The Sixth Son: The Emergence and Development of Japanese Communities in the United States and Brazil

Abstract

ABSTRACT In popular history, Japanese presence in the Americas isn't recognized until December 8, 1941 , with the Pearl Harbor attacks. Howeve r, Japanese immigrants have been in the Western Hemisphere since the Meiji Restoration, nearly seventy years before the "day which will live in infamy." Further, the Japanese immigrant communities are rarely dealt with as one multifaceted movement; this thesis attempts to weave the stories of these people as they embarked for new lives in the Un ited States and Brazil. This study traces the development of the Japanese communities in Brazil and the United States, from their origins to the modern day. Focus is given to the years 1930- 1945 ; that time period is crucial, as the leaders of both nations during that era enacted policies to ensure national security and stability at the cost of Japanese immigrants'civil liberties. In the United States, Japanese American internment caused a drastic shift in community structure and self-identification. In Brazil, nationalist policies ostracized the Japanese community to a point of hysteria. This thesis demonstrates the problems faced by minorities and immigrants in large heterogeneous nations. Finally, the thesis demonstrates how American history should not remain staunchl-y divorced from the history of the Americas.

Notes

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Thesis Completion

2006

Semester

Summer

Advisor

Crepeau, Richard C.

Degree

Bachelor of Arts (B.A.)

College

College of Arts and Sciences

Degree Program

History

Subjects

Arts and Humanities -- Dissertations, Academic; Dissertations, Academic -- Arts and Humanities; Japanese -- Brazil; Japanese -- United States

Format

Print

Identifier

DP0022732

Language

English

Access Status

Open Access

Length of Campus-only Access

None

Document Type

Honors in the Major Thesis

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