Date of Award
4-4-2017
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Arts (MA)
Department
History
First Advisor
John Kirk
Second Advisor
Travis Ratermann
Abstract
This thesis covers the treatment of Japanese nationals and Japanese Americans in Arkansas prior to World War II. It focuses on the lives of twenty-five Japanese citizens and Japanese Americans who lived in Arkansas between 1905 and 1941. Using the work of eleven scholars, digitized historical documents, and oral history interviews, this research explores how people of Japanese descent lived, worked, assimilated, were educated, and were treated in twelve Arkansas towns, despite the racial hostility and fear felt toward them. The information is analyzed thematically through historiography and synthesis, concerning ethnocentrism, citizenship, landownership, employment, anti-miscegenation, education, and assimilation to better understand their livelihood in a state where they were sometimes regarded as unassimilable foreigners. Ultimately, the location, era, level of education, and occupation of Japanese nationals and Japanese Americans in Arkansas differentiated their experiences from those who lived in other states.
Recommended Citation
Darnell, Ashley Faye, "Between Black and White: The Treatment of Japanese Nationals and Japanese Americans in Arkansas Prior to World War II" (2017). Theses and Dissertations. 730.
https://research.ualr.edu/etd/730
