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Problem Analysis – The Office of Redress Administration (ORA) for Japanese American Citizens: Lessons Learned for the U.S. Descendants of Freed African Slaves

Success begets success – the American descendants of illegally enslaved Black U.S. citizens must apply the lessons learned from the establishment of the Office of Redress Administration (ORA) in 1988 for Japanese American citizens interned during World War II.

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PROBLEM DESCRIPTION | ROOT CAUSE ANALYSIS

The descendants of enslaved Black Americans can seek long-deserved citizens’ redress using the lessons learned from the establishment of the Office of Redress Administration (ORA) in 1988 for Japanese American citizens interned during WWII.

The Office of Redress Administration (ORA) was established in the Civil Rights Division by Section 105 of the Civil Liberties Act of 1988.

Through the ORA, the U.S. federal government “acknowledged, apologized, and made restitution for the fundamental injustices of the evacuation, relocation, and internment of Japanese Americans during World War II (WWII).”

INTRODUCTION and THESIS

What is the measure of a country’s “GREATNESS?” Certainly, it is not just repeating the phrase over and over and slapping the slogan on t-shirts and hats, right?

The history of America includes major human rights violations that rival any in history across the world and the stories are many and mostly forgotten but not by those that were affected by it all, many decades later: the recovery continues today. The most notable “acts of the past” against Americans include:

  1. Tribal genocide against native Americans and the USA’s failure to honor tribal agreements,
  2. Enslavement of black Americans and the post-enslavement period, and
  3. Internment of Japanese Americans during World War II.

GREATNESS also concerns how a nation deals with how it treated its citizens in the past, right? Lest you forget, American citizens enjoy the Constitutional First Amendment right to petition the government for a redress of grievances. How does a nation respond to and address “acts of the past?”

The fact is, In America, Y-O-U must seek your citizens redress; no one else will take up the task for you.

Japanese Americans sought and received redress and reparations for the Presidential Executive Order (EO) 9066 act that illegally interned 120,000 Japanese Americans and other Asians during World War II.

The Japanese American redress movement itself and the many legal precedents that come from it provide the template for other affected citizen groups that should or would seek redress from the U.S. government and “significant others” for “acts of the past.”

The descendants of illegally enslaved Black Americans should take the lessons learned from the successful Japanese American redress movement and also seek national, state, and municipal level citizens redress and reparations for enduring the inhuman hardships of illegal enslavement and post-enslavement institutional racism, bigotry, and failure to protect their Constitutional citizens’ rights as guaranteed by the 14th Amendment, the long term effects of which still exist within most majority black American communities and affect many or most black people today in some measurable way. 

The world awaits and wonders why the effort has not happened before now… It is past time.

PROBLEM DESCRIPTION | ROOT CAUSE ANALYSIS

Interned Japanese Americans

On February 19, 1942, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed Executive Order (EO) 9066, an illegal wartime act that gave the U.S. government the authority to remove American civilians of Japanese descent from the military zones that were established in California, Washington, and Oregon during World War II. Over 120,000 Americans of Japanese descent were forcefully sent to concentration camps and incarcerated, completely disrupting and destroying their lives.

As result of their illegal incarceration and all that came with it, Japanese Americans, by way of the Japanese American Citizens League (JACL) took it upon themselves to seek redress and reparations for their suffering and losses. It was an absolutely impressive effort that created the template for others to follow and adapt.

Enslaved Black Americans

Most all able-minded persons on planet Earth are aware that America held Black Americans captive for nearly 300 years thru illegal and government sanctioned enslavement while being subjected to murder, rape, torture, and the like from other Americans up to the 1868 passage of the Constitutional 14th Amendment.

Once freed from captivity, the struggle for Black Americans was far, far, far from over; Black citizens have endured another 155 years (1865-2020) of systemic American racism, bigotry, murder, rape, torture, fraud that still goes on in the country today.

PROBLEM IMPACTS

Interned Japanese Americans

  • Racial hatred led to 120,000 citizens and others of Japanese descent being rounded up and interned during WW II.
  • The complete loss of citizens’ rights because of the Presidential Executive Order (EO) 9066;
  • There were no defined criteria for Japanese Americans’ imprisonment other than race, a clear infringement of their constitutional rights as American citizens
  • Japanese citizens lost their homes, businesses, and everything else that mattered before the internment.
  • South and Central Americans of Japanese descent and Alaskan Aleutians were also interned.
  • As time elapsed, many Japanese didn’t know the significance of FDR’s EO 2066.

Enslaved Black Americans

America’s infrastructure and economic successes were built on the sacrificial backs of captive and enslaved Black Americans, of whom the descendants of many still may not been able to share in that success, and especially not in the proportion in which Black Americans participated in that nation-building effort and continue to do so.

In fact, freed slaves were subjected to enforced segregated and diminished access to facilities, housing, education, and the opportunities that they created for all other free Americans.

A summary of the impacts and effects of captivity and slavery on Black Americans includes:

  1. Held in sanctioned captivity and slavery for roughly 270 years by Americans and others in government, religion, business, education. and otherwise.
  2. Immeasurable suffering for generations of enslaved Black Americans, before and after “Emancipation.”.
  3. Freed from 1865-68 without local, state, nor federal government support in a structurally racist and bigoted society with unequal protections under the laws that continues in the year 2020.
  4. Segregated: freed slaves were forced to settle into lesser desirable and developed geographic areas of local communities of which then have suffered from longstanding economic deprivation by government and financial entities.
  5. States and the federal government did and have denied freed slaves and their descendants their guaranteed 14th Amendment Rights to “Equal Protections under the laws…”
  6. Generations of economically-disadvantaged Black Americans.
  7. Generational stress-related health issues that continue within the Black community today.
  8. States have failed to fill their Constitutional responsibility to “make to make no laws that do harm” to its citizens.
  9. Federal government has consistently failed in their Constitutional responsibility to “step in” when States fail in their responsibilities.
  10. The first ten (10) of twelve (12) U.S. Presidents were slaveholders.
  11. Unprosecuted lynching & other “fear” crimes from local citizens that included the KKK and others.

CORRECTIVE ACTIONS: REDRESS & REPARATIONS EFFORTS

Interned Japanese Americans

  1. Reparations movement: important to ask the federal government for a formal apology. Financial restitution is the American way of righting a wrong… Sue.
  2. Used the Coram Nobis Writ of Error legal maneuver to correct Hirabayashi, Karamatsu, and Yasui decisions plus others.
  3. A small volunteer group of Japanese Americans fought tooth and nail for the redress movement.
  4. Bi-partisan political lobbying efforts are key; counting on a commission to resolve a controversy is high risk.
  5. Sitting thru painful commission hearings was necessary; people shared tragedies.
  6. A number of other orgs filed legal complaints against the U.S. for redress asking for more $$.
  7. The Hohri complaint cited 22 Causes of Action against the govt w $23B in damages.
  8. Sued cities and municipalities for redress.
  9. Spearheaded a national education campaign geared towards American ignorance.
  10. JACL board changed, filled w legal types focused solely on redress.
  11. Redress became the single issue of the JACL.
  12. American Aleut citizens received $5,00 each.

Enslaved Black Americans (Proposed)

  1. World-class legal counsel and effective use of the “Petition for Writ of Error Coram Nobis” legal instrument: use the legal mechanism at municipal, state, and federal levels to reconsider incorrectly applied previous judgements.
  2. File a federal citizens’ redress lawsuit: based on the clause “All Men are Created Equal” in Constitutional Preamble:slaves WERE free but were held captive and further enslaved until 1868.
  3. File citizens’ redress lawsuits against identified religious, corporate, and business level transgressors to undo prior legal rulings and seek declaratory relief.
  4. Creation of a new single-issue national member organization: to generate the funding required to pay dedicated leadership, support staff, and political lobbyists.
  5. A small group of dedicated citizen-volunteers can get very big things accomplished: a major key to the Japanese redress movement’s success was a small group of dedicated citizen volunteers.
  6. Lobby for redress at state, municipal, and local levels for the Constitutional crimes and failures to make nor enforce any laws that do harm to U.S. citizens.
  7. Identify and sue for heinous crimes committed by the surviving entities within the religious, business and corporate, and private citizen communitiesfor “particularly atrocious crimes against the ancestors of and existing Black American citizens.

IMPORTANCE of the WRIT of ERROR CORAM NOBIS LEGAL MANEUVER

What is the Writ of Error Coram Nobis?

There have been prior legal efforts by the descendants of African slaves to seek redress and reparations for the “prior acts” by corporations, individuals, government entities, and the like, with some individual successes that have been forgotten in history but mostly unsuccessful efforts and for a multitude of reasons.

  1. The Preamble to the Declaration of Independence clearly states that captive and enslaved Black Americans should have been immediately freed in 1787 because of language within the Constitutional Preamble itself: “we hold these truths to be self-evident, that ALL men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”
  2. The writ of error coram nobis (“writ of error”) is a legal order that allows a court to correct its original judgment and based upon discovery of a previously undiscovered error that was not included in the records of the original judgment’s proceedings and would have precluded the proper judgment from being pronounced.
  3. The writ of error legal maneuver was successfully used to correct previously unsuccessful judgements that ruled against Japanese redress and reparations lawsuits and reset the precedent for such claims.
  4. The power of the Writ of Error Coram Nobis legal maneuver will be THE most important tool in the enslaved black citizens redress movement because it has already proven to be that for the interned Japanese citizens’ redress movement.

Using the Writ of Error to Undo Prior Legal Judgements

The precedent has been set for use of the writ of error legal maneuver to seek correction of previously unsuccessful judgements that ruled against Black redress and reparations lawsuits. 

The path forward is an extremely simple one: deep-dive case studies of all Japanese American Writ of Error legal maneuvers and full-on outreach efforts to the Japanese legal community and others that were a part of it for counsel and otherwise. Just repeat what has already worked.

It is now just a matter of developing strategies for “effective” use of the Writ of Error legal maneuver by highly capable legal teams and lobbying professionals.

Notable Prior Reparations and Redress Lawsuits

History is made on a daily basis and notable local redress cases across America get buried and forgotten as time moves on.  Below is an incomplete list of notable past legal redress efforts, successful and not.

Japanese Coram Nobis Cases (Incomplete)

  1. Hirabayashi v. United States (1943)
  2. Yasui v. United States (1943).
  3. Endo, Ex Parte (1944).
  4. Korematsu v. United States (1944).
  5. Cato v. United States, 442 F. 2d 927 – Court of Appeals, 5th Circuit 1971
  6. Korematsu v. United States (1984).

Black Redress and Reparations Cases (Incomplete)

  1. Henrietta Wood v. Zebulon Ward, 1870.
  2. Johnson v. McAdoo,45 App. D.C. 440 (1916).
  3. Alexander, et al., v. Oklahoma, et al, 1917.
  4. Waldrep v. Exchange State Bank of Keifer, No. 9798 (1921)
  5. Sanford v. Markham, No. 14713 (1923)
  6. Spencer Chapel Methodist Episcopal Church v. Brogan, No. 15201 (1924)
  7. Robertson v. Chapel, No. 15291 (1925)
  8. Redfearn v. American Central Insurance Company, No. 15851 (1926).
  9. Brown v. Board of Education (1954).
  10. African-American Slave Descendants Litigation, 375 F. Supp. 2d 721 (N.D. Ill. 2005).

CRITICAL SUCCESS FACTORS (“CSFs”)

Japanese American Redress CSFs: “No Legal Precedent”

  1. The power of the Redress Movement: to dare speak out about the unjust treatment and make demands.
  2. The JACL’s professional staff in key areas was most important aspect of why the redress effort was able to stay focused w/strong national and local member chapters.
  3. Petition for Writ of Error Coram Nobis”: provided the legal mechanism for courts to reconsider previous judgements based on the discovery of new evidence that might have changed the outcome of the court’s judgement.
  4. Community and Cultureare key components for success.
  5. Dedicated and bipartisan Congressional lobbying efforts dedicated to redress bill passage paid off.
  6. The AJC (American Jewish Committee) came to the JACL’s aid, significantly.
  7. Every AJC member in Congress was expected to support the AJC effort of supporting the JACL legislation.
  8. Important Note: “other” national civil rights orgs didn’t support the JACL, incl the ACLU & NAACP.
  9. Effective national member organization leadership.
  10. JACL member chapters began to ask for redress efforts on the local level. A build-up of JACL lobbying efforts begins.
  11. Public relations pros were hired to make the commission hearings newsworthy nationally.
  12. Show enryo: show restraint, reserve, deference to others. Consider others before yourself. Be polite and considerate.
  13. Plan to introduce bill into the Senate first and let momentum carryover to the House.
  14. President Ronald Reagan took the work of the Redress Commission seriously.

Black American Redress CSFs: “All Men ARE Created Equal.”

The phrase “All men are created equal“ as written in the Preamble to the Declaration of Rights in the Constitution; ALL means ALL, meaning that slaves shared the same Constitutional rights of freedom that were illegally denied, outright.

  1. Outreach to members of the JACL legal team that participated in the redress movement for a comprehensive study and application of the Japanese American redress movement’s critical success factors.
  2. Build a first-class legal team that will structure successful legal claims and make effective use of the “Petition for Writ of Error Coram Nobis” legal instrument by certifying that the 1787 Preamble to the Declaration of Independence did grant enslaved Black Americans their God-given rights to “freedom.”
  3. Use the writ of error coram nobis maneuver to address and undo all previous legal efforts for redress and reparations by American citizens.
  4. Develop a redress and reparations strategy built on refreshing and combine the “best of” past Presidential legacies and promises that incl’ the New Deal (FDR), Fair Deal (Truman), and Great Society (LBJ) programs.
  5. Creation of a new single-issue national member organization: having a centralized focus with professional staff in key areas.
  6. Focus on creating a “quietly focused” and “citizen-driven” movement
  7. Develop strong relationships with supportive political and citizen-driven organizations such as the American Jewish Committee (AJC) and other supportive groups.
  8. Creation of a world-class political lobbying group tasked with public messaging and building the political coalition required to get legislation passed into law.
  9. Outreach to other affected groups such as those from the Japanese redress movement, those working on behalf of native American issues, as well as those from other nation-states and areas (Caribbean and South American descendants of African slaves, etc.).

REDRESS ROADMAPS FOR JAPANESE & BLACK AMERICANS

Redress on Behalf of Japanese Americans (Actual Results)

The Japanese American redress movement’s success was accomplished through a nationally coordinated movement that encompassed the entire Japanese American community and worked through an existing national citizen-driven organization that depended upon a strong volunteering network, extremely capable and motivated Japanese American legal teams, effective political lobbying efforts, and thru the alignment and partnering with other national and citizen-driven member organizations held in high regard by American political power elites across America.

Japanese American Redress Roadmap (Major Milestones)

  1. “The Japanese American Incarceration: A Case for Redress” was published in Spring 1977.
  2. The Salt Lake City Guidelines for redress were released; $25,000 individual compensation
  3. The formal apology from the U.S. was dropped as a requirement and $25,000 per individual was decided upon as reparations.
  4. The House approved the commission bill by a 2:1 margin and incl the Aleuts, acknowledging presidential Order 9066.
  5. August 2, 1979: the Senate bill was introduced. September 28, 1979: House bill introduced
  6. July 31, 1980, Jimmy Carter signed CWRIC bill into law, just TWO YEARS after Mr. Tateishi launched the redress campaign
  7. July 1981: Appointments to the commission were announced, 1-yr after the bill was signed into law
  8. Dec 1982: “Personal Justice Denied” report issued by the commission, 400 pp
  9. June 1983: formal recommendations issued by the Commission. Official Redress for Victims of a Government Injustice.
  10. 1983, 1984, 1987: All “coram nobis” legal cases prevailed.
  11. 9-17-87: House Redress bill passed, (243 for 141 opposed).
  12. 4-20-88: Senate Redress bill passed, (69 for 27 opposed).
  13. Civil Liberties Act of 1988 signed into law by President Ronald Reagan; $1.6 billion in reparations was paid to affected Japanese Americans

Redress on Behalf of Enslaved Black Americans (Proposed)

Do not ignore what has already worked in the past; follow the successful path created by the JACL;  the template is in place to for a successful redress and reparations movement by the descendants of enslaved Black Americans, all that is needed is a plan and a coordinated effort to realize it. 

The events for each citizens group are completely different, of course, but the course of action for redress is the same. The difference will be the size and scope of the legal redress effort, the legislative process to enactment, how the nation reacts, and the nature and content of the redress and reparations trust fund.

“A person that forgets or ignores the past is condemned to repeat it…”

  1. Enactment of federal legislation creating a “commission to study and develop reparation proposals for Black-Americans.” for oversight of the past-due and formal acknowledgement, apology, and declaratory relief and compensation on behalf of the generations of captive and enslaved Black Americans from 1787 up to the 1868 passing of the 14th Amendment.
  2. Federal Government Legislation: redress legal efforts to re-address the 14th Amendment guarantees of “equal protection of the laws” to ALL U.S. citizens, and especially Black Americans.
  3. State Government Legislation: efforts for declaratory relief and compensation for those states that failed to provide 14th Amendment guarantees of “equal protection of the laws” to enslaved Black Americans and the freed descendants thereof.
  4. State Governments: legislative efforts to address past grievances as they apply to the denial of 14th Amendment guarantees to their citizens of color, Native citizens, women citizens, LGBTQ citizens, and our low income and poorest citizens.
  5. Federalize local policing standards for all 18,000 police departments in the USA: file redress and coram nobis lawsuits to seek declaratory relief and compensation for Congress to “federalize” local policing standards across the USA, creating a federal level agency to create and enforce a new standard and measurable set of federal policing policies, practices, procedures, and the like.
  6. Federal affirmative action contracting programs for businesses: use coram nobis legal maneuvers undo prior rulings against establishing and fully funding new federal level affirmative action programs to address past racism and sexism in the federal contracting community.
  7. Federally funded community revitalization programs that address the ignored infrastructure of predominantly Black urban and rural communities across the USA.
  8. Federally funded mental health and wellness programs that address those ignored citizens with mental health and wellness issues across the USA.
  9. New environmental protections in predominantly Black communities (Zip Code based) that addressthe ignored issues and standards that exist in those zip-code based urban and rural communities that include water quality, wildlife, rivers, outdated and racist historic landmarks, and to also create scenic trails and other like-minded active living activities in the affected communities.
  10. Lobby for new federal legislation to replace the expired portions of the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

Black Redress Roadmap (Proposed)

Repeat the Past… Do What Has Worked Before

Japanese Americans have already successfully developed and applied a citizens redress roadmap that can also be used by Black American citizens to achieve the same results. Repeat what has already worked…

Prior Legislative Redress Efforts

Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee (D-TX-18) introduced “H.R.40 – Commission to Study and Develop Reparation Proposals for African-Americans Act” to the House on January 3, 2019 to study and develop reparations proposals for the living descendants of enslaved Black Americans.

Previous House Bill efforts by Congressman John Conyers (D-MI) before Ms. Jackson Lee’s failed and for the following reasons:

  1. Legal Precedence: House Bill authors after 1988 consistently failed to incorporate the critical success factors (CSFs) learned from Japanese redress movement within their Black redress efforts.
  2. Legislative Inflexibility: H.R.40 is a continuation of what John Conyers (D-MI) presented to the House on a yearly basis for many years and mostly unchanged.
  3. Legislative Lobbying: There is zero Republican support for the current Bill on the House floor. Bipartisan efforts will be needed to get the House Bill passed and on to the Senate for consideration and lobbying there, too.
  4. Broad Legal Claims: The timeframe for the study is too broad (1619-2020) and will need to be narrowed to a 1787 start when the Preamble to the Constitution was ratified, declaring that “all men are created equal”; no legal claims existed beforehand.

The previous legislative bill authors all failed to consider the importance of legal precedence and evidence suppression and how it all has and would be used by political opponents, rivals, enemies, and otherwise to tamp down any and all redress efforts. The Japanese Americans used focused legislative lobbying, narrow legal scope lawsuits, and the coram nobis maneuver that met most all of their redress goals and overall mission.

Proposed Redress Roadmap

  1. Build a first-class legal team that will make effective use of the “Petition for Writ of Error Coram Nobis” legal instrument: address and undo all previous legal efforts for redress and reparations by American citizens.
  2. Develop effective fund-raising strategies for proper funding of local, state, and federal redress and coram nobis efforts.
  3. Creation of a new single-issue redress organization: with a fully funded and centralized focus with professional staff in key areas.
  4. Outreach to members of the JACL legal team that participated in the redress movementfor a case study and application of the Japanese American redress movement’s critical success factors that led to the Civil Liberties Act of 1988.
  5. Develop strong relationships with supportive political and citizen-driven organizations such as the American Jewish Committee (AJC) and other supportive groups that yield enormous influence, political power, and success in accomplishing their goals and missions.
  6. Prepare and file redress and reparations legal complaints at all governmental levels, guilty religious organizations, corporations and businesses, slaveholding families, and the like.
  7. Creation of a world-class political lobbying group tasked with public messaging and building the political coalition required to get legislation passed into law.
  8. Develop a redress and reparations legislative strategy built on a narrowed version of House Bill H.R.40 Commission Study bill and subsequent recommendations.
  9. Focus on creating a quietly small-but-determined citizen-driven movement: the effort should also include supportive private organizations, nonprofits, businesses and corporations.
  10. Outreach to other affected groups such as those from the Japanese redress movement, on behalf of native American issues, and from other nation-states and areas (e.g. Caribbean and South American descendants).

REDRESS MOVEMENT RESOURCES

Legal Team, Political Lobbying, Citizen Participation

The combined efforts of four participating groups is essential in gathering the momentum necessary to convert the redress movement into U.S. legislation that becomes “the law of the land.”

  1. Legal team(s): responsible for the legal efforts that DRIVE the movement, and as it applies to undoing erroneous prior legal rulings AND negotiating redress settlements.
  2. Lobbying and political influence: lobbying for the cause and building political influence are important in establishing the trust, support, and momentum necessary to pass the legislation required to convert the redress movement into legislation that becomes “the law of the land.”
  3. Citizens: the redress effort is a citizen-driven one and will succeed with the quietly determined and combined efforts of Black, Japanese, and other supportive Americans.
  4. Associated others: support from other American citizens, civil rights and legal organizations is also essential and also from a timeliness perspective; getting the legislation passed while the conditions to do so are favorable.

Funding the Movement

No Black redress and reparations movement will be successful without proper funding no matter how excellent everything else may be. Money is an absolute necessity, period. 

A “Robin Hood” funding strategy is in order and would include the following process steps:

  1. Assemble a world-class legal team prepared for the tasks-at-hand.
  2. Identify all offending parties for redress and coram nobis legal cases.
  3. Develop legal complaint strategies, tactics and priority lists.
  4. File lawsuits according to the “low hanging fruit method.”
  5. Win judgements that would pay legal bills and fund subsequent legal comlaintss and legislative lobbying efforts.
  6. Go back to step #3 and repeat steps until process is exhausted.

TIMELINES

Upcoming 2020 Presidential Election Window

The success or failure of a Black redress and reparations movement cannot depend on which political party is currently running the country, a particular state, municipal area, business or enterprise, nor religious institution; a focused movement itself, guided by those that have accepted the challenge, is powerful enough to supersede all of that.

The current U.S. President, Donald Trump, is a Republican and not one that most Americans would expect to be friendly to a federal-level Black redress and reparations movement but he is also near the end of his term and could lose the upcoming November 2020 national election.

Ex-U.S. Vice President Joe Biden, a Democrat, would expectedly be more open to signing legislation that grants redress and reparations but the process is still a political and legislative one that would require a focused cadre of lobbying, legal, and legislative professionals that are dedicated to a successful completion of the mission.

Post-2020 Presidential Election Window

A new and dedicated black redress and reparations movement should begin, no matter who the winner of the upcoming 2020 Presidential election is; there is no “best time” for America to be ready for it.

Again, repeat what has already been successful… The world awaits.

REFERENCE | FURTHER READING

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