America is, of course, a land of immigrants. We may think offhand of all the waves of white European immigrants (English, Germans, Irish, Poles, Italians, etc), as well as the African Americans brought as slaves and the Chicano groups who are currently the fastest growing minority. When we think of Asians, we may think of the recent groups of Chinese, Japanese, Vietnamese, and others who are increasingly visible, especially on the West Coast.
But in fact, the first large wave of Japanese arrived over a century ago-- they came from the first generation of Japanese who grew up entirely after the Meiji Restoration of 1868. More than three generations of Japanese Americans have grown up in this country, and have had to deal with difficult issues of integration, cultural preservation, racism, and troubled relations between America and Japan.
The generations are called the Issei (first), Nisei (second), and Sansei (third) [the Yonsei are now reaching adulthood, but the research for this book was done in the 1970s, so they are only covered in passing at the end of the book, which was published in 1997]. There are also the Kibei, who are the same age as the Nisei and were born in America, but were schooled in Japan, arriving back in this country to live as adults. Jere Takahashi has studied the complex dynamics of Japanese American identity, as people from each generation have had to deal with their relation to both the majority population and the other generations of Japanese Americans. He focuses on the Nisei and the Sansei because of his interest in intergenerational relationships. "Nisei/Sansei: Shifting Japanese American Identities and Politics" gets an unqualified "+"-- while it would certainly be of interest to a Yonsei in search of his or her roots, it is also a fascinating history lesson for a white American like myself, not necessarily aware of the details of Japanese American culture.
In the Introduction, Takahashi notes that historians and sociologists of Japanese American culture have taken a variety of approaches to describe the generations who lived and worked in America, some focusing on external factors and others on internal cultural values carried over from Japan. Takahashi has adopted a hybrid style that emphasizes both the similarities within each generation compared to the majority culture and the differences within that generation when the details are examined more finely.
The similarities arise because of a common political and social environment-- such as the racism of the Teens, the mounting tensions of the 1930s, or the charged political atmosphere of the 1960s. These external events and styles have shaped the space within which Japanese Americans have been able to define themselves and work toward their goals in life.
The differences arise because within the space defined by external events, Japanese Americans have found creative solutions to optimize their life chances and overall situation. In each generation, people adopted a number of different-- sometimes significantly different-- strategies to survive, prosper, and be comfortable with themselves and their community. This has led to some conflict as well as some strong intergenerational bonding as Japanese Americans have learned to live with both their Japanese and their American identities.
The Issei had no easy time after their arrival in the US. They were not allowed to become citizens and were denied entry into many kinds of jobs. They mostly became farmers and small business owners. Despite the racism they encountered, most decided to try to make a life in America rather than return to Japan.
The Nisei, their children, were citizens by birth, but did not escape the racism. Because the Issei were focused on improving their children's lot, they strongly encouraged the Nisei to obtain a solid education. Although the Japanese American community remained insular, Nisei largely adopted an assimilationist attitude, downplaying their "Japaneseness" in an attempt to "prove" that they were qualified to enter mainstream occupations in the white collar sector. There was some success in this goal; the Nisei were better educated than their Issei parents and began to move into a few professional occupations. Many began to see themselves as a "bridge" between American and Japanese culture.
But the Nisei were split down the middle by external events. Older Nisei came of age during the 20s and 30s, as tensions with Japan grew ever stronger. World War II saw the Japanese Americans rounded up and placed in internment camps-- noncitizen Issei and full-citizen Nisei alike. Younger Nisei were children or teenagers in the camps, never knowing adult life before the War.
It is hard to even imagine what it would be like to have one's civil rights so profoundly violated-- imagine the government seizing your property and forcing you to live in what was essentially a prison because the US is at war with a country that your ancestors came from (and of which you are not a citizen). [By the way, this happened to Italian- and German Americans too].
Japanese Americans dealt with this insult largely by complying with the regulations, although that is far too simple of an assessment; there was plenty of soul-searching involved, as well as some significant resistance. Takahashi takes special care to articulate all the complex relationships going on at this point among Japanese Americans. Not only were there the differing experiences and citizenship status of the Issei and the Nisei, but there were also the Kibei as a complicating third factor. They had returned to America during the 30s but did not tend to see themselves as the "bridge" that the older Nisei did. Most Kibei were far more attuned to Japanese culture, and even adopted a pro-Japan stance in the pre-war years. In some ways, they connected well with the less Americanized Issei.
After the war, reintegration was a painful process. It took the Japanese Americans many years to recover from the losses of property, business, and social connections they had built in the previous decades. However, the strong postwar economy aided in their improvement. As the Nisei, now all adults, entered the new job market of the 50's, they found increasing opportunities in business and technical careers, as well as retail and sales positions. They moved away from their agricultural roots, although they did not spread very widely, remaining concentrated in a small number of particular occupations.
The new political and social climate made possible a variety of strategies, and Nisei moved into all of them, sometimes differing with each other. Many took a primarily conservative stance, emphasizing the need for self-reliance and hard work. For instance, this was the position of the Japanese American Citizens League (JACL), an organization that had been born before the war (founded by older Nisei) and continued on as "the only political game in town" for Japanese Americans.
Other Nisei took a more progressive, activist stance, getting involved with other political and social groups that were not explicitly Japanese. These included school groups, worker groups, and other community groups that worked to benefit the poor or other disadvantaged groups.
What the variety of Nisei strategies had in common was that "Japaneseness" continued to be de-emphasized. Whether working for social change or digging in and "making it" on their own, the Nisei retained the integrationist attitudes implanted by their Issei parents.
But much of this changed with the Sansei, who came of age in the politically charged 60s and 70s. For the first time, Japanese Americans began to frame their identity in terms of being "people of color"-- and an oppressed group. Sansei banded with other Asian Americans and formed new ways of perceiving of themselves within American society. Many empathized with blacks and found connections between their experience and that of black Americans.
These new ways of thinking set up confusion for Sansei trying to understand their parents' more assimilationist nature. Sansei grappled with the reason for their parents' "going along with" the internment camps rather than protesting and fighting back. Even when the radicalism of those times subsided, Sansei retained their desire to identify as Asians or Japanese rather than full Americans. They are aware that they are still seen as "other" simply by their physical appearance even when they speak perfect English and live typical lifestyles.
One of the most interesting points that Takahashi explores is the concept of Asian Americans, and Japanese Americans in particular, as a "model minority." We've all heard this phrase, and may even think we know what it means. But the Japanese American people Takahashi talked to did not consider themselves a model minority. They talked about the racism inherent in that statement, and the discomfort they feel when it is used against other minorities (such as blacks) with whom they feel some solidarity in this majority-white society.
"Nisei/Sansei" is half history lesson, half personal accounts by Nisei and Sansei whom Takahashi spoke with during his research. It is fascinating and far more detailed than I could relate here, of course. Takahashi does an excellent job of showing how each generation of Japanese Americans was shaped by both its external circumstances and its parents' generation. And yet, within those constraints, each generation came up with a variety of styles and attitudes. Sometimes there was conflict within a generation and strong bonding between generations even though each generation had an overall character that set it apart from the majority culture.
One final personal note: my uncle is Japanese American, born here around 1930. Generationally, that makes him a "younger Nisei" (he was a teenager when he was sent to camp), although his parents were not established Issei who came here well before having children. This book provided some useful background information to understand the general climate of the Japanese American community during the time around WWII. As with so many minority groups, I found that I don't know enough about their history in the US, particularly from their own perspective as they have tried to navigate the tricky waters of integrating while preserving their own culture and community.
If you also find that you don't know much about Japanese American identity and politics, read Takahashi's book to get an appreciation of these.
Copyright © Kim Allen 2001
