Night-riders in Placer County and the return to the West Coast

Vol. 20, No. 4, January 27, 1945. 8 pages. View this issue

Violence and resistance met Japanese Americans who began returning to the West Coast. Sumio Doi, a returned evacuee near Auburn, California, vowed to stay on his farm after a night raid, and Sheriff Silva set a round-the-clock guard on the ranch. Two editorials took up the Placer County night-riders and Governor Mon C. Wallgren’s opposition to the return. Bill Hosokawa wrote about the National Legion Commander’s rebuke of the Hood River post, and Larry Tajiri looked at the Issei heritage.

Elsewhere in the eight pages: the War Department’s casualty list for Japanese American soldiers in Europe, battlefield promotions for 64 members of the 442nd Regimental Combat Team, and a profile by Marion Tajiri of Japanese Americans working at the Tooele Ordnance Depot in Utah. Also inside are a letter from Noriko Sawada and news of the new JACL Reporter.

What’s in this issue

Incarceration & Redress

• Family Will Stay on Farm Despite Threats, Violence from Night-Riders, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Sumio Doi, a returned evacuee near Auburn, California, vowed to remain on his farm despite a night raid and intimidation attempts. Sheriff Silva placed round-the-clock guards on the Doi ranch and promised prosecution of the attackers.
• Governor Wallgren Opposes Return of Evacuees to Coast, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Washington Governor Mon C. Wallgren said he was unalterably opposed to the return of Japanese American evacuees to West Coast states for the duration of the war. He cited unspecified espionage concerns and questioned the loyalty of some evacuees.
• Kenny Asks Protection for Evacuee Group, by P.C. Staff, page 3. California Attorney General Robert W. Kenny wrote to state law enforcement officers urging full protection for returning Japanese Americans. He quoted a statement by the State Law Enforcement Advisers Committee pledging cooperation with the Army.
• Anti-Evacuee Group Formed in Salinas, by P.C. Staff, page 8. A Salinas group began organizing the Monterey Bay Council on Japanese Relations to discourage the return of persons of Japanese ancestry to the area. Its stated aims include education on anti-alien laws and promoting further legislation against Japanese Americans.
• San Jose Group Sets Up Plan to Aid Evacuees, by P.C. Staff, page 8. The San Jose Council for Civic Unity announced a special committee on housing to help former residents of Japanese ancestry return to the area. Officers and committee chairmen were named.
• Federal Government Asked to Assume Evacuee Relief Costs, by P.C. Staff, page 8. California State Senator Ed Fletcher submitted a resolution asking the federal government to take full responsibility for indigent relief among returning evacuees. He stated the government was wholly responsible for their removal and return.

National

• Opposition to Nisei Holds Up Vital War Industry in Ohio, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Plans to employ 150 American-born Nisei women from relocation centers at a Ohio rayon plant were temporarily halted after opposition from some white workers. WRA official Ross said the criticism was based on racial prejudice, and CIO union officials publicly opposed racial discrimination.
• National Legion Commander Urges Oregon Post Replace Nisei Names on Honor Roll, by P.C. Staff, page 2. American Legion National Commander Edward N. Scheiberling asked the Hood River, Oregon post to restore Nisei soldiers’ names removed from its county war memorial. He stated that racial hatred has no place in the Legion and that the post’s action was ill-advised.
• L.A. Market Official Denies Deal With Teamsters Union to Freeze Out Nisei Workers, by P.C. Staff, page 2. The Los Angeles Markets Arbitration Association denied reports of a pending deal with the Teamsters to exclude Nisei workers. It explained the Teamsters amended bylaws in 1944 to bar persons of Japanese ancestry, and the association had no control over union policy.

Military & Veterans

• War Department’s List Discloses Casualties in War Against Nazis, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The War Department identified 42 Japanese American soldiers killed and 82 wounded in action in the European theater. Next of kin were listed by state and territory, including many from relocation centers and Hawaii.
• Intra-Legion Battle Rages Over Bid to Nisei to Join Post, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Veterans of a Hollywood World War II American Legion post defended their admission of Harley H. Oka, a Nisei with a medical discharge, against district commander P. A. Horton’s threats. The post voted confidence in its action and refused to expel Oka.
• Sole Survivor of 5-Man Patrol Visits Topaz, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Pfc. Mac Fukasaki, the sole survivor of a five-man patrol destroyed by a German Stuka dive bomber in Italy, visited relatives in Topaz. He was wounded at Cassino and had been convalescing in Indiana.
• First Nisei Wounded in Luxembourg, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Pvt. Charles Itami of Hunt, Idaho, one of the first Hunt inductees called to active duty, was reported wounded in Luxembourg on December 26. He was inducted in April 1944 and sent overseas in December.
• Rifleman Kanetomi Protected Lives of Comrades in France, by P.C. Staff, page 6. Pvt. Jero Kanetomi of the 442nd Combat Team held off an enemy squad attempting a surprise attack near Bruyeres, France, enabling his company to counterattack. He was later killed in action on October 20.
• Wounded Soldiers Burned Up Over Discriminatory Actions, by P.C. Staff, page 6. Four Nisei soldiers convalescing at Fitzsimmons General Hospital in Denver said they resented discrimination such as the Hood River Legion action and an Arizona barbershop refusal. They said they wanted only to return home and work in peace.
• 64 Japanese Americans Earn Battlefield Promotions, High Praise for Conduct Under Fire, by P.C. Staff, page 8. Sixty-four members of the 442nd Combat Team received battlefield promotions for leadership and conduct in combat against the Germans in Italy and France. The article lists the promoted soldiers and their home addresses.

Community

• Navy Ban Blocks Nisei Fishermen, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Rep. Clair Engle said the Coast Guard had issued no policy allowing Japanese Americans to resume coastal fishing upon return to the West Coast. He cited a statement from the Coast Guard commandant denying any such announcement.
• Acts of Violence Deplored by Leader of Anti-Evacuee Group, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Charles De Costa, president of the Placer County Anti-Japanese League, condemned violence against the Doi family and urged members to refrain from violence. He pledged that the league would use peaceful picketing to pursue its goals.
• TOD Park Residents Earn Commendation From Superior Officers for Conscientious Work, by Marion Tajiri, page 5. Approximately 110 Japanese Americans from 100 families work at the Tooele Ordnance Depot in Utah, many in munitions handling and clerical roles. Their conscientious work has earned high praise from depot officers, and the article profiles several families and veterans among them.
• Reception Pleases Portland Nisei, by P.C. Staff, page 6. Portland hotel owner Ted Hachiya, returning from Salt Lake City, said he was pleased with the reception he received in Portland. He reported that residents bore no ill will toward Nisei because of their ancestry.

Commentary

• Placer Night-Riders, by P.C. Staff, page 4. The editorial condemns the arson and dynamite attempt against Sumio Doi’s packing shed and calls for full prosecution of perpetrators. It praises Doi’s determination to remain on his land as a fight for American principles.
• Governor Wallgren, by P.C. Staff, page 4. The editorial rebukes Governor Wallgren for opposing the return of evacuees and his unsupported insinuations of underground collaboration. It argues his reasoning would logically call for evacuating all West Coast residents.
• National Legion Commander Hits Bigotry, by Bill Hosokawa, page 4. Hosokawa praises National Legion Commander Scheiberling for repudiating the Hood River post’s removal of Nisei names. He notes that protests from Legion posts nationwide likely influenced the statement and that the Legion has a long tradition of Americanization.
• Nisei U.S.A.: The Issei Heritage, by Larry Tajiri, page 4. Tajiri argues that the Nisei have thoroughly integrated into American life, leaping rather than bridging the gap between Oriental and Occidental cultures. He credits the Issei with contributions to American industry and agriculture.
• Letter from Noriko Sawada on Nisei Interest in Other Problems, by Noriko Sawada, page 6. Sawada urges the JACL and Pacific Citizen to address the problems of other racial minorities, not only Japanese Americans. She argues that interracial awareness would strengthen the JACL and advance equality for all minorities.

JACL

• Kay Terashima Elected to Head Salt Lake JACL, by P.C. Staff, page 6. Kay Terashima was elected president of the Salt Lake City JACL chapter at its January 19 meeting. Other officers and board members were also named for the coming year.
• Initial Issue of JACL Reporter Goes to Press, by P.C. Staff, page 7. The JACL Reporter, a new monthly four-page publication for members edited by JACL Denver representative Joe Masaoka, made its first appearance. The first issue covered the Fair Play committee conference in San Francisco and the Pocatello Intermountain council meeting.
• Eight Intermountain Chapters Represented at Idaho Meeting, by P.C. Staff, page 8. JACL national president Saburo Kido spoke at an Intermountain district council meeting in Pocatello, expressing hope that wartime services would end by 1946. He said the JACL would stress resettlement throughout 1945 before curtailing its activities.

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