Fujii, Ryoichi

Ryōichi Fujii (1905-1983) was a bilingual journalist, political commentator, and political activist. Born as Asano Katsu in Gifu city in Gifu Prefecture, he was known as "Bob" Fujii in English. A graduate of Doshisha Univ., Fujii came to the U.S. as a student in 1931, where he attended Oberlin and received his M.A. in 1934. Between 1936 and 1940, he was a member of the American Communist Party active in Southern California. During the wartime years, Fujii was interned first at Santa Anita and then at Heart Mountain. As an advocate of cooperation with the American government, he was a key figure in the resettlement phase of internment, especially in the Chicago area. In 1945 he founded the Chicago Shimpo. As an editor and writer, he was an outspoken opponent of McCarthyism, white racism, the U.S.-Japan Mutual Security Pact, and the Vietnam War and a supporter of the civil rights movement. Besides his prolific writings as a newpaperman, he was also the author of Shikago Nikkeijinshi, a history of Japanese-Americans in Chicago, published in 1968.

Biography

Ryoichi Fujii (1905-1983) was a bilingual journalist, political commentator, and political activist. Born as Asano Katsu in Gifu city in Gifu Prefecture, he was known as “Bob” Fujii in English. A graduate of Doshisha University, Fujii came to the U.S. as a student in 1931, where he attended Oberlin and received his M.A. in 1934. Between 1936 and 1940, he was a member of the American Communist Party active in Southern California. During the wartime years, Fujii was interned first at Santa Anita and then at Heart Mountain. As an advocate of cooperation with the American government, he was a key figure in the resettlement phase of internment, especially in the Chicago area. In 1945 he founded the Chicago Shimpo . As an editor and writer, he was an outspoken opponent of McCarthyism, white racism, the U.S.-Japan Mutual Security Pact, and the Vietnam War and a supporter of the civil rights movement. Besides his prolific writings as a newpaperman, he was also the author of Shikago Nikkeijinshi, a history of Japanese-Americans in Chicago, published in 1968.

Biographical Narrative

Fujii Ryoichi [Japanese characters](1905-1983) was a bilingual Issei journalist, political commentator, and political activist. Born as Asano Katsu [Japanese characters] in Gifu city in Gifu Prefecture, he was known as “Bob” Fujii in English. A graduate of Doshisha University, Fujii came to the United States as a student in 1931. He attended Oberlin College from which he received a M.A. in 1934. Between 1936 and 1940, he was a member of the American Communist Party active in Southern California.

During the wartime years, he was interned first at Santa Anita and then at Heart Mountain. As an advocate of cooperation with the American government, he was a key figure in the so-called resettlement phase of internment, especially in the Chicago area. In 1945 he founded the Chicago Shimpo [Japanese characters]. As an editor and writer, he was an outspoken opponent of McCarthyism, white racism, the U.S.-Japan Mutual Security Pact, and the Vietnam War and supporter of the Civil Rights Movement.

Fujii was married to the late Emi Kimura, a San Jose Nisei with whom he had two daughters, Midori and Sono. Besides his prolific writings as a newspaperman, he was also the author of Shikago Nikkeijinshi [Japanese characters], a history of Japanese-Americans in Chicago published in 1968.

The Fujii Ryoichi Papers consist of incoming and outgoing correspondence files, including English letters from Dr. Walter M. Horton, Professor of Theology, Oberlin College; Henry Heineman, Fujii's attorney; Emi Kimura, his wife; Masanori Kojima and Setsuko Nisei; two close Nisei friends, and other persons; Newsletters, no.1-34 (May 1, 1944-October 14, 1945), the precursor to the Chicago Shimpo; office records of the Chicago Shimpo Company, including business papers and correspondence file, 1945-1970; clippings of newspaper articles by Fujii on McCarthyism and HUAAC, American politics and society, and international affairs; documents and correspondence relating to Fujii's own postwar deportation hearings; Japanese and English essays on the wartime internment, U.S.-Japan relations, and other topics; rough drafts of English autobiography; English reports written for the WRA, 1942-1944; WRA publications and reports; and miscellaneous papers and personal memorabilia.