Chapters 11 12 Japanese Chinese Americans

1. Chapters 11 & 12 Japanese & Chinese Americans 1. The Anglo American ideal is that the non-whites cannot be assimilated, e.g., Japanese. 2. Japanese suffered prejudice and discrimination because they do not look like the English. 3. Proclaimed as a “Model Minority” because they have succeeded economically but some scholars consider it as a stereotype. The catch phrase “Model Minority’ was coined in 1966 by sociologist William Petersen.

2. 4. Japanese Americans claim that their “success story” is a stereotype that deflects attention away from continuing discrimination against them. The stereotype is used to claim that the problems of less successful groups are due to lack of effort rather than discrimination, e.g., Blacks, Hispanics, and American Indians. 5. Despite non-white—followed the path of assimilation similar to the 2nd stream of immigrants.

3. Japanese Immigration and Native Reactions: 1.  Anti-Asian sentiments: (i) A Japanese victory in war with Russia, revived the belief in the U.S. that immigrants from the East may overrun the U.S. 2.  The hostility directed toward Chinese was now aimed at the Japanese.

4. Immigration Restriction: 1.  The Chinese came to California after 1848 to work in gold mines and build railroads. 2.  In 1852 the governor of California recommended to stem the “tide of Asiatic immigration.” 3. Native workers and small businessmen considered the Chinese workers to the “slave laborers” of big business, and they deeply resented what they considered to be unfair competition. This resentment led to the formation of a Workingman’s Party that campaigned with the slogan “The Chinese Must Go!”

5. 4.  The Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 suspended for 10 years the entrance of Chinese workers and also made them ineligible to become citizens. 5.  The Exclusion Act was repealed in 1943, because China and U.S. were allies in WWII. 6.  The Immigration Act of 1924 resulted in a dramatic change away from America’s “open-door” policy of immigration. The law completely cut off immigration from Japan.

6. Anti –Japanese Protest: 1.  A San Francisco Chronicle ran scary headlines like “The Yellow Peril How Japanese crowd out the White Race,” (Daniel 1969:25). 2.  The Anti-Japanese sentiment and a media barrage attacking Japanese immigration led to the formation of the Asiatic Exclusion League. 3. The San Francisco Board of Education ordered all Japanese, Chinese and Korean students to attend a separate school for Orientals.

7. The School Board Crisis: 1.  After tense confrontations between the U.S. and Japanese governments over the San Francisco school segregation issue, the school board repealed the segregation resolution. 2. President Theodore Roosevelt issued an executive order to limit the entry of Japanese workers into the U.S. through Mexico, Canada or Hawaii.

8. The “Picture-Bride Invasion” 1.  Picture-Bride Invasion=legal proxy marriage. To balance the ratio of men to women-- Japanese Americans will marry from Japan—form communities. 2.  In a compromise known as the Gentlemen’s Agreement, President Theodore Roosevelt limited the immigration of Japanese and the government agreed to restrict passports of immigrants to the U.S. 3. The Gentlemen’s Agreement permitted the wives of U.S. residents to immigrate.

9. 4.  Many of the single Japanese male sojourners in the U.S. entered into picture bride marriages whereby the prospective bride and groom exchanged pictures and were married in a legal proxy ceremony. The bride would then sail for America to join her husband. 5.  The arrival of so many women enabled Japanese Americans to establish families and communities. Many natives were angered because they believed the picture bride process was contrary to the gentlemen’s agreement.

10. The Japanese Family and Community in America: The Japanese immigrant group in America experienced a marked split between 1st and 2nd generations because of immigration restriction. 1.  1st generation immigrants = the Issei—arrived before the Legal Exclusion Act of 1924. 2.  2nd generation=the Nisei—American-born citizens who reached adulthood by the outbreak of WWII. 3. 3rd generation=the Sansei—born after the WWII.

11. 4.  4th generation=the Yonsei—children of the Sansei. 5.  Strong links with extended family and community played an important role in establishing and maintaining traditional Japanese ways of life, thereby resisting cultural, primary and marital assimilation. 6. The 1st generation want their children to be more Japanese.

12. Japanese Occupation and the Alien Land Laws: 1.  The fear that the Japanese would acquire all of the farming land of California led to the passage of the Alien Land Law of 1913. 2. In 1922, in Ozawa v. U.S., the Supreme Court ruled that although Ozawa had many fine qualifications he was not White and therefore, not eligible for citizenship.

13. Exclusions: 1.  In 1924, the immigration quota was passed, the Gentlemen’s Agreement was unilaterally repudiated and Japan was denied an immigration quota. 2.  The consequences: the 1st generation—Issei treated as non-citizens—could not participate in the American society.

14. The Second Generation Period: The Japanese American Citizen’s League (JACL) represented the Nisei’s determination to rise in American society and be accepted as equals—electing Japanese Americans to public office.

15. War, Evacuation and Relocation: 1.  The relocation program: after the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor, President Franklin Roosevelt issued executive order 9066 in 1942. the order imposed restrictions on the movements of persons in military areas. 2. Japanese Americans were arrested and imprisoned in relocation centers without trials—very humiliating and miserable.

16. Life in the Camps: 1.  Conditions in the camps were harsh, i.e., overcrowded housing etc. 2. A focus of controversy for the Japanese in the interment camps was the “loyalty oath,” question 28 on a required questionnaire for military recruits. The question asked, “Will you swear to abide by the laws of the U.S. and to take no action which would in any way interfere with the war effort of the U.S.?”

17. Legal Issues: In 1948, the Evacuation Claims Act was passed and internees were paid about $37 million as restitution for their losses. Many felt this amount was too small. In 1988, JACL (Japanese American Citizens League) pressed Congress to pass a bill that gave additional tax-free payments of $20,000 to surviving detainees. The bill was accompanied by a formal apology by President George H. Bush.

18. Japanese American Assimilation: 1.  Cultural assimilation: intergenerational differences: 1st generation groups—Issei limited their contacts with people outside of the group except for economic matters. 2.  2nd generation=Nisei because of contacts with the English speaking children in public schools moved toward cultural assimilation. 3. However, the level of cultural assimilation by substitution is higher for the Sansei=3rd generation than the two preceding generations.

19. Secondary structural assimilation: A.   Organizational membership: (i) the level of Japanese American participation in ethnic organizations was still high in comparison to most other ethnic groups. (ii) Sansei (3rd generation) –most of them were not members of a Japanese organization. B. Residential assimilation: (i) spatial assimilation theory: basic assumption: as ethnic groups assimilate, they will leave old ethnic neighborhoods, and move to others voluntarily (usually affluent areas).

20. (ii) higher levels of education are linked to higher levels of residential assimilation among all ethnic groups. Education has a positive relationship with residential assimilation. (iii) Denton and Massey (1988) found that Asian groups tended to live in neighborhoods of Anglo Americans. A substantial amount of secondary assimilation has occurred among Japanese Americans. C. Indexes of Dissimilarity: sociologists use it to calculate and compare the extent of residential segregation of different groups, e.g., index values of 60 are considered high, 30 as low; and between 30-59 as moderate.

21. Primary structural assimilation: A.  Nisei (2nd generation) –more primary assimilation. B. Over 75% of the Nisei(2nd) and the Sansei (3rd) interviewed by Levine and Rhodes (1981) wanted their children to associate actively with Whites rather than just with Japanese Americans.

22. Marital Assimilation: A.  Intermarriage rates are important because mixed marriages or out-marriages can be understood as both an indicator of the degree of assimilation and an agent of future assimilation. B.Out-marriages common among the Sansei (3rd). C. Park’s and Gordon’s analyses are correct that complete Anglo conformity assimilation awaits Japanese Americans.

23. Japanese American “Success” A.  Cultural view: value compatibility: certain values are compatible, e.g., hard work, thrift, and achievement are character traits similar to the American middle class. The Nisei (2nd) generation succeeded. B. Family and community cohesion: higher degree of family and community organization in Japanese American communities enforced value conformity and helped later generations achieve higher status.

24. Criticisms: A.  Success story of Japanese : according to Okimoto Tachiki (1971) Whites use it to “put down” other minority groups, e.g., Blacks, Hispanics and Indians. It also perpetuates the discrimination of Japanese—stereotype. B. Steinberg (1989) contended that the “success-values” argument has been made with respect to every ethnic group that has achieved a notable degree of affluence. Culture versus material factor.

25. C. The structural view: non-cultural explanations of Japanese American success are: (i) Japanese who came with the highest education and wealth became the most successful. (ii) the Middleman Minority theory is based on the idea that sojourning is a necessary ingredient in the development of an intermediate economic position. A middleman minority occupies that intermediate position.

26. (iii) advantages of sojourners: promotion of community solidarity; provision of both vertical and horizontal integration—social mobility; and growth of business. D.  Middleman minority theory: Bonacich and Modell (1980) argued that Japanese were sojourners because they maintained ties with their own group and avoided cultivating strong ties with the host group—Anglos. This position motivated the Japanese to work hard and be thrifty—contributing factors to their success story. E. Ethnic enclave: Wilson and Portes (1980) argued that the Japanese success was due to their strong community ties, e.g., family, economic ties etc.

27. F.  Dual-economy theory: two labor markets: 1. Primary labor market=good jobs; and 2. Secondary labor market=dead end jobs—poorly paid. A.  Culture important for the Japanese success story. B. Disadvantages based on race are not necessarily permanent in American society.