Hardback
March 28, 2016
9780295998336
English
312
11 illus., 5 maps
9.00 Inches (US)
6.00 Inches (US)
1.25 Pounds (US)
$105.00 USD, £40.00 GBP
v2.1 Reference
Paperback / softback
March 1, 2018
9780295743639
English
312
11 illus., 5 maps
9.00 Inches (US)
6.00 Inches (US)
.9 Pounds (US)
$30.00 USD, £22.99 GBP
v2.1 Reference

Japanese Prostitutes in the North American West, 1887-1920

This compelling study of a previously overlooked vice industry explores the larger structural forces that led to the growth of prostitution in Japan, the Pacific region, and the North American West at the turn of the twentieth century. Combining very personal accounts with never before examined Japanese sources, historian Kazuhiro Oharazeki traces these women's transnational journeys from their origins in Japan to their arrival in Pacific Coast cities. He analyzes their responses to the oppression they faced from pimps and customers, as well as the opposition they faced from American social reformers and Japanese American community leaders. Despite their difficult circumstances, Oharazeki finds, some women were able to parlay their experience into better jobs and lives in America. Though that wasn't always the case, their mere presence here nonetheless paved the way for other Japanese women to come to America and enter the workforce in more acceptable ways.

By focusing on this "invisible" underground economy, Japanese Prostitutes in the North American West sheds new light on Japanese American immigration and labor histories and opens a fascinating window into the development of the American West.

About the Author

Kazuhiro Oharazeki is instructor of foreign studies at Setsunan University in Japan.

Reviews

"The author's sober, scholarly approach and style combine to require that the book be taken seriously and that the long, sometimes troubled, history between the US and Japan be broadened to include this sad aspect of early contacts between the two nations. Highly recommended."—Choice

"Japanese Prostitutes in the North American West, 1887-1920 tells their story in unprecedented detail. . . . A comprehensive study of these forgotten women who crossed the Pacific to live in a foreign country where they did not know the language."—Japan Times (2016 Top 10 Best Books about Japan)

"Japanese Prostitutes in the North American West, 1887–1920 is an informative trans-national study on the evolution of Japanese communities in the Pacific Northwest. Clearly written and well organized, the book will appeal to students and scholars interested in late-nineteenth- and early-twentieth-century Japanese American history and Asian American women's history. . . . Oharazeki's dedication and adroitness in the archives will be a hard act to follow."—Bill Mihalopoulos, Monumenta Nipponica

"An impressive volume. . . . Oharazeki has given us a valuable piece of transnational social history."—Jeff Nichols, Pacific Northwest Quarterly

"The arresting opening sentence of this informative monograph . . . grabs the attention of readers familiar with early twentieth-century Japanese history. . . . A thoughtful exploration of how the interaction of gender, race, and power shaped the relationship between those invisible women and men, traffickers and customers, in the North American West."—Joan Ericson, Western Historical Quarterly

Endorsements

"A valuable addition—and intervention—to the existing scholarship on early Japanese American history and Asian American women's history. Provides a rare glimpse into the demographic characteristics of Japanese prostitutes, as well as the socioeconomic context in which they were compelled to leave home."—Eiichiro Azuma, author of Between Two Empires: Race, History, and Transnationalism in Japanese America

"Oharazeki offers innovative and original discussions about Japanese prostitution on global and comparative scales."—Shelley Lee, author of Claiming the Oriental Gateway: Prewar Seattle and Japanese America

9780295743639 : japanese-prostitutes-in-the-north-american-west-1887-1920-oharazeki
Paperback / softback
312 Pages
$30.00 USD
9780295998336 : japanese-prostitutes-in-the-north-american-west-1887-1920-oharazeki
Hardback
312 Pages
$105.00 USD

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