UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA Los Angeles “And Make the San Fernando Valley My Home:” Contested Spaces, Identities, and Activism on the Edge of Los Angeles A dissertation submitted in partial satisfaction of the requirements for the degree Doctor of Philosophy in History by Jean-Paul deGuzman 2014 © Copyright by Jean-Paul deGuzman 2014 ABSTRACT OF THE DISSERTATION “And Make the San Fernando Valley My Home:” Contested Spaces, Identities, and Activism on the Edge of Los Angeles by Jean-Paul deGuzman Doctor of Philosophy in History University of California, Los Angeles, 2014 Professor Janice L. Reiff, Chair Southern California’s San Fernando Valley is a huge expanse of land that comprises the northernmost section of the City of Los Angeles. Although it is currently the home to over 1.8 million residents with roots from across the globe and for several decades has been a city within a city, powerful and competing images of “the Valley” continue to shape public consciousness about this well-known American space. For better or worse, the San Fernando Valley has become a metonym for the rise and fall of post-World War II suburbia. This linear narrative – that privileges the transformation of agricultural fields into industrial plants and residential suburbs that later fell victim to urban sprawl – elides the histories of people of color in favor of broad generalizations about segregation or demographic change. This dissertation challenges those assumptions and uses the San Fernando Valley as a site to understand the overlapping relationships between race, space, and activism in the twentieth century. I propose that the San Fernando Valley is an instructive site to examine those ii relationships because of its historically multiethnic neighborhoods that have been shaped by the forces of such as war, metropolitan growth, and economic restructuring. Through an examination of major structural events and their social repercussions, such as the construction of railroads, the rise of the military industrial complex, various exclusionary laws or ballot initiatives, and a complex relationship with the City of Los Angeles, I show how African Americans, Latinas/os, and Asian Americans have claimed the San Fernando Valley for themselves, crafted their own communities, and fought against different forms of inequality. To be sure, their community building, political goals, and tactical strategies goals were informed by their respective racialization and distinctions based on class or migration status. Nevertheless, these individuals fashioned alternative forms of activism, community building, and knowledge that challenge dominant narratives of the San Fernando Valley. iii The dissertation of Jean-Paul deGuzman is approved. Paul M. Ong Andrea Sue Goldman Eric R. Avila Janice L. Reiff, Committee Chair University of California, Los Angeles 2014 iv DEDICATION To the people who have struggled to make the San Fernando Valley a better place and, of course, my mom, Felilia Lanete Rosas. v TABLE OF CONTENTS Abstract ii Dedication v List of Figures vii List of Tables viii Acknowledgments ix Vita vxi Introduction 1 Chapter One Migration, Labor, and the Making of the San Fernando Valley 9 in the Late 19th and Early 20th Centuries Chapter Two Belonging and Visibility in the Shadow of War: 57 The Social World of the Military Industrial Complex, 1941-1956 Chapter Three “They’d Fence the Valley:” 120 Racial Exclusions, Community-Building, and Cold War Activism, 1955-1964 Chapter Four “The Valley Was the Last Place That Sort of Thing Would Happen:” 168 Protest and Race at San Fernando Valley State College, 1968-1970 Chapter Five Alternative Activism in the Age of Homeowner Revolts: 225 The Raza Unida Party and the Movement for Redress and Reparations In the San Fernando Valley, 1972-1988 Chapter Six Chasing Camelot, or, Better to Dance with the Devil You Know: 285 The Racial Politics of the Secession Movement, 1996-2002 Conclusion 334 Appendix 341 Bibliography 343 vi LIST OF FIGURES Figure I.1 The San Fernando Valley Figure 1.1 San Fernando Heights Lemon Association Crate Label, n.d. Figure 1.2 Neighborhoods of the San Fernando Valley, 1924 Figure 1.3 The Sakaguchi Family, c. 1931 Figure 2.1 Private David Gonzales Figure 2.2 Tuna Canyon Detention Station, c. 1940s Figure 2.3 Basilone Homes, 1949 Figure 2.4 Winona Trailer Camp, 1946 Figure 3.1 “Accent on Suburbia,” 1955 Figure 3.2 Wounded Veteran Kakuo Terao, 1947 Figure 3.3 San Fernando Valley Japanese American Community Center Figure 3.4 The McCraven Family, 1965 Figure 3.5 “She Can’t Remember 1942. But You Can,” 1964 Figure 4.1 San Fernando Valley State College’s Administration Building, 1968 Figure 4.2 The Valley State 24, 1969 Figure 5.1 Andres Torres Campaign Flyer, 1973 Figure 5.2 Paul Tsuneishi, Phil Shigekuni, and Other Redress Activists, 1979 Figure 5.3 Dr. Mary Sakaguchi Oda Figure 6.1 The Racial Future of the San Fernando Valley? 2002 vii LIST OF TABLES Table 1 City of San Fernando Latino Population (Percentage of Total) 1950-1980 Table 2 1972 San Fernando City Council Votes Table 3 Population Change in the San Fernando Valley, 1990-2000 Table 4 Results of Measure F Table 5 The Latina/o Vote on Measure F viii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS In the vast, daunting, and rewarding world of research and writing I have accrued many debts. First and foremost, I am extremely grateful for all of the guidance of my committee. My chair Janice Reiff has consistently pushed me to think more imaginatively and helped me cultivate my voice as an historian. I treasure our countless conversations whether in Northern Lights, Bunche, Rolfe, on the way back from the Hill, or in Murphy. Thank you for always looking out for me, giving generously of your limited time, and providing a stellar example of what it means to be a teacher and mentor. Eric Avila’s work encouraged me to study race and the San Fernando Valley back when I was an MA student. I am thankful for his attention to my drafts and belief that a story about race and the San Fernando Valley is important and timely. I extend my thanks to Andrea Goldman, who provided instructive insights as I prepared for my oral exams, and to Paul Ong who offered helpful perspectives from planning and social science. At its heart, this project examines how individuals remembered, interpreted, and attempted to make the San Fernando Valley a more equitable place. As such, I am quite thankful for all of the residents, teachers, activists, and others who sat down with me or other oral historians to share their stories. I extend my sincere gratitude to all of those interviewees, interviewers, and archivists who participated in those various endeavors. Kris Kasianovitz at UCLA’s Young Research Library helped me with US Census data and helped me uncover several other critical primary sources. Her fellow librarians Jeff Rankin, Annie Nakasako-Rocco, and Normal Corral also provided much needed support and good conversations. Martin Brennan swooped in at the last moments and shared his expertise. Marva Felchlin, Manola Madrid, and Mallory Furnier enriched my time at the Autry National Center beyond words. I also appreciate the assistance that Liza Posas and Kim Walters provided at the ix Braun Library. My treks to USC were incredibly fruitful because of the indefatigable Dace Taube and Jacqueline Morin. Thanks also to Melinda Hayes, Rachelle Balinas, Claude Zachary, and the various student assistants with whom I talked about everything from the job market to Greek life (of the campus, not European, sort). Thanks to the staff of the Bancroft Library and Lillian Castillo-Speed at UC Berkeley’s Ethnic Studies Library. Jane Nakasako at the Japanese American National Museum provided helpful guidance at the very beginning of this project. Todd Gaydowski of the LA City Records Center and Archives helped me sift through all of the city’s history to locate archives relevant to my work. At the CSUN Urban Archives, David Sigler answered all of my inquiries with great acumen. Cheers to Holli Lovich who saved me plenty of time through her efforts. I appreciated all of the help and nice conversations with Ellen Jarosz, Ms. Vicki, Ms. April, Ms. Julieta and especially Ms. Yolanda. Thanks to Kandeece and the other student assistants who probably wondered why I seemingly never left. Various funding agencies, libraries, research centers, and endowed funds allowed me to visit these archives. I am tremendously grateful for external funds from the John Randolph Haynes and Dora Haynes Foundation, the Autry National Center, the Japanese American Citizens League, and the Western History Association. Within the UC system, I would like to acknowledge the support of the California Studies Consortium as well as the UC Center for New Racial Studies (for funding at the beginning of my research, publication opportunities in the middle of my work, and for providing a new chapter of my life). I was afforded amazing opportunities for research thanks to various units at UCLA including the Asian American Studies Center, the Institute of American Cultures, the Ralph J. Bunche Center for African American Studies, the Academic Senate’s Committee on Teaching, the Department of History, the Charles x E. Young Research Library, and the Faculty Women’s Club. I thank the foresight and generosity of individual donors who have supported various awards for students. Teaching at UCLA has enhanced my understanding of research and writing. I am thankful for the various faculty with whom I have worked and for so many of my students, particularly my LA Cluster freshman who are graduating this year. Thank you for your enthusiasm and excitement. I thank the audiences of various meetings of the American Studies Association, the Association for Asian American Studies, the California American Studies Association, the National Association for Ethnic Studies, and the Pacific Coast Branch-American Historical Association for their comments on all sorts of previous iterations of this work.