Initial discussions surrounding the formation of the JACL Midwest District Council began in May 1946 when Chicago JACL president, Noboru Honda, conferred with Masao Satow, then the National JACL Regional Representative about future JACL activities in the Midwest. They envisioned chapters in Chicago, Detroit, Ann Arbor, Milwaukee, St. Louis, Cincinnati and possibly Minneapolis.
On February 1, 1947, Tats Kushida was appointed as the JACL Midwest Director in Chicago. His primary responsibility was to organize the Midwest District Council, which entailed assistance in either forming or activating chapters in the Midwest.
On April 26, 1947, delegates from 6 out of 7 chapters met in Chicago at the Lawson YMCA to activate the JACL Midwest District Council. Henry Tani from St. Louis, chaired the meeting where the delegates elected Mari Sabusawa from Chicago as the temporary chair. Also elected were 1st vice chair, Abe Hagiwara, Cleveland; 2nd vice chair Henry Tani, St. Louis; Eureka Sato, Chicago, recording secretary; Peter Fujioka, Detroit, treasurer; Julius Fujihira, Milwaukee, historian; Sam Shijo, Twin Cities, publicity. The meeting also featured guests from the national JACL including Mas Satow, national secretary; Hito Okada, national president, Mike Masaoka, national legislative director; Tats Kushida, Midwest Director.
The official delegates representing chapters at this activation meeting were Julius Fujihira and Chiz Satow, Milwaukee; Pete Fujioka and Willis Hirata, Detroit; Abe Hagiwara and Frank Shiba, Cleveland; Henry Tani and Mine Kamei, St. Louis; Sam Shijo and Jon Matsuo, Twin Cities; Jack Nakagawa and Mari Sabusawa, Chicago. Among their actions, the delegates voted to raise $27,000 to support the national JACL and to meet in the fall of 1947 to formalize the Midwest District Council by electing officers.
In October 1947, the JACL Midwest District Council met at Hull House in Chicago where they elected Henry Tani as chairman of the MDC. His cabinet was comprised of Noboru Honda as vice president from Chicago; Frank Shiba, second vice president, Cleveland; James Hashimoto, treasurer; Eureka Sato, recording secretary, Chicago; Nami Shio, historian, Milwaukee; Peter Ohtaka, publicity director. This two-day session included a number of workshops that featured speakers from a number of organizations from Chicago including the Chicago Urban League, the National Conference of Christians and Jews, the Industrial Relations Center at the University of Chicago, the American Council on Race Relations and the Greater Chicago Church Federation.
Today, the JACL Midwest District Council is comprised of the following twelve chapters; Chicago, Wisconsin, Hoosier, Twin Cities, Cleveland, Dayton, Cincinnati, Detroit, St. Louis, Omaha, Albuquerque and Houston. Their work is assisted by the JACL Midwest Office in Chicago. |
