Chinese Americans and Japanese Americans

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Chapter 13

• Chinese Americans and Japanese Americans

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Chinese Americans

• Chinese immigration was met with mixed sentiments
  from 1848 onward
• Chinese exclusion act of 1882 - 1943
• Gradual immigration from 1943 - 1965
• Increase in immigration came with the passage of
  the 1965 Immigration Act
• Push and pull factors

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Occupational Profile of Chinese Americans

• Early on discriminatory laws were passed making
  it difficult for Chinese to enter certain
  occupations
• Early on gravitated toward service occupations or
  low paying jobs that whites found undesirable
• Chinatown and the tourist industry

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Occupational Profile of Chinese Americans

• Chinatown and the tourist industry
• Double-edged sword
• Provides jobs (albeit at low wages)
• But also forces Chinatown to keep its problems
  quiet and not seek outside assistance
• slums do not attract tourists Schaefer
• Similar to Native Americans in their dependency
  on tourism
• Jobs
• New immigrants find it difficult finding jobs
  outside of Chinatown
• Lack of English is another reason for new
  immigrants seeking work in Chinatown

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Chinatowns Today

• The economic paradox of Chinatowns
• The impression of glitter and wealth among hidden
  economic deprivation and poverty in Chinatown
• Organizational life
• Clan or tsu organization and functions (Surname
  Association)
• Membership based on clan and family ties

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Organization

• Benevolent associations or hui kuan (organization
  based on kinship ties)
• Assist in the adjustment to a new country
• Membership is based on district of origin
• Hui kuan associations are part of a larger
  organization, Chinese Six Companies, (Chinese
  Consolidated Benevolent Association)
• Tongs or secret societies formed on the basis of
  common interests

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Conclusions about Social Organizations

• Evolved from Chinese traditions and customs
• All three types have performed similar functions
  providing assistance and representing interests
  to dominant group

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Conclusions about Social Organizations

• Inter-conflict between the associations
• Decline in significance
• Downplay their problems within the Chinese
  community with the dominant group

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Social Problems

• The tourist industry in Chinatown as double edged
  sword
• Jobs but at substandard pay
• Poverty
• Health
• Suicide
• Poor housing
• Crime
• Poor working conditions
• Other

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Family and Religious Life

• In the Peoples Republic of China organized
  religion barely exists
• Buddhism
• Christianity
• Other faiths
• Variation of acculturation on Chinese family
  structure

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• Less acculturated the greater the emphasis on
  extended family and patriarchal authority
• Effect of immigration on family structure

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Japanese Americans

• Initial Japanese immigrants came around 1885
  (Push and pull factors)
• Came from a very stratified society
• Most came from the lower class in Japan
• Initially many found employment in forestry,
  agriculture and then migrated to cities along the
  West Coast and established small businesses

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Generational Identity

• Issei - first generation immigrants born in Japan
• Nissei - second generation American born children
  of the Issei
• (Kibei)
• Sansei - third generation
• Yonsei - fourth generation

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Early Discrimination

• Laws were passed prohibiting Issei from becoming
  citizens
• California Alien Land Act of 1913
• Economic impact on agricultural land owned by
  Japanese Americans
• Adjustments to the act led many to transfer
  ownership to their American born children
• Many left agriculture in the 1920s and migrated
  to cities and established small businesses
  catering to both the Japanese and dominant group
  because of this legislation

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Wartime Evacuation

• Executive order 9066, signed by Roosevelt on
  February 13, 1942
• Economic cost to the evacuees was in excess of
  400,000,000 or in current dollars 3.7 billion
• Psychological impact
• The way out and the loyalty test

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Evacuation

• It was rapid, smooth, and efficient primarily
  because of the cooperativeness of the Japanese.
• lack of resistance led some to justify the
  action, through blaming the victim mentality
• Fisher reports that only 2,300 of the evacuees
  asked to be sent back to Japan.
• Were these camps concentration camps?

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Why Were the Japanese Evacuated?

• Kitano offers a multi-factor interpretation
• 1. Racism
• 2. Pressure from individuals groups
• 3. Background of anti-Asian feelings
• 4. Wartime fears
• 5. General lack of knowledge about Japanese by
  most Americans

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Economic Picture

• Upward mobility after WWII
• Japanese American educational attainment is
  higher than whites
• Occupationally have been upwardly mobile but
  still experience the glass ceiling and wall
• Higher median family income than whites

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Family and Religious Life

• Acculturation and change in family structure
• Conjugal nuclear family structure
• Neolocal pattern of residence
• Outgroup marriage is increasing and is
  approximately 50 among the Yonsei
• Rising divorce rate

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Family and Religious Life

• Dual religious customs in Japan
• Shinto
• Buddhism
• United States the emphasis is on belonging to a
  single religion
• Impact is changing religious customs over time
  among Japanese-Americans

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Remnants of Prejudice and Discrimination

• The decline in overt prejudice
• Subtle forms still exist
• Job discrimination
• However, Chinese Americans and Japanese Americans
  believe that prejudice and racism have decreased
• Assimilation

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Figure 13-2 Intergroup Relations Continuum