Includes bibliographical references (pages 219-230) and index.
Contents:
Introduction -- The Silvas: life between Japan and Brazil -- Working-class jobs, middle-class desires -- The Matsudas: becoming Japanese -- Learning to labor or leave -- The Pereiras: back to Brazil -- Faith in God -- Conclusion -- Epilogue.
Summary:
Based on over two years of participant-observation in labor brokerage firms, factories, schools, churches, and people's homes in Japan and Brazil, Sarah LeBaron von Baeyer presents an ethnographic portrait of what it means in practice to "live transnationally;" that is, to contend with the social, institutional, and aspirational landscapes bridging different national settings. Rather than view Japanese-Brazilian labor migrants and their families as somehow lost or caught between cultures, she demonstrates how they in fact find creative and flexible ways of belonging to multiple places at once. At the same time, the author pays close attention to the various constraints and possibilities that people face as they navigate other dimensions of their lives besides ethnic or national identity, namely, family, gender, class, age, work, education, and religion.
This resource is supported by the Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act as administered by State Library of Iowa.