To Okinawa and back again : Okinawan Kibei Nisei identity in Hawaii

Abstract

In previous literature on Kibei Nisei, the general consensus is that they were sent to Japan for educational, not economic reasons. The common images of Kibei Nisei also implies that Kibei Nisei had a fixed identity; they were unable to assimilate, pro-Japanese, and disloyal to the United States. Most references to the Kibei Nisei experience are found in studies on evacuation and incarceration of Japanese Americans during World War II when the assumption is usually made that Kibei Nisei, because of their presumed indoctrination in militaristic Japan in the later 1920s and 1930s, were more likely to be pro-Japanese than other Nisei. My thesis provides two new perspectives on Kibei Nisei experiences. First, I argue that the economic differences account for a range of Kibei Nisei experiences. Second, I provide a new perception of their identity formation, not as a result of a one-time event that they had while living in Japan but over time according to socio-historical circumstances that they faced upon returning to the United States.