PAGE TWO
THE NEW CANADIAN
Wednesday, October 24, 135-
<v;-
*?;
K-
S�M
An In4<p�n<t*nt
Published on Wednesday ind Saturday of etch week
as a rhedium or expression and news outlet
among those of Japanese origin in Canada.
hen Adachi..... .'..._____l._.-....__Editor.
Tftkftiehi Umetuti _------�-Japanese Section Wltor
Ken Mori '.. ,..,.�
Office Houit: 8:30 a.m.-6:30 p.m. Monday to Friday. 9:00 a.m.-12 noon, Saturday. 479 Queen St. W. '� PLaza 5005
Subscription, in Advance: $3.00 for six month* $6.00 per one year
Toronto, Ont.
Authorized as second class mail, Post Office Dept.; Ottawa
~^~A^d^doy~6ctDber 24/:i95T ' , .
NO COMMENT NECESSARY
.-�"� The Manitoba'JCCA in publishing its maiden' issue of, "The Outlook", a modest mimeographed effort,; had 'some-basic, things to' say- about the JCCA in. its first editorial. Further comment v/e think -is unnecessary.. We.quote, therefore, in part; ' ..�:-'�; . / � ;..."� �''�_.'..'��. " .\ -.;��' ' ,; .: '' ' � � :�'� �
''The Manitoba JCCA wns organi/ed in the year 1945 at the
time \vhen cancellation of voluntary repatriation � to''Japan was a
major concern to a large number ;bf persons of Japanese racial
'origin; :' ��� ';' -� � �� '-;.�;.,-: .'; .�-.�-. ' �'�; �: .' , � :. . � ,'. � ',- ";.'..." A- \ .-.'.
"From this beginning and for the past six years, the Manitoba JCCA has functioned well as a member chapter of the. �National JCCA to ."prompt c the welfare and to protect the citizenship rights of Japanese .Canadians, i �
"Through the undying support and. co-operation of its mem-. hers, w-e have made -"great achievements and. today we find thai many of the problems which ,hel.d the "attention of each and even' one of UK. have largely been ovenrome. Some say that a need '.Tor:an organ j'/.at ion of this sort has passed. It is true that we have over-:come inany restrictions governing us but that does '.not moan that an organi/atjou is not roqiiired. ;. . -
"In ;pre-war days there were; several Issei s and Nisei groups organfeed on; a local scale but i\one -'with a far-reaching program and purpose as the present National JGCA with;.its":.member chapiters- throughout Canada; We had a habit of imjshrooming together whenever a .problem/arose and disbanded �"�..immediately., after the problem, was solved. We found .out from our.experience in-the p<tst that this method ir- costly and ineffective. ' :� '�;..
"The thinking Japanese. Canadians; wMl recognize that a strong organization with a .purpose is vital to their progress and welfare' �just as it is shown by achievements of the JCCA in the past�and it is needed in the future. . -: :
"There is an old Chinese saying which says--it: is easy to bend ono stick of wood, .imt to t)end ar number of sticks jointed together is difficult and it is impossible to break them.. ".'�.'�=.
UNITED NATIONS DAY
. -'Today/. .Wednesday; October 24,; is United-Nations Day:
~;and' the sixth anniversary' of the founding of,tire UN-is being
noted in'countries all over the world. We'cannoi -.hcvrcvcr,
say 'Yelebrated'', because .the- UN is basically an orgahiza-
Letters, To The Editor
More on Oratorical ,. �
Editor, The New Canadian:
I wish to comment on the controversial issue in regard to the giving of prize money at the Toronto JCCA Oratorical Contest. First of all, I felt great joy in reading that we still have Niseis who will write to the editor and politely express a difference of opinion with one of the writers on the paper.
I am willing to agree with !*ome of the points raised, by a students who ".take exception to last week's Habit on Oratorical". �IJut on the other hand, foyo Ta- j kata who objects to the prize' money offered by: the Toronto j JCCA, has eminierated some es: scntial points which certainly need consideration.
In Our modern, over-materialistic world, are we so burdened down by the idea .-that /.'.'money'., is everything, money is Ciod", that we do not realize the intrinsic value of .education, art, culture, and oratory ? Isn't :it true that a real education or art �of-'-oxjii-ess^on is : priceless ? Have w'c totally �lost-.'ouY inherited sense of appreciation,' sense: of sa:tis-; faction in learning truth' f o r truth's sake, in express.ng our, sc-lves for the sake of conimuni-catirig our deety, inner feelings and thoughts? .Is..money, or prize an "ultimate"goal of education oi-self-expression? Isn't it true that money or prize is onjy a byproduct or means. towards an �end> ;�:;;."��.'."-:' /"';. -/: '"'',";-''"- -\'.,�;'-/I also hinnbly-\vish:fo reiterate Toyo Takata's vital point�-tliat too nnich emphasis should .NOT be placed on "lucrative b'doty'W but let us put- the emphasis on the art of self-expression. By the art. of; self-expression,; I do not mean an "artificial, or .superficial; speech" fused ^jth "book vocabulary", but a simpie, clear, and lively Knglish expressioSi.; .
; '.��;'.'' .Subscriber, . -, : ; Toronto,'Ont.
Nisei Visitors in Japan
as"'necessary to' preserve -said .peace. . ' . - � -� -.'" � ;-.".- -. � . \Ve-ca:Vriot honestly "celebrate '.UN Day y.-heri a v.-.ar lias been raain;i: -despite' ir.c. spa's medic peace parleys between the priric.ipols . fcr \vell eve: one year. There is .cpnil.ictr'in Fr.
Bias; in ;VdnGbuver
Kditor^. The Sun:� Practis-! ''^ my shorthand in'ono of. the. ! city bus i lie's s"'- colleges, I heard { the" door close atul looked'up U>
"t see a pretty girl who was smartIv '
i . . � * i
I and- neatly dressed: J>he was,. I i i might add. ;.Chiiie?e. [
shc> ^as
: our pnn- !
* , -
by LARRY TAJIRI
The New Canadian recently reprinted two of Pacific Citizen columnist Roku Sugahara's articles on the impact of postwar Nisei visitors to Japan and of Japanese visitors to the t'. >S. It seemed that the columns stirred something of a controversy in the Japanese news-, papers. Here Larry Tajiri bf the Pacific Citizen comments further, on the topic. ' - ''.�.*'���'.*''��* � Briefly, Roku Sugahara's com-: elusions were thai the Nisei "are still batting a flat juicy zero in .the - social acceptance^ league in Japan" aiid^that Japanese visitors to the U.S. were embarass-ingly obsequious generally ' biit were inclined to throw their weight around whan they, visited the local Japanese American communities;.. .
Hack before P c a r 1 .H a r b o r when the Kast Asia Co-Pmsper-ity Sphere was Tokyo s dream of empire, , most Niseis got short shrift in Japan being, regarded in some quarters to be socially declasse because of ilieir inimi-grant Jieritage and in others as potentially dangerous, being something of an inverled Yellow Peril, bringing in the,free breath of a demo'cratic culture into the binding atmosphere of <i police state..' -..� -:: - ..-.. -:- ^ . ... '�'':':'�:'''��'��� �
It is lo be doubted if ^the great mass of the average citizens of Japan ever cared:one way or the other; Jibout the Nisei visitors, except . to meet ; them on their own -terms, but first impressions arc often the most pairi-ful and (he Nisei who ran up against social snobbishness and were foolish enough to care about it were apt to develop a distorted perspective. Similarly the Japanese secret police; the dreaded Kempeitai, undoubtedly r inflated the nuisance value of the visiting Nisei, most of :wHom had no interest in ideological activity and were in Japan to visit rela-tivejv see the country and learn the language.
The inability, of the Nisei "to communicate with the. average Japanese, because :of the-ir Jack of proficietTcy in the J.apanbs�i guage, probably compounded .any misunderstanding which ar-.o?e. . ^
Hack in the IDSO's, of course,
there was another class �.f. \i<(;. albeit small in number, wh,. \-onto Japan in search of o^o:;o! , securfty. Many \ven> iiueros;, vi ;n a future-in foreign 'tradi\'tVt-!ii^ that their knowledge -of Knt;!;^, might be an asset. Other ior the American shore, in fui; ro-treat against economic an^s..^;;,:; discrimination becausr t,f,.!;Uv/ This, was particularly in;t> 'i ;' Nisei' who.were trainee! \ ,,v skilled trades and the profi-ssiV^-^ who found their .futures' b!nvke<i by proju<lice, particularly"ii> th,.. Pacific � � Coast .urbiny renters. .The.s.y -Nisei, ;of course, felt tnv soon, .for most of these tra-loV and prof6ss'io'iis;-'no\v . are op't'-n to all who liuve tlic training.. �"��
On our one trip to. .Japan Ix-. fore the war we met many; of these expatriates, most of uhoiYr appeared to be unhappy wHh (he. choice they had made and\vorc determined to return to-the I";ii-ted States. Most of thoni still lived a Nisei community .life-iin the fringe, of the foreign colony and frequented the same restaurants, the .same bars and. attended' American and foreign movies for entertainment. They seemed to he resisting any tendency to; become integrated . with t lie Japa -. nese community.
The several thousand Nisei ulhV Avent to Japan in the 1 Ooi)'<; A\-civ-impelled by a desire to escape from race discrimination, as'-well. as by the fact t hat- Japan ap-pjeared"" -to. provide the sort or cc'php niic: opp.o.r t u n i t y w h.ii c h >vas lackiiig in an America �einerging from the financial depression of the .early i030's. Most of these Nisei probably had returned home by 1941 but others .wer^ caught.and stranded by'..the-faci "of war. There were, for; example. (i.M) .persons,- mostly' Nisei..aboard the NYK. Line's Tatsuta; Ma'nr .-whit'h turned back to Japan,'in late November of ;lDr41 after �CH.ir.'-'.rng v.-ilhin sight of Hawaii. ;
'.-' After.Hiroshima and V-J. Hay, thousands of other Sit-ei visited Japan, mostly in the uniform or t'!^' U.S. Army as'�.interpret<?i>.-interrogators and translator:- for (lie pcc'upafion..-' Mov-it i>f tlu'.-t' Nisei were just doing a job .-nui were anxiou?. to get b.ick to.tlu'-.States, as soon as their tojir'.of duty was finished. A few may have thrown their weiulif uromvl
f on � PJP?'''^)~
t �
"
t �e i^i'CiO'o r vi'�"* �'� "~"ore *" x -."�^""-" c'*-^.-> **-�'.["* c'^jTt'^* "-.".^" ;".
^'' i.. " .> v- C ",. ,. , ' ^ A",~ ; . ,\,' '�;.�.._'. . � j. � -," �
-. -- ^>Y,N'x__% ..-,., ^..,^,_ ..._,*_ j,.^,'
cipal, i'n'perf�'ct Knglish. whether i : shf k:iew <;>f iii\y available-SCHTO- ' 'i'tarial j-ihs. h >/;':rs'Margin-(:lv-j r:'ni-!p:�i .:.:'d';;>- ;att>r) you!<l (ji;a- i l\ f'-r itny p�-is;:i-.tn ro�.ju;rinir a ;
witr.
The Limit Is 2OO
.\Veddinsrs._ at .-least, in Toront-) | ,,ut. Of course, th. �<��� Ni>ei stylo. ;>, j� SI.UOM p]u^ pro- .^,^\ iu'iv?.-arilv. bo ':ru�- ��
:��; "'r;'v .>. ;--:.-i-ra'r �";'"f:j^b>"
.��r �'<O'r.
!.'.�� �' yr rtd �-f ��\\\:^>-< \\i:: '.�� ��:.,p!"y.rr.-. .fft-r-'ti \\-rt-; t.
.- �� � 'L ' ''� � ' �. �'-]> �'�;.-� r> tr\-� �' ' '' " � �" ' �'.'.- '';��'�, -^ '\ *.--~.
:��.'_�>::;D:;. Ai:'d t:n^t'> not including
<>:it? jungle dollar tltai gi-os. .to-
'v-:�rd> ..funiishi.n.ir ti;t- nes: or
noill^.er exaggorated J;<T
�> c r�i ia:k.!;i,' ;i:i.>;jt :;.-� avor1 >.^<> f,�r ii>o price �<'' ''�'�=-
I'"" yifts f.<r attt-ndar/ts >--*. r
N
cu
and say
The
r^cep:: u.ir w:"
Acknowledgements
. -.
.f -
and it we're
nation* fror- �* Mr. and Mr*
>. But *
i
H.
M
M -
-J "I
are people.
h> *
ue
g-ure
o
bserve cervmony and trad;