Trump Inaugurated as 47th U.S. President
On a day that American flags were still flying half-staff nationwide in mourning for a recently deceased one-term president, another one-term president was succeeded by yet another one-term president. On Jan. 20, just days after the late Jimmy Carter, the nation’s 39th president who died at 100 was lying in state at the Capitol Rotunda, the United States continued its Inauguration Day tradition of peaceful transfers of power, also at the Capitol Rotunda due to cold temperatures. Returning for his second and final term, Donald John Trump became the 47th president, four years after skipping the presidential inauguration of Joseph Robinette Biden Jr., the man who beat him in the general election of November 2020 to become America’s 46th president. After taking office, Trump issued 26 executive orders that, among other things, sought to override the Constitution’s 14th Amendment, pulled the U.S. from the Paris climate agreement and rescinded his predecessor’s repeal of a ban on transgender persons serving openly in the U.S. armed forces.
Seattle: Mural’s Defacement Decried
The Seattle JACL chapter issued a statement condemning an act of vandalism discovered on Jan. 20 in which a mural in Nihonmachi Alley, at Sixth Avenue South and South Maynard Street, was defaced with black paint and a reference to a Bible verse. In the statement, the chapter called the defacement “ … an act of hateful vandalism that strikes at the heart of our community’s shared history and values.” The mural, by Erin Shigaki, depicted an iconic photo of Fumiko Hayashida (tinyurl.com/8z5tya6r) of Bainbridge Island, Wash., holding her daughter, Natalie, as they awaited a ferry to take them to the mainland and eventual incarceration at the Manzanar WRA Center. Their faces were covered in black paint. Also defaced were informational panels by Amy Nikaitani. To read the Seattle JACL chapter’s statement, visit tinyurl.com/yh64zc7w. To see a Seattle Times news article with images of the vandalism, visit tinyurl.com/5n73s3r5. (Editor’s note: The Seattle Day of Remembrance takes place on Feb. 8 at the Washington State Fair Expo Hall. Details:tinyurl.com/bdfju9vy).
MLB: Sasaki Joins Dodgers; Morii to A’s
World Series champs Los Angeles Dodgers signed Chiba Lotte Marines pitcher Roki Sasaki. The 23-year-old Japanese player is reputed to have a 100 mph fastball. The Oakland Athletics signed 18-year-old Shotaro Morii to a minor league contract. Like Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani, Morii —a shortstop and a pitcher — is also a two-way player. In the aftermath of the fires that destroyed large swaths of Pacific Palisades and Altadena in Los Angeles County, Shohei Ohtani is reportedly donating $500,000 to help firefighters, as well as “animals forced to flee” the conflagration. Ippei Mizuhara, the former interpreter for Shohei Ohtani who pleaded guilty last June to bank fraud and tax evasion charges, is scheduled to be sentenced Feb. 6 in Santa Ana, Calif.
Oregon’s Watanabe Sworn in as State Rep.
Democrat Mari Watanabe was sworn in Jan. 19 to represent House District 34 following a joint meeting of the boards of Multnomah and Washington Counties, at which she was unanimously approved to succeed state Rep. Lisa Reynolds. A Sansei, Watanabe is the state’s first Japanese American woman in the state legislature. She had previously served for 11 years as the Japanese American Museum of Oregon’s executive director.
Ex-Oakland Mayor Thao Among 4 Indicted
(AP) Former Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao, her longtime partner Andre Jones and two local businessmen Andy and David Duong were named in an indictment unsealed Jan. 17 alleging the four conspired to funnel city business to companies owned by the men in exchange for money and benefits to Thao and her partner. The four were indicted on charges of bribery, conspiracy and mail and wire fraud. Andy Duong also was charged with one count of lying to federal agents. If convicted of all counts, each faces up to 35 years in prison. Thao was elected Oakland’s mayor in 2022 and ousted in a recall election in November two years after she became the first Hmong American woman to become the mayor of a major U.S. city.
Philly: 76ers Scrub Chinatown Arena Scheme
(AP) The Philadelphia 76ers have decided not to build a $1.3 billion downtown arena, a surprising move that comes just weeks after the team received approval for the controversial project from the city council. Two City Council members who voted against the plan, Jamie Gauthier and Rue Landau, said the reversal shows that the 76ers’ development arm had not dealt in good faith with the city. The 76ers’ downtown development plan had pitted working-class Philadelphians against each another and the team had pressured City Council to consider a “half-baked” proposal that left open questions about gridlock and the displacement of the city’s Chinatown section, they said.
Ikeda GFBNEC Programs, Engagement Director
Go for Broke National Education Center has named Kurt T. Ikeda as its new director of programs and engagement. In that role, the former chief of interpretation and education and education specialist for the National Park Service at the Minidoka National Historic Site in Idaho and education manager for the Japanese American Museum of Oregon in Portland will help guide GFBNEC’s growth and sustainability by defining and refining how the nonprofit will attract and connect with new audiences.
Man Pleads Guilty for Hate Crime Assault
Jesse Lindsey pleaded guilty to one hate crime count in December for punching an Asian American woman in the head in June 2021 in Culver City, Calif. The victim received 11 sutures after falling and hitting her head. A Fox 11 report with video may be viewed at tinyurl.com/skktf7n2.
