asian american and black american reconstructions of draft resistance and japanese american ...

241 Pages·2012·1.12 MB·English

OUR NEED FOR HEROES: ASIAN AMERICAN AND BLACK AMERICAN
RECONSTRUCTIONS OF DRAFT RESISTANCE AND JAPANESE AMERICAN
INCARCERATION NARRATIVES

By
Meaghan Mari Kozar

A DISSERTATION
Submitted to
Michigan State University
in partial fulfillment of the requirements
for the degree of
DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY
American Studies
2012
ABSTRACT
OUR NEED FOR HEROES: ASIAN AMERICAN AND BLACK AMERICAN
RECONSTRUCTIONS OF DRAFT RESISTANCE AND JAPANESE AMERICAN
INCARCERATION NARRATIVES

By
Meaghan Mari Kozar
The construction of a white American heroism through uncritical
celebrations of World War II, within public spaces, accompanied with the
recurring antagonistic anthem of “Never Forget Pearl Harbor!” serves
simultaneously to reinforce the perception of Asian Americans as foreign and un-
American, legitimizing the physical and symbolic violence perpetrated against
them post-World War II. Problematically, World War II heroism is centered on a
seemingly inclusive discourse of Americanness and patriotism while counter-
narratives of non-white resistance are constructed almost exclusively from the
specificity of distinct racial communities. I focus on the significance of a handful
of racially intersecting “moments” in which Japanese Americans drew parallels
between their experiences and the racial exclusion of Black Americans and
similarly when Black Americans drew parallels between their experience and the
racial exclusion of Japanese Americans. While the feeling of shared racial
exclusion were not expressed by most Americans of color, this dissertation
centers on historical and literary expressions of shared strategies of resistance
towards their racial exclusion during World War II
Our Need for Heroes is an interdisciplinary study grounded in an American
Studies perspective incorporating history, literature and contemporary popular
culture. I locate racially intersecting moments that surface within the memoirs
and oral histories of Japanese American incarceration by both Nisei and Issei as
well as various articles in the Black Press, two critical sites for documenting the
history of non-white American World War II resistance. These moments also
surface in how resistance is remembered in post-World War II literature. Chester
Himes’ If He Hollers Let Him Go (1945) and John Okada’s No-No Boy (1957)
raise questions of whether or not fighting in the war was politically advantageous
for Americans of color by critiquing the racially exclusive constructions of
patriotism and citizenship. Draft resistance is constructed as a legitimate
response to this exclusion as the novels attempt to reheroize the performance of
draft resisters through a process of remasculating each protagonist. Laureen
Mar’s short story Resistance (1993) and Shawn Wong’s American Knees (1995)
remember and rewrite the Japanese American incarceration history as a
narrative of empowerment as each protagonist’s nostalgic search for heroism is
reflected in the absence of heroism in their current lives.
This dissertation explores the memory of draft resistance and Japanese
American incarceration, considering processes of rethinking and reheroization
through which these experiences are transformed from a history of shame into
one rooted in agency. I argue Asian American and Black American
reconstructions of narratives of draft resistance and Japanese American
incarceration histories during World War II are critical for rethinking the exclusive
racialized constructions of patriotism, dissent and citizenship.
Copyright by
MEAGHAN MARI KOZAR
2012
For Jai Kozar-Lewis

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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

When I began my PhD program in American Studies many years ago, I
was an excited graduate student full of motivation and enthusiasm for learning
with the single purpose of obtaining my doctoral degree. In the years following, I
became a mother and began a full-time job outside of trying to complete my
graduate studies. In a nutshell, life happened. Despite the wonderful
opportunities I have been blessed with, the years have also been met with agony
over my unfinished dissertation. More days than not were spent wondering if I
would ever finish, tempted to just throw in the towel. It is for this reason, these
acknowledgements are so important to me. If it were not for the wonderful people
I have had the privilege of meeting, my frequent thoughts of giving up might have
won.
My deepest gratitude goes to Dr. Anna Pegler-Gordon, my committee
chair. While I did not begin with Dr. Pegler-Gordon as my chair, I am beyond
fortunate to have ended with her guidance. It was her unyielding support and
confidence in my ideas that jumpstarted my dissertation to what it has evolved
into. The frequency and quality of the feedback she provided was invaluable. I
respect most that her challenges to my work were always done in such an
upbeat and kind manner. I felt rejuvenated and inspired after our meetings, a
conversation on the phone or after reading an email response. I am beyond
appreciative of the hours she spent proofreading my work. My respect for her as
an advisor, mother, professional, and friend is beyond words.
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Two other important women who I am immensely thankful for are Dr.
Andrea Louie and Dr. Terese Guinsatao Monberg. Although they were not on my
committee they provided me guidance and support as if they were. Their endless
words of encouragement, the time spent writing together, talking, stressing and
laughing are wonderful memories that I will always cherish. They are amazing
role models for me, most importantly, as Asian American women, something
lacking for most of my life. I am even more fortunate to call them friends.
I am appreciative of several additional MSU professors who have helped
me along the way, specifically, to the rest of my guidance committee members,
Dr. Salah Hassan, Dr. Sayuri Shimizu and Dr. Pero Dagbovie. I cannot thank
them enough for the wonderful support, guidance and insight into my work. I am
appreciative of Dr. Ann Larabee for the assistance and opportunities that she has
provided me over the years both professionally and financially as a Teaching
Assistant, a Book Review Editor, a summer fellowship and so forth. I am
overwhelmed at how generous she has been. I am grateful for Dr. Aime Ellis who
taught my first graduate class in African American Studies at MSU. This course
was significant in many ways but mostly because it helped shape my
understanding of masculinity and resistance. It was also when I was introduced
to Chester Himes’ If He Hollers Let Him Go. For that, I am forever grateful. May
he rest in peace. A heartfelt thanks goes to all my professors at MSU.
I am grateful to all my professors at Iowa State University as well. I have
been fortunate to have wonderfully stimulating and engaging courses not only at
MSU but also ISU. If it weren’t for the rich knowledge acquired at ISU during my
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Master’s Program, I wouldn’t have wanted to pursue my PhD. I am especially
grateful to Dr. J. Herman Blake. As Director of ISU’s African American Studies
Program, he incorporated the histories of all communities of color while never
privileging one’s racial struggles or experiences over another’s. He provided me
with a foundation of race and history by helping me think through how we teach
history. I had the esteemed privilege of working for him as a Teaching Assistant
in the Multicultural Learning Community. I attended each of his lectures with
more eagerness than the students in his class. His passion for teaching, helping
students learn and his commitment to excellence is unmatched. He was my first
mentor and the first person I could not wait to share the news that I had
successfully defended my dissertation. In my first year as a TA, he introduced me
to the undergraduate students as “Dr. Meaghan Kozar,” years before I even had
thoughts of pursuing my doctorate. He knew what he was doing. He plants seeds
of excellence and achievement in his students, because he “respects our minds
too much.” I am privileged to know him.
I am appreciative of all those that have reached out across their racial
communities to either stand up for or speak out against the discrimination and
racism affecting communities outside their own. I hope that in some small way
this dissertation can help inspire more people to do this.
And finally, I want to thank my son, Jai. I have been pursuing my doctoral
degree for the span of his life. Over half of his life, I have been writing my
dissertation. He has been knee deep in this journey with me through the
conferences, the classes, the studying, the exams and the writing. He has been
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alongside me at the table through the long writing sessions at coffee shops and
campus cafeterias encouraging me, inspiring me to finish my PhD while never
complaining. I am blessed beyond belief to have a son as respectful,
compassionate, and understanding as he is. He makes me laugh. He motivates
me. He is my miracle. This dissertation is dedicated to him.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................. 1

CHAPTER ONE
JAPANESE AMERICAN AND BLACK SOLIDARITY: READING RESISTANCE
IN JAPANESE AMERICAN INCARCERATION NARRATIVES .......................... 37
1.1 Introduction .................................................................................... 37
1.2 America’s Racial War .................................................................... 42
1.3 Sites of Resistance: The Back of the Bus, Our Homes and Our
Memories ....................................................................................... 54
1.4 The Kikuchi Diary .......................................................................... 65
1.5 Conclusion ..................................................................................... 76
CHAPTER TWO
A COLLECTIVE VOICE OF DISSENT: JAPANESE AMERICAN AND BLACK
AMERICAN DRAFT RESISTANCE DURING WORLD WAR II .......................... 81
2.1 Introduction .................................................................................... 82
2.2 Draft Resisters, No-Nos and COs.................................................. 86
2.3 Proving Loyalty ............................................................................ 104
2.4 Conclusion ................................................................................... 108
CHAPTER THREE
REHEROIZATION IN CHESTER HIMES’ IF HE HOLLERS LET HIM GO AND
JOHN OKADA’S NO-NO BOY .......................................................................... 110
3.1 Introduction .................................................................................. 110
3.2 Rethinking Patriotic Symbols of Americanness ........................... 116
3.3 Pre-Pearl Harbor ......................................................................... 121
3.4 Post-Pearl Harbor ........................................................................ 126
3.5 Constructing a Patriotic Whiteness .............................................. 127
3.6 Draft Resistance .......................................................................... 139
3.7 “As of that Moment” .................................................................... 147
3.8 Proving Americanness ................................................................. 156
3.9 Ichiro’s Remasculation ................................................................ 164
3.10 Conclusion ................................................................................... 173

CHAPTER FOUR
IN SEARCH OF HEROES IN LAUREEN MAR’S RESISTANCE AND SHAWN
WONG’S AMERICAN KNEES: CONTEMPORARY SYMBOLISM OF A
JAPANESE AMERICAN INCARCERATION HISTORY .................................... 176
4.1 Introduction .................................................................................. 176
4.2 Asian American Heroes ............................................................... 181
4.3 Romanticizing the Past ................................................................ 187
4.4 Conclusion ................................................................................... 197
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