OBITUARY | James E Auer (1941-2024) With Appreciation for a Lifetime of His Guidance and Support

I cannot think of anyone who has done more to deepen the security ties between Japan and the United States than James E Auer. He was better known to all of us as "Jim." His contributions were motivated by warm regard for Japan, which might be termed an expression of his fervent patriotism. He passionately believed that cooperation with Japan also served US national interests well. 

Dr Auer also did much for JAPAN Forward. He consistently provided valuable support as an advisor and major contributor to our English media outlet since its unique inception seven years ago. That is one reason we so regret his untimely passing. 

Over the many years of his professional life, Dr Auer served in the US Navy, worked in various positions at the Department of Defense, and taught at a prestigious private university. Throughout, he advocated the mutual benefits of the Japan-US alliance and sought to make them a reality. He did so because he was a friend of Japan. And because he held the pragmatic conviction that a close relationship with Japan would also contribute to US national interests. Nonetheless, his record of providing heartwarming support over many years to his Japanese friends and acquaintances made him even more unforgettable. 

A Storied Career

I first met James Auer in 1979 when Jimmy Carter was US president. At that time he was an active duty officer in the US Navy, assigned to a minesweeper based at the port of Sasebo. He later served on a Yokosuka-based destroyer before heading to Washington DC where he served in various positions at the Department of Defense (DoD), including in the Office of Japan Affairs. At that time I was working as a newspaper reporter in the US capital. Whenever I visited his office at the Pentagon, Auer received me very cordially. 

Also around that time, Japan-US defense ties began to undergo considerable change. Previously President Carter had not been very proactive on our bilateral military ties. However, after he was directly confronted with the Soviet Union's full-scale invasion of Afghanistan, his administration began to demand Japan make "steady and significant increases in its defense spending." Nevertheless, the Japan side was reluctant to do so because of its traditionally strong aversion to defense and military affairs. Faced with that difficult situation, Jim Auer set to work doing all he could to change the status quo. 

Soon after in January 1981, a conservative Republican administration was launched under President Ronald Reagan. The US stepped forward to deter the Soviet Union through a massive military build-up. It also had strong expectations that Japan would strengthen its own defense posture. 

At the time, Japan maintained that its defense spending would remain at less than 1% of its GDP. That was a glaring contrast from the nearly 4%t of GDP that the US was spending on defense. It was during this period that Auer was officially named as Director of Japanese Affairs at DoD. 

Bilateral Defense Relations in the 'Ron-Yasu' Years

Under the Reagan administration, American discontent with Japan on the economic front grew. Exports of Japanese products, such as autos, steel, and semiconductors swelled, threatening to bring US industry to its knees. Critics on the US side multiplied, arguing that Japan was an "economic threat" getting a "free ride" in terms of defense. 

But even amidst this difficult climate, Auer worked to represent the US government and deepen the bilateral defense relationship. He sought to alleviate the impasse by explaining to the Japan side how dangerous the international situation was. Thus, little bit by little bit, he was able to bolster security cooperation. It was against that backdrop that President Reagan adopted as a basic touchstone a Japan policy of establishing a "firewall" to keep economic clashes from spilling over into the area of defense. 

While emotionally Auer seemed sympathetic towards the Japanese side, as a representative of the US government he knew how to show steeliness on the policy front. Sometimes, in fact, he also made biting criticisms. For example, when he compared the predilection of Japanese pacifists to abandon self-defense as akin to "getting rid of all fire stations because one hates fires."

Auer ended up heading the Japan Affairs Office at DoD for eight years. During that period, which mainly spanned the Yasuhiro Nakasone-Ronald Reagan, "Ron-Yasu" era, the Japan-US alliance was strengthened to a degree not previously seen. Finally, it seemed to begin functioning effectively. Auer's contributions in this respect were tremendous. 

A New Base for Advocating Normalized Relations

After retiring from government service, Auer's career continued for another 30 years. First, though, he established a new base for his advocacy of Japan-US relations in Nashville, Tennessee. 

Auer hailed from the upper Midwest and was unfamiliar with the South. Therefore, it appears his main reason for moving to Tennessee was that his beloved wife Judy (Judith) wanted to live in her hometown. The upshot was that in 1989 Auer became a professor at the prestigious private Vanderbilt University. There, he also became founding director of its Center for US-Japan Studies and Cooperation. 

From that private sector position, Dr Auer achieved an even more remarkable record of success. He continued to make various efforts to have Japan treated as a valuable ally on a closer to equal footing with the US. Meanwhile, he was also a vocal advocate for revision of the Japanese constitution. A product of the postwar Occupation era, it continued to restrain Japan's efforts for self-defense. Auer also urged that Self-Defense Force (SDF) units be deployed overseas in support of United Nations operations. And he firmly criticized the taboo concerning acknowledgement of Japan's right of collective self-defense. 

Commitment to Future Generations

Arguably, though, his most enduring legacy was his long-term support for the training and education of Japanese who came to study in the US. They included friends and acquaintances and mid-career professionals to novices just starting out. In many cases, they studied and trained at Vanderbilt University where he taught. 

He and his wife were well known for the warm and personal attention they paid to the Japanese they took in. Many beneficiaries of their kindness are active today in political, academic, and media circles in Japan. Auer's assistant, a Japanese woman named Michiko Peterson, played a large role in arranging these interactions with students. 

Auer's personal support for visiting Japanese was so generous, kind, and attentive that it could not but evoke admiration. Furthermore, he never sought to publicize the assistance he provided so willingly. His behavior was purely motivated by his natural human warmth, without the least regard for self-interest or prestige. I am personally acquainted with several recipients who dramatically benefited from Dr and Mrs Auer's support. Many have gone on to public and private positions where they, too, positively influence Japan-US relations.  They include politicians, educators and Sankei Shimbun reporters, among many others.

My own interactions with Auer became closer during this period. Another thing that astonished me was how he had managed to cultivate ties with Japanese in fields I knew nothing about. Naturally, they were all related to the theme of national security and deepening cooperation between Japan and the US. It is fair to say that his work was in service of the broader objective of nurturing bilateral friendship between Japan and the US as nations that shared the universal values of democracy and respect for human rights. 

Special Advisor to JAPAN Forward

One of Dr Auer's private sector legacies was JAPAN Forward. He provided early and consequential advice and support from the time this innovative English-language medium was first launched. Its purpose was to carry out the wide dissemination of opinions from mainstream Japan and explanations of government policies to the outside world in English. He stressed the significance of its undertaking and helped attract American recognition. 

Auer himself also became a major contributor of essays and articles. His support was greatly important to JAPAN Forward's development and recognition overseas as one of Japan's leading English-language news and opinion sources. Having witnessed this progress as a special advisor myself, I would like to express my deep gratitude for Dr Auer's invaluable guidance. 

The Importance of Family

Jim and Judy Auer both had huge hearts. Deciding to build their own family, they adopted three infants and raised them, growing their family in more ways than numbers. Francis "Frank" Teiichiro, is their eldest. He was born in Japan. Helen Meeyoung arrived next. She was born in South Korea. And the youngest, John Edwin was born in the United States. Within a few months of each other in age, they were treated as if they were Jim and Judy's biological children. 

All three grew up to be impressive adults. Tei followed the path of music and is now a public school music teacher. Helen spent five years in Japan as part of the JET Program, an international system under which young American college graduates come to Japan to work in local schools. She has now returned to Nashville where she helped her parents in their later years. Like their mom Judy, Helen works as a schoolteacher. 

As for John Edwin, he followed in his father's footsteps and joined the US Navy. He later transferred to the US Marine Corps, in which he currently holds the rank of major. John has served in Afghanistan among other locations.

Carrying the Legacy Into the Future

Over the years I personally witnessed the care with which Dr and Mrs Auer raised their three children. Especially notable were their primary and junior high school days when Judy, who had been a schoolteacher, homeschooled all three of the youngsters. It was further evidence of her special love for them. Dr Auer was heartbroken when Judy, his wife of 46 years, passed away peacefully in her sleep in December 2022.

It would not be an exaggeration to say that Jim and Judy Auer left us a lasting legacy of bilateral philanthropy, caring for others, and humanitarianism.

May you rest in peace, dear friends. 

RELATED:

• Remembering James E Auer: A Legacy of Strengthening Japan-US Relations
• INTERVIEW | Jim Auer: Japan-U.S. ‘Extremely Important’ for Asia-Pacific Security
• [Speaking Out] Japan Needs to Become a Great Power Again, 75 Years After the War
  
  

(Read the obituary in Japanese.)

Author: Yoshihisa Komori 

Komori is Special Advisor to JAPAN Forward, Associate Correspondent, Washington, The Sankei Shimbun, and Distinguished Professor, Reitaku University.