The Dies Committee hearings and the JACL’s reply, July 1943

Vol. 16, No. 26, July 3, 1943. 8 pages. View this issue

The Dies Committee’s hearings on the Japanese American Citizens League took up most of this eight-page issue. On the front page, JACL national president Saburo Kido answered pre-hearing press reports, calling them “full of vicious and misleading insinuations” against the organization’s integrity. Stories covered the first witnesses, Interior Secretary Harold Ickes standing by his employees, and the plan to widen the inquiry to race riots. Editorials responded in kind, and A. L. Wirin wrote that the Supreme Court had ruled only on the curfew in the Yasui and Hirabayashi cases, urging a new test case on the exclusion orders.

Other pages followed Nisei soldiers, including the Japanese American combat team at Camp Shelby, a dentist commissioned a first lieutenant, and the first Nisei woman accepted into the WAAC from Heart Mountain. Columns by Bill Hosokawa, Joe Masaoka and Molly Oyama are inside, along with a homemade cooler for summer food.

What’s in this issue

Incarceration & Redress

• JACL President Charges Dies Committee Attack Upon Nisei Integrity, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Saburo Kido, JACL national president, responded to Dies Committee press reports calling them vicious and misleading insinuations about the organization’s integrity. He stated the JACL cooperated with government agencies as a patriotic duty and denied claims that it dominated War Relocation Authority policy.
• Dies Group Opens Hearings on Japanese Americans, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The Dies Committee hearing turned to questions of WRA-JACL collaboration and confidential reports, with Private Joe Kanazawa testifying. No Communist activity in the JACL had been uncovered by the time hearings recessed.
• First Witness Asks for Segregation of Disloyal Elements in WRA Centers, by P.C. Staff, page 1. At the first day of Dies Committee hearings, former Manzanar resident Tokutaro Nishimura Slocum asked for segregation of disloyal evacuees while treating the loyal group fairly. Paul Yozo Abe also testified about his prewar relationship with the Japanese Embassy.
• Dies to Investigate Race Riots in Connection With Present JACL Hearings, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The Dies Committee announced its hearings on evacuee relocation and JACL relations would be broadened to include nationwide racial disturbances such as the Detroit riot. Chairman Martin Dies claimed the riots resulted from combined foreign and domestic propaganda operations.
• California Legislature Will Demand Voice in Postwar Plan for Evacuee Problems, by P.C. Staff, page 2. The California Assembly appointed a five-man interim committee to study evacuee questions with a focus on postwar issues. The resolution asserted that the state’s interests should be fully considered in any settlement.
• Nisei Reply to Own Charges, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Boise American Legion commander Dan Banks released a letter from evacuee Sueo Murakami responding to complaints about unrestricted evacuee movement in Idaho. Murakami argued evacuees were helping the war effort and wanted to settle permanently.
• Yasui, Hirabayashi Ready to Serve Their Sentences, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Minoru Yasui and Gordon Hirabayashi said they were prepared to serve prison sentences following the Supreme Court decision on their curfew cases. Yasui said he would proceed as General MacArthur would, getting on with the war.
• Tule Lake WRA Director Deplores False Charges Directed at Newell Camp, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Tule Lake director Harvey Coverly criticized rumors and half-truths about the camp in a talk to the Dunsmuir Lion’s Club. He responded point by point to charges in an American Legion report about the center.
• Evacuee-Held Businesses Are Threatened, by P.C. Staff, page 3. A Sacramento County petition sought forfeiture of 62 inactive evacuee-held business licenses, and the board referred it to the district attorney. The supervisors also voiced opposition to releasing evacuees from relocation camps.
• 250 Evacuees Leave Poston Each Month, Report Says, by P.C. Staff, page 6. Dr. E. H. Spicer reported that about 250 evacuees per month are being released from Poston, reducing the population from 1,000 to 16,000. He said the remaining population will consist of those known to be disloyal.
• Supreme Court Ruled On Curfew Only, by P.C. Staff, page 7. The author clarifies that the Supreme Court decision in the Yasui and Hirabayashi cases addressed only the legality of the curfew order, not evacuation. The author expresses concern that the reasoning could set a dangerous precedent for other minority groups.
• Vallejo Body Seeks Evacuee Deportation But Is Opposed, by P.C. Staff, page 8. A Vallejo city council resolution calling for deportation of evacuees drew formal objection from the Inter-Racial Affairs committee, led by Rev. Lester Eisel. Councilman Frank Brew and Mayor John Stewart defended the resolution.
• JACL Council Recommends New Test Case on Evacuation, by A. L. Wirin, page 8. Justice Murphy’s concurring opinion in the Supreme Court curfew case warned that racial distinctions in citizenship are dangerous and that restrictions must be removed when danger passes. Wirin urges an immediate test case challenging the legality of exclusion orders against citizens of Japanese descent.

Military & Veterans

• Navy Language School Rated Plenty Tough, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Drew Pearson’s column describes the Naval Intelligence Japanese Language School at Boulder, Colorado as exceptionally demanding, with Japanese American instructors teaching hand-picked candidates intensively. Students study kanji for long hours over fourteen months without other duties.
• First Nisei Girl Accepted for Service in WAAC, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Mary Arakawa, 21, of Heart Mountain was accepted into the Women’s Army Auxiliary Corps, the first from her center to join. She had worked in Casper and hopes to pursue nursing in the army.
• Hawaiian Japanese Inducted Into Army Interpreter Unit, by P.C. Staff, page 2. 248 volunteers of Japanese ancestry were inducted into a special combat interpreter unit at Schofield Barracks. Many of the inductees have relatives serving on the mainland and several have large families.
• Lieutenancy Is Given Nisei Dentist, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Dr. Carl Hirota, former San Francisco dentist and JACL leader, was commissioned a first lieutenant in the Army Medical Corps. Second Lieutenant Kei Tanahashi, an infantry officer and ROTC graduate, was also called to active duty.
• Denson USO Center Opens Doors For Nisei Servicemen, by P.C. Staff, page 3. A new USO house was established at Jerome center to entertain visiting servicemen, and center girls were asked to register with the chairman. Camp Savage soldiers were entertained there the previous weekend.
• Nisei Rookie Finds Army Keeps Democratic Habits of U. S. Civilian Life, by Taro Katayama, page 5. Taro Katayama reflects on the awkwardness of new recruits adjusting to military life and identity. He observes that soldiers retain democratic habits of behavior even under military discipline.
• Center Girls Entertain Camp Shelby Volunteers, by P.C. Staff, page 6. Eighty-six nisei girls from Jerome and Rohwer visited Camp Shelby for a second weekend of dances and entertainment with the Japanese American combat team. The event featured a dance march led by Colonel C. W. Pence and open-air church services.
• Nisei Volunteers Show Natural Aptitude For Work, Says Army Surgeon, by P.C. Staff, page 7. Regimental Surgeon Capt. C. H. Buckley praised the Japanese American soldiers in the Medical Detachment at Camp Shelby for their natural aptitude and zeal for study. He said many had prior pre-medical or hospital experience.
• National Figures Praise Heart Mountain Volunteers, by P.C. Staff, page 8. Public figures including Secretary of War Henry Stimson and Justice Felix Frankfurter responded to letters from Heart Mountain volunteers for the combat team. Several praised the volunteers and criticized the segregation policy.

National

• Harold Ickes Stands by Employees, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Interior Secretary Harold Ickes said he knew of no subversive activity among Japanese American evacuees working on his Maryland farm. He dismissed Dies Committee claims about their JACL meeting attendance.
• Luxury Foods Not Bought For Evacuees, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Army civilian buyer Roy E. Smith denied reports that the government was purchasing luxury foods for relocation center evacuees. He said melons bought for the army went to armed forces rather than camps.
• Evacuation of Hawaiian Japanese Population Asked, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Former Mutual Telephone chairman J. A. Balch proposed moving at least 100,000 Hawaiians of Japanese descent to mainland farming states. Balch argued this would protect the territory from internal trouble and political and economic domination.

Community

• Wyoming Sends Two Delegates to Conference, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Masago Shibuya of Heart Mountain and Shozi Oniki of Granada were chosen as Rocky Mountain region representatives to the National Inter-Racial Christian Congress. The conference was held at Lake Geneva, Wisconsin in June.
• Iowa Reports, by Teiko Ishida, page 6. Dr. T. T. Yatabe’s family reported a warm reception at a Brethren church conference in Centerville, Iowa, where their son performed and Dr. Yatabe spoke. The report encourages evacuees interested in farming to consider resettlement in Iowa.
• Home-made Cooler Will Keep Foods Fresh This Summer, by Ann Nisei, page 6. A homemade cooler made from wood, muslin, and a gallon tin can can keep food fresh through evaporative cooling. The column gives instructions for building a two-shelf version.

Commentary

• Major Constitutional Issues of Evacuation Undecided by Supreme Court, Says Wirin, by A. L. Wirin, page 3. JACL special counsel A. L. Wirin explains that the Supreme Court upheld only the curfew orders and left the constitutionality of evacuation, detention, and continued exclusion undecided. He calls for an immediate new test case challenging the military exclusion orders.
• Race Riots vs. Our War Aims, by P.C. Staff, page 4. The editorial condemns the wave of race riots in Detroit, Beaumont, Vallejo, Los Angeles, and Fort Bliss as shameful evidence that some Americans refuse to abandon bigotry during war. It argues that racial discrimination must be confronted if the nation’s war aims are to have validity.
• And Now We Speak, by P.C. Staff, page 4. The editorial responds to the Dies Committee hearings on JACL activities, which it says were preceded by sensational press releases that aired charges without giving the defense a chance to be heard. It welcomes the opportunity to present the JACL’s side in an open congressional session.
• The Obstructionists, by P.C. Staff, page 4. The editorial criticizes a portion of the American press for venting uninformed hatred, maligning individuals, and violating professional ethics. It cites a Denver Post editorial that publicly ridiculed a woman who wrote a letter protesting its treatment of evacuees.
• The Hearings, by P.C. Staff, page 4. The writer reflects on returning to New York after sixteen months, noting the dimout and wartime changes while comparing the city’s relative freedom from racial pressure to the situation facing Japanese Americans. The piece observes New York’s small Japanese American population and their employment in restaurants and war plants.
• Enemy Propaganda at Work, by Peter Wood, page 4. Washington correspondent Peter Wood examines axis radio broadcasts that repeatedly warn of an imminent allied invasion of Europe. He argues the enemy is using a war of nerves to shore up morale and frighten the allied public.
• The Evacuee: An Unwitting Rip Van Winkle, by Bill Hosokawa, page 5. Bill Hosokawa describes train travel across the country and observes the national manpower shortage, with previously unemployable people filling jobs. He argues evacuees in the centers are increasingly unaware of wartime changes and urges greater resettlement efforts to employ willing hands.
• Nisei Will Work Out Own Salvation, by Molly Oyama, page 6. Molly Oyama describes encouraging reactions from Denver church members toward Japanese American congregants and recounts a letter exchange with a War Mother who had objected to nisei. She argues that prejudice is often born of ignorance and can be overcome through personal contact.
• Pray to Retain Evacuees in Centers, Says Missionary, by P.C. Staff, page 8. Missionary Dr. Ralph Leonard Phillips urged Christians to write to Washington and pray to keep Japanese Americans in detention camps. He argued that evacuees from California should not be allowed to return until after the war.
• California Minister Defends Nisei, Urges Race Tolerance, by P.C. Staff, page 8. Rev. E. Alexander Gray opposed a Kiwanis resolution urging the government to stop releasing Japanese Americans from relocation centers. He warned that rising race prejudice could lead to a terrible Third World War.

JACL

• JACL Forms Library for Its Members, by P.C. Staff, page 6. The Salt Lake office received some fifty books forming the basis of a JACL circulating library, to be distributed to thirteen active chapters. The selection ranges from recent nonfiction to humor and includes works by Grew, Willkie, Carey McWilliams, and Pearl Buck.
• JACL Boosters, by P.C. Staff, page 6. A Topaz membership and subscription drive raised $304.50 with the help of several active solicitors. Chairman Henry Tani then embarked on a two-month speaking tour of midwestern states.
• Colorado Calling!, by Joe Masaoka, page 6. Joe Masaoka describes a Denver street incident in which a JACL staff member intervened to stop a fight between drunken men and nisei, and a Caucasian soldier helped shame the instigators. He also reflects on misdirected aggression and the value of unionization for nisei workers.
• Timely Topics, by Saburo Kido, page 7. Kido criticizes California race-baiters who questioned the loyalty of Nisei while obstructing their induction into the combat team. He argues volunteers’ willingness to die for their country is the ultimate test of loyalty and criticizes Mayor Bowron of Los Angeles for his turnabout.

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