Shima George (5 results)

Soft cover. Condition: Very Good. Book is tight, bright and clean. Book shows some light storage wear.

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An eloquent and passionate pair of pamphlets arguing against the proposed California Alien Land Law of 1920. The earlier Alien Land Law of 1913 was born of the growing anti-Japanese sentiment of the era. Passed by an overwhelming majority (despite protests from the Japanese consulate), it prohibited any aliens ineligible for citizenship from owning or leasing farmland long-term. In actuality, the 1913 act was not particularly effective. Many Japanese immigrants were able to get around its stipulations by gifting their lands to their American-born children, and despite the government's efforts Japanese farmers were responsible for seventy-five percent of the vegetables consumed in Los Angeles in 1915. The state attempted to remedy the situation with the Alien Land Law of 1920, which imposed much stricter measures and closed the loopholes of the first law, with an absolute prohibition on land ownership by Japanese citizens for any duration and protections against first-generation immigrants transferring titles to their children. The 1920 law was more successful in its aims, and the total acres farmed by Japanese Americans declined by forty percent between 1920 and 1930. An Appeal to Justice was written prior to the public vote on the second law, by George Shima, "the Potato King" responsible for eighty-five percent of California's potato crop and the first president of the Japanese Association of America. Shima was born in Fukuoka before coming to San Francisco in his mid-twenties, where he worked his way up from a day laborer to the head of a potato-growing empire and regularly fought for better race relations for the Japanese population in California. In this pamphlet, he argues not for free and unregulated immigration from Japan, but rather that the "Gentleman's Agreement" of 1907 was adequate and any amendments should be made through open conversation between the two national governments. Primarily, however, the pamphlet is an appeal to morality: "Obviously these extreme proposals involve the question of constitutionality. Strong arguments can be advanced against them upon the ground that they are unconstitutional. To us, however, the prime consideration is not a legal one, but one of justice and equity." "We know that the constitution of the United States guarantees to all 'persons' under the American flag the equal protection of laws. We have believed, as we still believe, that this is a promise of protection for the homes and fortunes of all who come here under the law and under the treaty to help develop your great resources.In the face of all this, it is hard for us to believe that the present agitation against us has the sanction of Americanism." Shima ends his Appeal to Justice by inviting readers to visit the Japanese Association of America's offices to request a pamphlet with more details. Facts in the Case is the referenced pamphlet, which begins: "When Mr. George Shima, president of our Association, published an appeal to the people of California, he was deluged with letters asking him to furnish more data bearing on the question." FACTS IN THE CASE presents data about the Japanese population of California and rebuts alarmist counter-arguments, providing valuable insight into the commonly held fears of the time. Among other concerns, he stresses that there would be "No Japanese Control of Farm Produce" due to the existence of growers' associations, addressing a public concern that Japanese farmers could somehow monopolize produce and price gouge their (White) customers, and outlines why there would be "No Hawaiianization of California," due to the very different histories of those two places. The pamphlet ends on a hopeful note: "We do not doubt that the people of California will think twice before they decide to vote upon such an important measure as has been presented to them, involving the grave question of the national honor and justice in the defense of which their fathers did not hesitate to sacrifice even their own blood." Unfortunately, these hopes were unfounded. When the people of California voted on the new law, it passed with a thundering majority of 668,438 to 222,086. A pair of scarce, revealing pamphlets, in remarkably nice condition, speaking out against the powerful anti-Japanese sentiment growing in the early 20th century, especially after the First World War. OCLC locates An Appeal to Justice at thirteen institutions, and Facts in the Case at just nine. First pamphlet is a single folded sheet with three panels of text on each side of the sheet; second is staple-bound. Both measuring approximately 8¾ x 4 inches. Light general wear. Both near fine.…