S. I. Hayakawa
S. I. Hayakawa | |
|---|---|
Hayakawa in 1981 | |
| United States Senator from California | |
| In office January 2, 1977 – January 3, 1983 | |
| Preceded by | John V. Tunney |
| Succeeded by | Pete Wilson |
| 9th President of San Francisco State University | |
| In office November 26, 1968 – July 10, 1973 | |
| Preceded by | Robert Smith |
| Succeeded by | Paul Romberg |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Samuel Ichiye Hayakawa July 18, 1906 Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada |
| Died | February 27, 1992 (aged 85) Greenbrae, California, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican (from 1973) |
| Other political affiliations | Democratic (before 1973) |
| Spouse | Margedant Peters |
| Children | 3 |
| Education | University of Manitoba (BA) McGill University (MA) University of Wisconsin, Madison (PhD) |
| Academic background | |
| Thesis | Oliver Wendell Holmes: Physician, poet, essayist (1935) |
| Influences | Alfred Korzybski |
| Academic work | |
| Discipline | English |
| Sub-discipline | Semantics |
| Institutions | University of Wisconsin, Madison Armour Institute of Technology University of Chicago San Francisco State College |
| Notable works | Language in Thought and Action |
Samuel Ichiye Hayakawa (July 18, 1906 – February 27, 1992) was a Canadian-born American academic and politician of Japanese ancestry. A professor of English, he served as president of San Francisco State University and then as U.S. Senator from California from 1977 to 1983.
Hayakawa was born in Vancouver, British Columbia to Japanese immigrants. Hayakawa advocated for Japanese Canadian voting rights in the 1930s. In the 1950s he became a professor at the University of Chicago before moving to teach English at San Francisco State College. After becoming acting president of San Francisco State College, Hayakawa became a conservative icon after he pulled out the wires from the loudspeakers on student protesters' van at an outdoor rally.
Hayakawa defeated incumbent Democratic senator John V. Tunney in 1976, becoming the first Asian American Senator from California. Hayakawa supported former California governor Ronald Reagan in the 1980 presidential election. He initially sought reelection in 1982 but bowed out of the race due to a lack of funds. Republican Pete Wilson succeeded Hayakawa in the US Senate.