing the Texas 36th Division.
• Two-Thirds of U.S. Citizens Believe False Reports of Espionage by Japanese Americans, by P.C. Staff, page 1. A National Opinion Research Center poll found that two-thirds of Americans still believe Japanese Americans spied for Japan during the war, though no such cases were confirmed. Only 13 per cent of those surveyed correctly believed there was no espionage, with belief highest on the Pacific Coast.
• Early Decision by Highest California Tribunal Assured in Test on Alien Fishing Law, by P.C. Staff, page 2. The California Supreme Court agreed to hear the appeal challenging the 1945 amendment barring aliens ineligible for citizenship from commercial fishing. The case affects about 250 non-citizen Japanese fishermen and could also affect sport fishing and game hunting restrictions.
• Protestant Work Group Favors Bill to Aid Evacuees, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Delegates to a Protestant church work conference at Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, unanimously passed a resolution supporting legislation to indemnify evacuees of Japanese ancestry for losses from the West Coast evacuation. The 128 delegates from 23 states were attending a national adult work planning conference.
• Nisei Named College Dean in Chicago, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Dr. Ernest Takahashi, a Chicago optometrist active in JACL chapters, was appointed acting dean of Monroe College of Optometry. He is believed to be the first Nisei to become dean of a school in the United States.
• Dillon Myer Takes Interim Housing Post, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Former WRA Director Dillon Myer assumed duties as commissioner of the Federal Public Housing Authority under an interim appointment after the Senate did not confirm his nomination. He had earlier declined President Truman’s offer to serve as governor of Puerto Rico.
• Relocating Evacuees Have Benefited Eastern Communities, by John Kitasako, page 5. Washington News-Letter columnist John Kitasako reports that former WRA supervisor Bob Cullum believes relocation brought two-way benefits, helping Caucasian communities confront prejudice through greater understanding of the Nisei. Cullum argues the relocatees’ presence aroused community conscience and fair play instincts.

Military & Veterans

• Nisei Regiment Deactivated, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The 442nd Regimental Combat Team was deactivated in Kapiolani Park, Honolulu, on the first anniversary of V-J Day. The unit, which received eight Presidential unit citations, was considered the most highly decorated in the U.S. Army relative to its size and time in combat.
• Hawaiian Veterans of 442nd Given Tumultuous Welcome by Friends, Relatives in Honolulu, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Two hundred forty-one Hawaiian Nisei of the 442nd returned to Honolulu aboard the Waterbury Victory to a large welcome that included Governor Ingram Stainback and thousands of relatives. Veterans described the emotional reunion, including tears from elderly Issei parents greeting sons they had not seen in three years.
• Hawaii Hopes to Retain Colors of Famed 442nd Combat Team, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Hawaiian veterans sought to keep the 442nd’s regimental colors in Hawaii after the unit’s deactivation. The War Department allowed the 100th Battalion’s colors to remain in Hawaii but said this did not set a precedent for the 442nd, leaving the decision to the territorial governor’s request.
• Nisei Veterans Urge Ex-GIs to Join National Groups, by P.C. Staff, page 2. The Nisei Veterans Committee of Seattle urged American war veterans of Japanese ancestry to join national veterans organizations such as the American Veterans Committee, VFW, American Legion, and Disabled American Veterans. The group encouraged active participation in whichever organization they chose.
• Orders for MISLS Pictorial Album Now Being Taken, by P.C. Staff, page 4. The Military Intelligence Service Language School at Monterey announced a subscription drive for a pictorial album documenting the school’s history from Camp Savage to Fort Snelling and its graduates’ overseas work. Orders were to be sent to the MISLS Album office at the Presidio of Monterey.

Community

• Washington JACL Announces Support for National Memorial to Honor Nisei Killed in War, by P.C. Staff, page 2. The Washington JACL chapter voted to join the National JACL in establishing a national monument at Arlington National Cemetery honoring Nisei servicemen killed in action. The project will be international in scope, and officers were nominated at the chapter’s organizational meeting.
• Robbed in West Coast Hotel, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Leatrice Tanaka, a Nisei social worker returning from six years in China, was robbed of $480 when a hotel clerk absconded with money she had placed in the hotel safe in San Francisco. The money was eventually returned to her by the hotel.
• Gold Star Mothers Honored at Portland JACL Testimonial Banquet, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Gold Star mothers whose Nisei sons died in World War II were honored at the Portland JACL testimonial banquet at Hotel Multnomah on August 11. Speakers including E. B. MacNaughton praised the Nisei soldiers and urged continued strong community organization.
• Their Brother’s Keepers: Many in Hood River Fought for Justice for Evacuees, by Sue Kunitomi, page 5. Kunitomi recounts how Staff Sergeant Taro Asai returned to Hood River to find neighbors who protected his farm and opposed the American Legion’s removal of Nisei names from its honor roll. Richard Neuberger’s account highlights local residents who defended Japanese American neighbors.
• A Short Story: The School Boy Hamlet, by Toshio Mori, page 6. Toshio Mori’s short story tells of Tom Fukunaga, a man in his thirties who remained a schoolboy in pursuit of becoming a Shakespearean actor, especially in the role of Hamlet. The narrator grows weary of Tom’s persistent recitations and his lack of professional progress, until years later they meet fleetingly on a Piedmont streetcar.

Commentary

• A Misinformed Public, by P.C. Staff, page 4. The editorial argues that the NORC poll showing two-thirds of Americans still believe Japanese Americans spied during the war demonstrates the need for continued public education. It notes the government and racist groups spread false espionage stories and calls for intensified work to correct public misinformation.
• Prejudice in Utah, by P.C. Staff, page 4. A Utah state committee on racial discrimination found that many employers and businesses practice discrimination against Negro and minority citizens despite professing equal opportunity principles. The editorial calls for the state senate committee’s recommended anti-discrimination legislation.
• Civil Service, by P.C. Staff, page 4. The editorial condemns California’s blanket disloyalty charges against 88 suspended Nisei civil service employees and notes the upcoming hearings. It welcomes the state’s proposed reinstatement while criticizing the years-long delay.
• Report to Our Readers, by Larry Tajiri, page 4. Editor Larry Tajiri explains the financial challenges facing the Pacific Citizen, including rising printing and newsprint costs and the paper’s approximately 100 subscribers. He asks readers to help by each recruiting one new subscriber to keep the paper self-supporting.
• From the Frying Pan: Gentaro Suzuki’s Life Has Been Rugged, by Bill Hosokawa, page 5. Bill Hosokawa profiles Gentaro Suzuki as a representative of the Issei immigrant generation who worked hard to build America’s West. He notes that Issei remain ineligible for citizenship and urges Congress to extend naturalization rights to them.

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