James Matsumoto Omura
James Matsumoto Omura, originally named Utaka Matsumoto, was born in Winslow, Washington, to Japanese immigrant parents in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Throughout his early life, he experienced significant upheaval, including his mother’s departure for Japan when he was just a child and his subsequent work in various labor roles, including at salmon canneries. Omura’s journey into journalism began in his teenage years, and he later became an influential writer for Japanese-language newspapers in California. His work often brought him into conflict with the Japanese American Citizens League due to his outspoken views on Japanese expansionism and the treatment of Japanese Americans.
During World War II, Omura became a vocal critic of the internment of Japanese Americans, providing support through employment assistance and challenging military draft policies targeting nisei, or second-generation Japanese Americans. His editorial work at the Rocky Shimpo newspaper included notable pieces that advocated for civil rights and questioned government actions, ultimately leading to his arrest in 1944. Though acquitted of conspiracy charges, he faced challenges in securing employment post-war due to his reputation as a draft resister. Omura's legacy is significant within the Asian American community, as his advocacy and journalism played a crucial role in addressing injustices during a period of widespread discrimination. In recognition of his contributions, he was awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award by the Asian American Journalists Association in 1989.
On this Page
Subject Terms
James Matsumoto Omura
Journalist and activist
- Pronunciation: maht-sew-MOH-toh oh-MEW-rah
- Born: November 27, 1912
- Birthplace: Winslow, Washington
- Died: June 20, 1994
- Place of death: Denver, Colorado
A journalist during World War II, Omura served as an editor for several Japanese-language American newspapers. He established the magazine Current Life and spoke against the draft while working for the Denver, Colorado, newspaper Rocky Shimpo. His work has been recognized with a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Asian American Journalists Association.
Birth name: Utaka Matsumoto
Areas of achievement: Journalism, social issues
Early Life
James Matsumoto Omura was born Utaka Matsumoto in Winslow, Washington, on Bainbridge Island. His father, Tsurumatso Matsumoto, was from Katsusa, Japan, and had immigrated to the United States in 1887; his mother, Harue Higashi, had immigrated in 1908. Omura was one of six children. After his mother fell sick in 1918, she returned to Japan to stay with her sister; Omura and his two older siblings remained in Winslow, while the three youngest went to live with their grandmother. Subsequently, Omura’s mother was completely removed from his life.
At age thirteen, Omura began to work the night shift at an Alaskan salmon cannery alongside many other Japanese men and boys. They lived in a barracks-style arrangement for the migrant labor force at the cannery. Omura continued to work for other canneries in Washington and Alaska and took up a number of other labor positions in Idaho, Montana, and North Dakota. He settled for a time in Idaho, where he began attending school again and was introduced to journalism when he became the editor of the student newspaper.
Omura went back to Bainbridge Island in 1931. He was named a journalism delegate to the Washington Student Leaders’ Conference. He finished high school in Washington in 1932 and was recruited by the University of Washington, but the Great Depression kept him from attending, and he moved to Los Angeles, California, to look for work in 1933.
Life’s Work
As a Japanese American, Omura was no stranger to the discrimination that Asian and other minority populations faced in the United States during his lifetime. After moving to California, he began working as a journalist for various Japanese-language newspapers, championing justice for the Japanese population living in the United States. He served as an English-language editor for the Los Angeles–based New Japanese American News (Shin Nichibei) from 1933 to 1934, then went on to work in San Francisco, taking on an editorship position for the New World Daily from 1934 to 1936. During his time as editor, Omura’s writings created tension with the Japanese American Citizens League (JACL). In an editorial entitled “Nisei Leadership,” he criticized some nisei (second-generation Japanese Americans) and their attitudes toward Japanese expansion, causing many members of the JACL to consider Omura a direct critic of the organization.
When the New World Daily merged with the local newspaper Hokubei Asahi in 1935 to become the New World Sun, Omura was put in charge of writing editorials for the second page. He wrote critical pieces about nisei and the Second Sino-Japanese War, continuing the tension between him and the JACL. This tension was exacerbated by other editorials that opposed Omura’s position, further alienating him from the community. After just two months, Omura quit the New World Sun and found work in the floral industry. By 1940, he had acquired enough money to begin editing and publishing a new magazine, which he called Current Life. He later married Fumi Okuma, who served as his assistant for the short lifespan of the publication.
On February 23, 1942, Omura testified before the US Congress Select Committee Investigating National Defense Migration. In his testimony, Omura strongly criticized the US government for its persecution of Japanese Americans, arguing that these actions demonstrated mistreatment and injustice. His testimony also included “In Spirit, We Are Americans,” an unpublished editorial written for Current Life in which he rebuked mainstream American society for the racial attitudes directed toward nisei.
When Executive Order 9066 mandated that all persons of Japanese ancestry evacuate the West Coast and report to internment camps, Omura and his wife fled to Denver, Colorado. They tried to continue publishing Current Life but met resistance from intelligence officials. Instead, they established the Pacific Coast Evacuee Employment Placement Bureau, which offered free employment assistance to evacuees. Omura also extended services to members of the Japanese American communities living in the internment camps, such as Amache in Colorado and Heart Mountain in Wyoming. He filed racial-discrimination suits and sued for reparations to detainees, but he eventually dropped his efforts when they failed to rally support.
Soon after moving to Denver, Omura took a job as an English editor for the Rocky Shimpo newspaper (formerly Rocky Nippon) in 1944. He wrote editorials that challenged the US military draft policy, which had begun targeting nisei in the concentration camps. A number of nisei formed a Fair Play Committee at the Heart Mountain camp in Wyoming to protest their lack of rights, their incarceration, and the draft policy. Omura supported the committee through his editorials.
On February 28, 1944, Omura published what came to be his most famous and inflammatory editorial, entitled “Let Us Not Be Rash.” He argued that individuals should organize to restore their constitutional rights before committing to service in the military. That editorial was followed by others, including “Wyoming Draft Resistance Has Authorities Stumped” (March 10, 1944); “Camp Disturbance Pending” (March 20, 1944); “Freedom of the Press” (March 29, 1944); and “The Rocky Shimpo Affirms Its Stand” (April 7, 1944). His words made him the target of government investigation, and he was arrested in November 1944 and charged with conspiracy to counsel draft evasion. Omura faced trial along with seven Fair Play Committee leaders. He was the only defendant to be acquitted, based on the First Amendment right of freedom of the press.
After World War II ended, Omura faced a number of difficulties trying to secure work. In part because of his reputation as a draft resister, he was persecuted by employers and other nisei. He left journalism and took work in Denver as a landscape contractor. In 1989, Omura’s life’s work was recognized by the Asian American Journalists Association when they awarded him a Lifetime Achievement Award.
Significance
Omura’s life has had a profound impact on the Asian community in the United States. His journalistic work and activism played a large part in the redressing of injustices against Asian American communities before, during, and after World War II, and his commitment to reporting on resistance efforts during a time of rampant civil-rights violations set an important precedent for contemporary journalism in the United States.
Bibliography
Chin, Frank. “Introduction to Frank Emi and James Omura.” Frontiers of Asian American Studies: Writing, Research, and Commentary. Ed. Gail M. Nomura, Russell Endo, Stephen H. Sumida, and Russell C. Leong. Pullman: Washington State UP, 1989. 39–40. Print. Focuses on the draft-resistance movement and the nisei experience during war relocation.
Fugita, Steve. “James Matsumoto Omura.” Distinguished Asian Americans: A Biographical Dictionary. Ed. Hyung-Chang Kim. Westport, CT: Greenwood, 1999. 278–80. Print. A summary of Omura’s life and career as a journalist.
“James Matsumoto Omura.” World Biographical Hall of Fame. Vol. 4. Raleigh: Hist. Preservations of Amer., 1992. Print. A comprehensive biographical account of Omura, his work with Current Life, and his impact on Asian American communities.
Omura, James Matsumoto. “James Matsumoto Omura: An Interview.” By Arthur A. Hansen. Amerasia Journal 13.2 (1986–87): 99–113. Print. Includes biographical information and some discussion of Current Life.
---. “Japanese American Journalism during World War II.” Frontiers of Asian American Studies: Writing, Research, and Commentary. Ed. Gail M. Nomura, Russell Endo, Stephen H. Sumida, and Russell C. Leong. Pullman: Washington State UP, 1989. 71–80. Print. Describes the role of journalism as a form of resistance during the Japanese American evacuation.