Evacuation claims stall in the House as a court rules on troop enforcement

Vol. 23, No. 5, August 3, 1946. 8 pages. View this issue

The fight over paying evacuees for their wartime losses ran through this eight-page issue. The Senate passed the Evacuation Claims Bill on July 29, but Rep. Clair Engle led House opposition that made passage unlikely before adjournment. Federal Judge Pierson Hall ruled that using troops to enforce an exclusion order against Homer Wilcox was illegal, and the editorial page asked what that meant for the forced removal as a whole. Dillon S. Myer, former head of the War Relocation Authority, was also named to lead the United States Housing Authority.

Bill Hosokawa’s column profiled Nisei who found new opportunity after relocation, from Des Moines to Denver. Former staff officers recalled the combat history of the 100th Infantry Battalion, and George T. Sakato, a 442nd veteran, was set to attend a Purple Heart convention in Portland. Reports also covered the Detroit JACL chapter’s first president and 442nd discharges at Camp Beale.

What’s in this issue

Incarceration & Redress

• Evacuee Claims Measure Stalled in House, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The Senate passed the Evacuation Claims Bill on July 29 with minor amendments, but Rep. Clair Engle led House opposition that threatened to block action before adjournment. Unanimous consent was needed for House consideration, and objections from West Coast congressmen made passage unlikely this session.
• Use of Troops to Enforce Evacuation Orders Declared Illegal by Federal Justice, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Federal Judge Pierson Hall ruled that the military use of force to enforce an individual exclusion order against Homer Wilcox was illegal and awarded him $100 in damages against Gen. DeWitt. The decision could open the door to damage suits by evacuees, though Wilcox waived larger damages to establish the principle.
• Dillon Myer Named Housing Authority Head of U.S., by P.C. Staff, page 1. President Truman nominated Dillon S. Myer, former War Relocation Authority head who relocated 110,000 evacuees, to be administrator of the United States Housing Authority. He will succeed Philip Klutznick.
• Senate Passes Proposal to Repay Losses Resulting from West Coast Evacuation, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The Senate passed the Evacuation Claims Bill on July 29 with amendments, but the measure appeared doomed in the House due to opposition led by Rep. Clair Engle. The bill would create a commission to adjudicate evacuee property and business loss claims.
• Engle Leads Opposition to Evacuee Bill, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Rep. Clair Engle of California opened a House drive to defeat legislation allowing Japanese Americans and resident aliens to claim evacuation damages. He argued the bill was inadequately studied and failed to distinguish loyal Japanese from those who renounced citizenship.
• Evacuation of Nisei Described as Blow to Civil Liberties, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Lawrence I. Hewes Jr. told a University of British Columbia meeting that the forced evacuation was a serious blow to property and civil rights. He cited the loyalty and combat records of the 442nd and 100th Infantry Battalion.

Military & Veterans

• George Sakato to Attend Convention of Military Order of the Purple Heart, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Purple Heart and Distinguished Service Cross recipient George T. Sakato, a 442nd Combat Team veteran, will attend the national convention of the Military Order of the Purple Heart in Portland as a guest of the Portland JACL chapter. He is scheduled to arrive in Portland on August 4.
• War Veterans Will Get Rights to WRA Farms, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Two hundred thirteen farms developed by evacuees at Tule Lake, Minidoka, and Heart Mountain will be opened for homesteading by war veterans under a Reclamation Bureau program. Enabling legislation for the settlement was recently passed by Congress.
• Two Nisei COs Indicted for Sitdown Strike, by P.C. Staff, page 2. A federal grand jury indicted six conscientious objectors from the Big Flats camp, including Jyuichi Sato and Andrew Ichiro Shiga, for their alleged participation in a sit-down strike at the camp. The strike occurred in May.
• Ben Kuroki Tells of Fighting Intolerance on Radio Program, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Ben Kuroki, Nisei air combat veteran, described his experiences fighting intolerance in the United States on a Columbia network radio program. The appearance coincided with Pageant Magazine presenting him its Citizen of Good Will award.
• British Nisei Stranded by War Hopes to Meet American Airmen, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Bernard Miyaguchi, a British-born Nisei who served in the Japanese army, arrived in Seattle with his sister Ranko while en route home to England. He recounted harsh army treatment and his efforts to help six American airmen held prisoner on Goto island.
• 442nd Veterans Win Discharges at Camp Beale, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Northern California veterans of the 442nd Combat Team were discharged at the Camp Beale Separation Center on July 27, after marching before President Truman in Washington. The separation center announcement praised the unit for fighting prejudice at home as well as the Germans in Italy.
• Death of Soldier Awaiting Passage to U.S. Reported, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Sgt. Ronnie Shikata of Los Angeles died in Tokyo while awaiting passage to the United States, according to reports. Funeral services were conducted in Yokohama on July 23.
• Hawaii-Bound 442nd Troops Greeted by Gen. Crittenberger in Canal Zone, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Lieut. Gen. Willis D. Crittenberger welcomed 237 homebound Nisei GIs of the 442nd at the Cristobal USO upon their troopship’s arrival at the Panama Canal. The veterans were treated to refreshments and reminisced with their former officers before sailing for Hawaii.
• MIS School Trains Nisei for Japan Occupation Tasks, by P.C. Staff, page 3. The Military Intelligence Service Language School at Monterey announced a new promotion policy for three-year Regular Army enlistees. The change recognizes the skilled training of students preparing for occupation duty in Japan and Korea.
• Former 100th Battalion Commanders Recall Combat History of Famous Nisei Battalion, by Cpl. John Durbin, page 5. Three former staff officers of the 100th Infantry Battalion, now assigned at Fort Benning, recount the unit’s combat history from Salerno and Cassino through Anzio and France. The article describes the battalion’s distinguished actions and citations.
• Vagaries, by P.C. Staff, page 5. A column reports that Beniamino Bufano’s sculptures were recently raided from storage in San Francisco, and notes other notable items in brief news items. It also mentions Nisei servicemen and personnel news.
• Combat Experience of Nisei Recalled, by P.C. Staff, page 8. The 100th Battalion’s combat record is recounted, including its rescue of the lost battalion and its withdrawal after Armistice Day 1944. The article praises the loyalty and bravery of Japanese American soldiers.

National

• Civil Rights Group Reports Nisei Recovering Economic Position Despite Prejudice, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The ACLU’s annual report found that Japanese Americans are slowly regaining their economic footing despite decreasing discrimination, with two-thirds returning to the West Coast. The report also noted pending court cases concerning renunciants, alien land laws, and evacuation claims.
• Return of U.S. Evacuees Told to Canadian Group, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Prof. Elmer R. Smith told a University of British Columbia workshop that evacuees can return peaceably to the West Coast if common sense is used. He noted that young Nisei were reassimilating successfully and leading intercultural friendship groups.
• British Columbians Sign Petition for Evacuee Deportation, by P.C. Staff, page 3. J. L. Gibson tabled a Canadian House petition signed by 8,000 British Columbia residents asking that all persons of Japanese descent be deported to Japan. The petition also requested the deportation be included in the peace terms with Japan.

Community

• Federal Government Will Release Rice for Farm Workers, by P.C. Staff, page 2. At the request of the California Asparagus Growers Association, the federal government will release rice from warehouses to feed farm workers of Japanese and Filipino ancestry in the San Joaquin Valley. A survey will determine rice needs across several counties.
• United Ministry Has Data on Evacuees Resettled in Chicago, by P.C. Staff, page 2. The United Ministry to Resettlers in Chicago offered to help locate evacuees who have resettled in the city, having compiled about 14,000 names from WRA files. The organization is also conducting a house-to-house canvass of relocated families.
• Depositors in Coast Japanese Banks Will Be Paid in Full, by P.C. Staff, page 2. State Superintendent of Banks Maurice Sparling reported that depositors in the Los Angeles branch of the Yokohama Specie Bank and branches of the Sumitomo Bank will receive full payment. Agreements were reached with federal and New York officials ending lengthy litigation.
• Chicago Group Plans Entertainment for Nisei Veterans, by P.C. Staff, page 2. The United Ministry of Resettlers in Chicago will sponsor a veterans canteen in September featuring the film Go for Broke about the 442nd Combat Team. Protestant church groups will provide hostesses.
• California Nisei Alumni Hold Picnic at New York Beach, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Forty Nisei alumni of the University of California and UCLA living in the New York area held a picnic at Jones Beach on July 27. The group traveled by chartered bus.
• Nisei Awarded First Doctor’s Degree at Utah, by P.C. Staff, page 3. James M. Sugihara of Las Animas, Colo., received the first doctor’s degree bestowed by the University of Utah, a Ph.D. in chemistry. He will continue teaching at the university.
• Portland JACL Will Honor Veterans at Multnomah Dinner, by P.C. Staff, page 3. The Portland JACL will hold a testimonial banquet on August 11 at the Multnomah Hotel to honor 60 Nisei veterans and five gold star mothers. The event recognizes Japanese American veterans of the Portland area.
• Intermountain Chapters Back National Meet, by P.C. Staff, page 4. The Intermountain District Council pledged support for the 1948 national JACL convention, with Boise Valley and Snake River chapters assuming sponsorship after Ogden withdrew. The council also discussed anti-alien land law repeal, deferring action pending the Oyama case.
• Fresno Nisei Girl Investigates Japan War Criminal Suspects, by P.C. Staff, page 7. Midori Ogawa of Fresno, stranded in Japan during the war, became the first woman employed by Allied occupation forces as an investigator of war criminal charges. She works in the Yokohama office of Lieut. Wayne W. Wright of the Eighth Army War Crimes Defense Office.
• Denver Interracial Fellowship Sponsors Conference at Camp Eden, by P.C. Staff, page 7. The Interracial Fellowship of the Brotherhood House in Denver will sponsor a two-day conference at Camp Eden on August 10 and 11. About 100 representatives from Nisei, Negro, Spanish, Chinese, and Caucasian groups will attend to develop interracial unity.
• Judge Issues Injunction in Housing Case, by P.C. Staff, page 7. Superior Judge Conlan signed a permanent injunction barring Chinese American Mabel Sil from living in a home in a restricted San Francisco district. The ruling was based on breach of a racial restrictive covenant.

Arts & Entertainment

• Judge Willis Orders State Commission to Issue General Fishing License to Issei, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Superior Judge Henry M. Willis ordered the California Fish and Game Commission to issue a commercial fishing license to Torao Takahashi, a Japanese alien fisherman. The order followed a ruling that the anti-alien fishing law was unconstitutional because it discriminated by race.

Commentary

• Justice for Evacuees, by P.C. Staff, page 4. The editorial argues that Judge Hall’s Wilcox decision implies the mass evacuation of Japanese Americans was also unlawful, though punitive suits against Gen. DeWitt are unlikely to succeed. It urges Congress to pass the claims bill so evacuees can recover accountable losses.
• Another Precedent, by P.C. Staff, page 4. The editorial discusses a Seattle federal court ruling that ineligibility for citizenship does not bar the entry of an American soldier’s foreign-born wife. It notes the ruling may help Japanese Canadian wives of Nisei servicemen and highlights discrimination in immigration law.
• ACLU’s Review, by P.C. Staff, page 4. The editorial reprints the ACLU’s yearly review noting the close of the WRA and the slow recovery of the Japanese American minority. It credits the JACL and other organizations with aiding evacuees’ return and resettlement.
• Evacuation Paradox, by P.C. Staff, page 4. The editorial quotes Bradford Smith’s observation that the evacuation, though unjustifiable, indirectly improved Nisei opportunities while imposing heavy costs. It asks what safeguards are needed so such governmental power is not used again.
• Who Pushed the Button?, by P.C. Staff, page 4. The editorial examines who was responsible for ordering mass evacuation, pointing to Gen. DeWitt and questioning the role of racial myths and political pressure. It argues the evacuation was driven by prejudice and economic interests rather than military necessity.
• From the Frying Pan: Butcher, Baker and Candlestick Maker, by Bill Hosokawa, page 5. Bill Hosokawa profiles several Nisei who found opportunity after relocation, including a doctor in Des Moines, a farmer in Ogden, a produce shipper in Idaho, a fruitstand operator in Denver, and a shipyard carpenter in Seattle. He presents them as typical of Nisei who dared to try and succeed.

JACL

• Peter Fujioka Named Detroit JACL Head, by P.C. Staff, page 4. Peter Fujioka was elected president of the newly organized Detroit JACL chapter at its first meeting. Other officers and the chapter constitution were also approved.

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