The Northwest times. [volume] (Seattle, Wash.) 1947-1955, 1950-04-08
Newspaper Halls
Decision against
Alien Land Law

Enulng Legal MOnStrOlty was
the caption for an editorial appear
ing in the March 20 issue of the
Santa Monica Evening outlook COM
mending Superior Judge Thurmond
Clarke for his fortnight decision
in declaring the alien land law of
California unconstitutional. the re-
gional JACL office reported this
week
The fact that they Cthe alien
land laws) struck mainly at persons
who are not citizens is no excuse
fer the basic injustice. 1t is almost
inconceivable that any person with
in our borders should be denied the
ordinary rights which the United
States has championed. Yet this has
been the effect of California's alien
land law the editorial said.
In pointing out the facts i'm the
Masaoka case recently heard be-
fore Judge Clarke's court, the edi-
toriaI revealed the utter absurdity
of attempting to deny rights to
some individuals without ieOpar-
dizing the rights of ALI.
The complete editorial follows:
"A legal discrimination against
japanese in California which has
persisted for 81 years has now been
reversed by a decision of Superior
Judge Thurmond Clarke, who ruled
that the state Alien Land Law Is
unconstitutional. Framed during
wave of opposition to Japanese i'm
migration in California. the land
acts of 1913 and 1920 barred aliens
from owning any real property. AS
late as 1948 the u. s. Supreme Court
had upheld the law in other cases
where there was not such a clear
cut violation of the due process and
equal protection clauses Of the 14th
Amendment. But in the present Ma
saoka case. In which five Japanese
American brothers decided life es-
tate in a domestic to their allen
mother, 1t was plain that the state
could not discriminate against aliens
without also affecting the rights of
American citizens.
"The decision undoubtedly Is
stable step forward in the removal
of racial restrictions in this country.
But it is unfortunate that the over
throw of the Alien Land Laws has
had to depend on this technical vic
tory They have been maintained on
the statute books for more than a
generation in defiance of the most
fundamental American principles of
democracy and equality. The fact
that they struck mainly at persons
who are not citizens is no excuse
for the basic injustice. It is almost
inconceivable that any person within
our borders should be denied the
ordinary rights which the United
States has additionally championed
Yet this has been the effect of Cali
fornia's Alien Land Laws.
apparently il has taken an ex-
ample such as the MasaOka case
TO show the utter absurdity of at
tempting TO deny rights to some
individuals without jeOpardizing
the rights Of all. Here was a fam
lily of six brothers, all American
citizens: five served in the u. s.
Army in World War II; one was
killed in action, and the other four
were wounded; the sixth was
civilian war worker. Under the
Alien Land Law, they could not
provide for the alien mother in
the way they saw fit
The action of Judge Clarke in
this case still is just beginning. The
state is appealing the decision to a
higher court. where the question
must be argued again But If the
lower ruling is consistently upheld
then not only the California law, but
alien land acts in other Western
states will be knocked out of exist
ence. Probably this would not per-
NIT a restoration of property which
japanese persons have relinquished
to the state in past settlements, but
it would be a definite end to the
practice in the future. There will be
a great many japanese residents of
our own community who will join in
acclaiming such an end to a 81
year discrimination