The Benton County Historical Society's Philomath Museum is hosting an exhibition of posters from the Smithsonian on “Righting a Wrong: Japanese Americans and World War II.”
At the time of the attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, there were a number of Japanese immigrants (who were not allowed to become naturalized citizens) and American-born citizens of Japanese descent in Benton County. Almost all were OSU students. Within 4 days, 35 American citizens of Japanese ancestry who were students at Oregon State signed a letter to the school's president expressing their “unswerving loyalty to our country, the United States of American, and to all her institutions.” They also expressed their desire to continue their studies and for “any opportunity to prove our mettle and our devotion to the College and to our State and Nation.” An additional signee, Molly Kageyama, had graduated and was working in the admissions office. There were no other Japanese or Japanese-Americans living in Benton County at the time.
Two other students grew up in Oregon but were not citizens because they had been born in Japan. As they were not citizens, they did not sign the letter. One, Marjorie Horagami, had been born while her immigrant parents were on vacation in Japan. She did not even realize she wasn't a citizen until she was 18.
The other student who was considered a Japan alien was Chiaki (Jack) Yoshihara. His mother's first marriage did not work out and, pregnant, she returned to Japan. Jack was born 3 months after she arrived there. When he was 3 years old, he and his mother came to Oregon on the last ship allowed into the United States before immigration from Japan was prohibited. After his mother remarried, Jack's parents operated a restaurant in Portland. He graduated from Benson High School and enrolled at Oregon State.
In 1941, Jack was a sophomore engineering student at Oregon State. He was also an athlete who wrestled and was a kicker and left end for the football team. That year, Oregon State was invited to be the West Coast representative at the Rose Bowl. Everyone, including Jack, was excited. After the attack on Pearl Harbor, the U. S. government banned all large gatherings on the West Coast for fear large crowds would become an attractive target. The Rose Bowl could not be held in Pasadena, California. Fortunately for Beaver fans, Duke offered to host the game in North Carolina and arrangements were quickly made to travel there.
But Jack Yoshihara could not travel with the team because people born in Japan were considered security risks and were not allowed to travel more than 35 miles from home. Oregon State tried to obtain special permit for Jack to go with the team but FBI agents arrived and informed the coaches that no exception would be made. The rest were allowed to go. Oregon State won the Rose Bowl game 20 to 16. A banquet was held for the team when they returned to Corvallis. Jack was highlighted in the program which will be on display in the Corvallis Museum when it opens.
In February of 1942, President Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066 which allowed the military to create security zones and remove any or all people from them. By April, those of Japanese heritage (both immigrants and their children who were birthright citizens) were ordered to register and then report to an assigned temporary detention center. Jack Yoshihara and many of his classmates were ordered to the Portland center at the Pacific Livestock Exposition center. Later they were sent to an incarceration camp in Minidoka, Idaho, arriving in the middle of a dust storm. At the camp, Jack was named fire chief for one section of the camp. He also worked in the fields and delivered parcels. He contacted the football coach at the University of Utah who arranged for a scholarship and a job. Utah was far enough inland that Jack was allowed to leave. Other OSU Japanese-American students also arranged to continue their education at schools away from the West Coast.
Jack played several positions for the Utah football team during the fall of 1942. The newspapers there frequently referred to him as their “Rose Bowler.” After marrying, he left Utah for jobs in Detroit and other cities in the east. After the war he returned to Portland, became a member of the Plumbers and Steamfitters Union and worked in refrigeration for Fred Meyer.
In 1988, the 1942 Rose Bowl team was inducted into the Oregon State Hall of Fame. Jack Yoshihara was included in the ceremonies and presented with a Rose Bowl ring. In May, 2007, the Oregon legislature passed a bill allowing OSU and other state institutions to award honorary degrees to individuals who were forced to leave college for incarceration in one of the camps. Jack Yoshihara was one of five students who attended the 2008 Commencement to receive this degree. Eleven other degrees were presented to family members of other students.
By Martha Fraundorf, Volunteer for Benton County Historical Society, Philomath, Oregon
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