THE SOCIAL ADJUSTMENT PROCESS OF THE JAPANESE AMERICAN RESETTL3KS TO ...

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THE SOCIAL ADJUSTMENT PROCESS
OF THE JAPANESE AMERICAN RESETTL3KS
TO CHICAGO DURING THE WARTIME YEARS
Submitted in partial fulfillment of the
requirements for the decree of Master of Science
at the New York School of Social Work
Columbia University
Charlea Kikuchi
.^ptenber 1947
1
mt.a?0RD
Thle dissertation, prepared In partial fulfill­
ment for the Master of ׳Science degree at the New York School
of Jcclal Xork, Columbia University. i3 intended to serve
tv?o main purposes. First, and mo9t important of the ob­
jectives, is to describe in detail the social adjustment
process of the Japanese American reaettlers to Chicago
during the wartime years, largely through the use of ease
history material and field notes. The second objective
is to relate cultural and personality behavior within a
minority group during a period of rapid social change.
Due to an interval in the armed forces, it was
not possible to prepare this report from the ra־s* material
previously. It is with a realization that this report is
far from adequate that it is presented at this time. Much
valuable material haa not been Included because of the
limitations of time. A source of misgiving is the poor
qualificaticn of the writer in completing this investiga­
tion; it is largely a preliminary report, and a more com­
prehensive study is being planned by the Evacuation Re­
settlement Study of the University of California.
The interest in this project began early in
1940 Mhon the writer was employed by the United States
deployment Service in San Francisco to make a social
study of the Nisei in the labor market. After the evacu­
ation, the writer vas employed an a research assistant
for the Evacuation and Resettlement Study of the University
of California until near the end of 1945. when Induction
into the Army terminated the writer's part in thla large
research study.
This dissertation was done Independently at the
present time, but I am deeply Indebted to Professor
Dorothy 3. Thomas, the Director of the Evacuation Resettle­
ment Study, under whose guidance the raw data for this
report was collected. I am also indebted to Dr. Frank
Miyamoto of the Department of Sociology at the University
of Washington for theoretical suggestions on methods of
conceptualizing life history documents; to Mr. Tom Shlbutanl
and Mr. Kenny Hurase for helpful suggestions in the Pre­
liminary planning of this report, and to Miss Mary Hurlbutt
of the New York School faculty for valuable suggestions In
the organization and writing of this project. It must be
emphasized that none of these helpful advisers are respons­
ible for the shortcomings of this report. Finally, this
report would not have been possible without the cooperation
of the large numbers of Japanese American resettlers in
Chicago, who willingly related their social adjustment
problems to the writer during the wartime years.
2AEM.PF cwKNy!?,
Pai?e
P4RT JAPANSSK AMKMICAN 30CI1L ADJUSTMENTS IM
CHICAGO.
I. INTRODUCTION................... ........ !
A. ׳?cope of the Report !!!!!!!!] I
B. Method of the 3tudy......... !!!!!!! 2
C. implication*! of t!!e Report....... . 4
II. 3ACX<־.:-R0UND FOR T№ IHTSRH.^L mORaTIOK
MOVEMENT OF THE AT^UCMS TO CHIOAOO 7
III. SOCIAL ADJUSTMENT mOBLJJg Of THE JAPAHH3R
AMKRICAK8 IK CHICAGO DURING WARTIME..... . 13
A. Pattern of Internal Migration of the*־*
Resettlero.......................
B. Factors Influencing Voluntary Migration
to CMcago ......... ....... ........ 3.9
C. Factor of Housing in Resettl^r^ Social
Adjustments........................ 26
1 . Individual Housing Mjust^ente .! 59
a. Hr*!*old .................... . 39
b. Mrs. K...................... 40
...................... 43
^ ^
D. ?actor of s3׳!playnent Difficulties In
lepettlar'e Adjustments .............. 44
1. Individual Job Analyses of Chicago
^e^attlers.................. . gg
a. lias 5..................... gg
b. Mr. M........ . 85
e. Tomny.................!!!.i! 86
3. Factor of Military Torvioe in Social
Adjustments ........................ 9!
F. Factor of the Marriage Problem in Ad- *
Justnants ..................... .... 103
0. Factor of Family Resettlement in Social '
Adjustments .........................113
H. Factor of Social Isolation in Adjust-'
ment Process....... ............... !!g
1. Factor of Organizational Activities In
Social 3djustRent of the 3esettlors ... 121
J. Theoretical Conflicts 3erardin& Re­
settler Adjustments ................ 139
K. Factor of Anti-Resettler Publicity In
1 *>2}al.Adjustments.................. !47
L. Attitudes About the Future Status of
Resettlers .......................... 154
M. Attitudes Towards Various Ethnic Groups 181
h. Evaluative Shganary of Resettler's
Social Adjustments in Chicago........ 177
Table of Contents (continual)
Paire
РАНТ II TWO CASE HISTORIRg 0? JAPANRgE AMERICAN 308
RESETTLERa
A. Introduction .................. 209
B. Hisao ...... ................. 209
C. Fuml.... ................. . 238
1. Discussion of Case..... . 258
APPENDIX A: Outline of Life History
Fora for Interviews ................. 268
APPENDIX B: Notes on Pre-War Japanese
Residents in Chicago ................ 276
BIBLIOGRAPHY....................... 282
РАЙТ анв
JAPA3E8E AMSKIOAM SOCIAL АПЛННЖЗЙТЗ Bł SKMAOO
1
I
INTRODUCTION
A.
This report ig an attempt to analyze some of the
complex problems of the individual social adjustments of
the Japaneae Aserle n (Niaei) wartime migrants into Chicago
(1942-1945) in termx of the broad process. There is alao
ao^o discussion of the relationship of the pre-rar and mass
evacuation experiences to these adjustments, and the vari­
ations of social adjustments due to both external and in­
dividual factors. Finally, there ia an attempt to inte­
grate this material and to formulate certain implications
for the future adjustments of these resettlers. It is also
hoped that from the assembled data, conclusions may be drawn
-vhioh vould be valid and useful in comparable situations
involving the movement of other peoples.
Since early 1943, the evacuation and resettle­
ment process have dislocated the entire Japanese population
in the United States. Approximately one-fourth of the re­
settling evacuees (numbering roughly 60,003 and excluding
a similar number who eventually returned to the Pacific
Coast States) had migrated to Chicago during the wartime
periods; hence, this arua presented the chief evolving
problems and patterns of adjustment which maybe consider­
ed representative. The process proved difficult because
the mass evacuation from the Pacific Coast uprooted this
group economically, socially, physically, and psychologically.
2
In thig report, the use of the term goolal adjustments Is
used Inclusively of all thaae factors because so many in­
tangible forces went into this process.
B. Method of Study
This report is limited to the Nisei resettlerg,
and it utilizes primarily the ease history documents which
the writer collected during the wartime year*. The collected
data was obtained after an intensive series of interviews
with the sixty-three resettlera whose case histories were
used as the basis for this report. During the wartlne years,
the writer was employed on the staff of the Evacuation and
Resettlement Study of the University of Gnlifomia ap a re­
search assistant, and acknowledgment is made to Professor
Dorothy S. Thomas, the Director of the Study, for permission
to use the raw material collected by the writer for the
purposes of this report. In addition, supplementary field
notes of several thousand pages kept by the writer in the
form of a diary Is also utilized.
Since it was impossible to find a base for the
whole resettler populations due to the rapidly changing
scene during wartime, no attempt was made to achieve a
random sampling of the entire group of Japanase-Amerlcan
migrants, and reliable statistical data literally did not
exist. However, an attempt was made to Interview represent­
ative individuals during this period in order to obtain as
3
objective a picture aa wag possible of the types of problems
faced by all the migrants. Contacts were made through in­
formal friendships, referrals by social agencies, church
connections, organizational contacts, and so forth. Material
in the words of the interviewees has been used frequently in
this report.
The chief approach used in gathering data was
direct interviewing in keeping with case work techniques.
The life history outlines were jointly developed by the
staff of the University of California Study, but all tenta­
tive conclusions made in this report are those of the
writer. The writer was a participant member of the evacu­
ation and resettlement movement throughout the wartime
period, and detailed notes were kept of personal experi­
ences. There may be some lags in complete objectivity,
but that was unavoidable by the nature of the situation.
On the other hand, participant observation in the re­
settlement process enabled the writer to g^in a sharpened
insight into the problems of the resettler group. Mo re­
cording was ever done in the field except for brief note
taking, but a thorough recording was made at the first
opportunity, usually that same day. During the period
under study, the writer had daily contacts with members
of the resettling grcup and with the various social agencies
assisting in this internal migration process. Informal
interviews were held with several hundred resettlers and
4
recorded in the personal field notes.
c. i^it.9.a3iaaa ^ Л^.ЗявяаЬ
The general objective of this report of the social
adjustment process of the Japanese American resettlers into
Chicago la to Indicate how the background acculturative
situation entered into the social process of adjustment in
a new environment, and to indicate золе of the main social
patterns which developed. It la assumed that the total sum
of the past experience of the group was important in the
wartime adjustments in Chicago. This group went through
the wartime crises as №erlcans as they had been sufficient­
ly accepted as a part of the Pacific Coast cultural con­
figuration by the outbreak of the war. No attempt is made
to present a complete picture of the pre-war background
situation since that is outside the scope of this report,
and reference can be made to numerous published books on
this subject. The process of evacuee*? adjustment during
wartime has bean relatively neglected thus far, and it is
hoped that this report will throw some light on what
happened to the Japanese Americans #10 were uprooted so
traumatically from their homes as a result of the wartime
conditions. It ia largely a preliminary report since the
complete effects of the internal migration movement to
Chicago will not be evident for some years yet. However,
this exploration of the social adjustment process will give