Table Of ContentTomoko Tokunaga
Learning to
Belong in
the World
An Ethnography of Asian American Girls
Learning to Belong in the World
Tomoko Tokunaga
Learning to Belong
in the World
An Ethnography of Asian American Girls
123
TomokoTokunaga
Faculty of International Communication
Gunma Prefectural Women’sUniversity
Tamamura, Gunma
Japan
ISBN978-981-10-8478-2 ISBN978-981-10-8480-5 (eBook)
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-8480-5
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Preface
This book stems from my personal story of lifelong border-crossing experiences.
IwasbornonafarminruralJapanandlivedmuchofmylifeinasuburbofTokyo,
and the rest of my life abroad—in the United States and Indonesia. At the age of
six, I was brought to the United States, an unknown land, due to my father’s job.
I was “transplanted” to a public elementary school located in a town adjacent to a
largecityontheEastCoast.Iwasimmersedinaracially,ethnically,culturally,and
linguistically diverse school where many of my classmates were immigrants from
variouspartsoftheworld,includingVietnam,Korea,Pakistan,Spain,andGreece.
My adjustment to school in the United States was relatively smooth—acquiring
English quickly and learning the ways “American” girls were expected to be.
However,whenIreturnedtoJapanafterthreeandahalfyearsofstay,theJapanese
school that I attended before was not a familiar and safe place anymore. I was
labeledas“kikokushijo”(returnee),andmy“deviance”intermsoflanguage,dress,
and behavior became apparent. My English ability was not appreciated but was
seen as a weakness, and my Japanese language was simultaneously problematized
asstrange.AlthoughIwasethnicallyJapanese,bornandraisedinJapanuntilIwas
six, I felt that I became “the other” in my homeland.
Since then I have been pondering personal yet academic questions: How do
youngpeoplewhocrossmultiplenational,cultural,andlinguisticbordersnegotiate
theirsenseofbelonging?Howdotheyconstructidentitiesandhomeastheymove
across time and space? I navigated the omnipresent policing of various identity
borders—forexample,tobea“goodJapanesegirl”or“pureJapanese”inJapanora
“typicalAsianwoman”intheUnitedStates—whichdefinedwhoIcouldbe,whoI
could imagine myself to be, or who I should be. My yearning for belonging inthe
midst of alienation without having to assimilate or segregate myself has evolved
into my lifelong work as a scholar and educator committed to the lives of people
who inhabit the borderlands, specifically immigrant girls.
In2005,Ibegananethnographicstudyofagroupofworking-classFilipinagirls
who had immigrated to Japan in their adolescence (age of 13–14). They were
reunitedwiththeirFilipina motherswhohadmigratedearliertoJapan andbecame
stepchildren of unknown Japanese fathers. I wondered how, in the context of such
v
vi Preface
profound changes in their lives and as a marginalized population in Japan, these
girls might have made sense of the future, shaped their aspirations, and imagined
their place in the world. As an ethnographer as well as an informal transcultural
advisor, I got immersed in the girls’ daily lives, ranging from schools, neighbor-
hoods,streetcorners,work,andvisitstothePhilippinesintwooccasions.Whilethe
girlsstruggledtolivein-betweenmultiplecultures,languages,andcountries,Iwas
surprised to notice their agency as it appeared in the ways they cultivated, found,
and created multiple homes, spaces, and communities in Japan and beyond.
This study on Filipina immigrant girls in Japan led me to further pursue my
doctoralstudyintheUnitedStates,whereampletheories andpracticesexistinthe
fieldofimmigrationandeducation.Iwasinterestedincomparingtheexperiencesof
Asian girls in the United States and Japan in order to deepen my understanding of
what it means to grow up as an immigrant girl in an interconnected world. I also
wantedtolearnfromlocalcommunityorganizationsandschoolsaboutthewaysto
developempowermentprogramsformarginalizedimmigrantyouth.AsIstartedmy
fieldwork and met the group of Asian American girls (Filipina, Vietnamese,
Chinese, and Indian) whom I introduce in this book, I was struck by the similarity
between the lives ofFilipinaimmigrant girls inJapan and Asian Americangirlsin
the United States. Though they immigrated to two countries with different notions
of diversity and multiculturalism, immigrant contexts, and policies, there were
many parallels in the ways they constructed homes and ibasho (places where one
feels comfortable, safe, and accepted). I noticed that my long-term ethnographic
workwith Filipinagirlsprovidedmewithacritical lens,questions,andinsightsin
understanding the ways Asian American girls manage the struggles and hopes of
inhabiting the borderlands. While I do not introduce the stories of Filipina girls in
Japan in this book, I deeply acknowledge them for providing a critical foundation
for this study.
Tokyo, Japan Tomoko Tokunaga
January 2017
Acknowledgements
Iexpressmydeepestthankstothegirlsforsharingtheirstoriesandexperiencesand
welcoming me into their lives. I learned so much from them, and I am so grateful
for all the encounters. My sincere thanks go to the Asian American Youth
Organization for letting me join their community and assisting me with my
research. This book would not have been possible without their willingness,
openness, and continuous support.
Icannotthankenoughforallthepeoplewhohaveguidedmealongmyscholarly
journeyinJapanandtheUnitedStates.Thisbookhasgrownoutofmydissertation
completed at College of Education at the University of Maryland, College Park
(UMD). UMD has been an academic home which helped me become an interdis-
ciplinary and intersectional scholar. Specifically, I would like to thank my com-
mittee members for providing me guidance and support. Professor Barbara
Finkelstein, my advisor and a mentor at UMD, has been a strong advocate for my
intellectual endeavors and has consistently pushed me to think outside of my
understandings.Shehasintroducedmetotransculturalconceptsthatallowedmeto
capture my own and other’s in-between lives and has taught me the importance of
listening to the voices of young people. Professor Francine Hultgren has always
beenpassionateandsupportiveofmyresearchonhomeforimmigrantgirlsandhas
encouraged me to continue my intellectual journey. Professor Seung-Kyung Kim
and Professor Lisa Rose Mar have empowered my thinking and provided me
informativelenstoexplorethelivesofAsianAmericangirls.Ialsowanttoexpress
my sincere appreciation to Beth Douthirt-Cohen, Raquel González, and Mark
Brimhall-Vargas, my close friends as well as members of our dissertation support
group, for providing me an intellectual and emotional home. They have inspired
me,encouragedme,andsupportedmeinsomanyways.WhileIcannotlistallthe
names,Iwishtothankfaculty,staff,colleagues,students,andfriendsatUMDwho
supported me during my Ph.D. program.
I also owe a debt of gratitude to the Graduate School of Education at the
UniversityofTokyo,anotheracademichomeforme.Professor RyokoTsuneyoshi,
my advisor at the University of Tokyo, has guided me to become a hybrid scholar
vii
viii Acknowledgements
since I started my Master’s Program. She provided me invaluable insights as an
ethnographer and mentored me, including serving as a committee member for my
dissertation study conducted at UMD. Professor Saya Shiraishi has sparked my
interest inthefieldofanthropologyandhasbeenanadvocateformyethnographic
research on immigrant youth. Professor Takehiko Kariya, Professor Hidenori
Fujita, and other professors and colleagues have provided me immeasurable
guidanceandintellectualsupport,especiallyduringtheearlystagesofmygraduate
career, which I cannot thank enough.
This book was mainly written during my postdoc as a Japan Society of the
Promotion of Science (JSPS) Fellow at the International Christian University
(ICU)andmyfacultyappointmentattheInternationalCenterofKeioUniversityin
Tokyo. I thank Professor Christopher Bondy and Professor Mikiko Nishimura at
ICU who provided continuous encouragement and feedback. I would also like to
thank Professor David Slater at Sophia University for his mentorship and inviting
metopresentattheJapanFieldworkWorkshopwhereIreceivedinvaluableadvice
in developing this book. I am grateful for the Research on the Education of Asian
and Pacific Americans (REAPA) Special Interest Group of the American
Educational Research Association (AERA) to present me with the 2013
Outstanding Dissertation Award. Their mentorship encouraged me to turn the
dissertation into a book. I acknowledge the members of Council on Anthropology
and Education (CAE) of the American Anthropological Association (AAA) for
granting me the 2013 CAE Presidential Early Career Fellowship Award and sup-
porting me in the early years of my academic careers. I also appreciate for the
support Ireceived from theIntercultural Education Society of Japan and the Japan
Society of Educational Sociology.
I wish to express my deep appreciation for Professor Peter Kiang and the
communityof AsianAmericanStudiesProgramattheUniversityofMassachusetts
Boston for welcoming me as a Visiting Scholar during my postdoc. They inspired
me and continuously supported my research and practice on ibasho for immigrant
students.Iwouldliketothankthestudentswhotookmycourses,including“Border
Crossings and Japanese Society,” “Minorities in Japanese Education,” and
“Children, Youth, and Migration,” at Keio University for contributing important
insights into this book. I am also grateful for my colleagues and friends: Sachiko
Horiguchi, Yuki Imoto, Naka Matsumoto, Jennifer McGuire, Misako Nukaga,
FumikoTakahashi,SumireYoshioka,ChuHuang andthosewhosenamesIcannot
list here, for their numerous support and encouragement.
I deeply acknowledge the financial support I received to conduct this research
and to write the book. At UMD, I received grants and fellowships, including
CollegeofEducationGraduateStudentResearchSupportAward,GraduateStudent
Summer Research Fellowship, Mimi Kuriyama Fellowship, Joint Undergraduate
Studies and Asian American Studies Initiative Fund, College of Education
Scholarship, and Ann G. Wylie Dissertation Fellowship. I am also grateful for the
FulbrightProgramwhichmadeitpossibleformetopursuemyPh.D.intheUnited
States. In writing the book manuscript, I wish to express my appreciation to JSPS
for providing me JSPS Postdoctoral Fellowship and Grant-in-Aid for Scientific
Acknowledgements ix
Research [JSPS KAKENHI grant number 13J04932] [JSPS KAKENHI grant
number 15K17387].
An earlier version of Chap. 6 was published in Japanese in Intercultural
Education: Bulletin of the Intercultural Education Society of Japan (Volume 40,
2014,pp.70–84)as“Imagininghomesinthedeterritorializedworld:Useofmedia
andpopularcultureamongAsianAmericangirls[Kokkyowokoerusouzoujyou no
ho-mu: Ajiakei amerikajin no jyoshiseito ni yoru media to popyura karucha no
shouhi ni chakumoku shite].” I thank the Intercultural Education Society of Japan
for providing me permission to reuse the article in this book.
Iwouldliketoexpressmysincereappreciationtotheanonymousreviewersfor
theirinsightfulandinvaluablefeedbackondraftsofthisbook.Sincerethanksgoto
Kim Schuefftan for providing me editorial assistance and constructive feedback.
My deep gratitude goes to Lawrence Liu and Lay Peng Ang, editorial team of
Springer, for their excellent assistance.
Finally,Iamgratefulformyfamilytoprovideunconditionalsupport,love,and
care throughout my life. I thank you always for being with me in my journey.
Contents
1 Introduction: Focusing on the Experiences of Asian American
Girls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Unpacking Sites of Belonging. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
In-Betweenness. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Home. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Ibasho . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Agency of Asian American Girls. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Home for Immigrant Children and Youth. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Alternative Sites of Learning. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Fieldwork with Asian American Girls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Introducing the Girls. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Community and School. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Fieldwork. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
My Positionality . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Overview of the Book . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
2 Searching for Belonging In-Between Homelands. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
“Life Was Perfect in Vietnam”: Longing for the Countries
of Origin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Sense of Community at Home and in the Neighborhood. . . . . . . . . . 35
Liberating Girlhood with Mobility . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
“Staying Here Is Really Simple”: Acknowledging the United
States. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
Traditions in the Family Home . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
Broader Constructions of Femininity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
Difficulty of Returning Back Home . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
xi
