Japanese-American and Cuban-American Racial Relations in the U.S.

Introduction to Racial and Ethnic Frameworks

This paper examines the racial and ethnic experiences of two immigrant groups in the United States — Japanese-Americans and Cuban-Americans — using sociological theories drawn from Feagin and Feagin's (2011) Racial and Ethnic Relations. Two primary frameworks guide the analysis: the middlemen minority theory and the ethnic enclave theory. The middlemen minority theory describes a group that is positioned within a society's economic structure by filling a niche market or need, pooling resources and skills to supply products or services demanded by both upper-class and lower-income markets (Feagin & Feagin, 2011). The ethnic enclave theory, by contrast, describes how distinct social and economic niches are established within the broader American economy by immigrant groups with access to capital and a labor supply willing to accept lower wages (Feagin & Feagin, 2011). Together, these frameworks illuminate how dominant-group ideology, political events, and economic structures shape the assimilation trajectories of minority communities over time.

Japanese-Americans: Economic and Political Experiences

European-Americans did not allow Japanese immigrants to obtain jobs in their offices, corporations, or hospitals. As a result, Japanese immigrants had to open their own businesses in order to survive, since they could not find work within the European-American community. They were permitted to function as middlemen minorities, servicing European-Americans through smaller, independent businesses. Their communities became well established and economically self-sufficient. As noted above, the middlemen minority theory describes a group polarized within a society's economic structure by filling a niche market — able to pool resources and skills to serve both elite and lower-income consumers (Feagin & Feagin, 2011).

Following the first wave of Japanese immigration, discrimination by Anglo/European-Americans intensified, with Japanese immigrants denied employment within white Protestant American communities (Feagin & Feagin, 2011). Beginning in 1942, after the bombing of Pearl Harbor, Japanese-Americans were segregated to certain areas on the West Coast of the United States. This politically charged discrimination was rooted in a racial association between Japanese-Americans and the nation that had bombed Hawaii. The consequence was further exclusion of Japanese-Americans from jobs in European-American communities, and the passage of legislation that allowed Japanese-Americans to be rounded up and forced to live within designated regional areas in California.

Within this constrained environment, Japanese-Americans were permitted to open small shops and restaurants and to offer skilled services such as tailoring, providing goods and services to the dominant group. The middlemen group thus served the elite while simultaneously being looked down upon by other minority consumers who sought employment or purchased their goods. Japanese American internment represented one of the most severe examples of politically driven racial exclusion in U.S. history. Other minority groups resented the relative economic footing Japanese immigrants had achieved, viewing it as an inequitable distribution of economic resources and governmental support that had not been extended to them equally.

Japanese-Americans: Reparations and Ideological Shifts

In later years, the U.S. federal government provided reparations to Japanese-Americans. More than $1 billion in aid was distributed beginning in 1988, when President Reagan issued a formal apology for the forced relocation of Japanese-Americans. This was an attempt to restore the losses incurred by the second generation of Japanese-Americans who had been subjected to an unfair and unconstitutional violation of their civil rights as American citizens.

These reparations proved instrumental in allowing second- and third-generation descendants to attend college through grants and scholarships. Recipients also received loans and grants to start businesses, as well as other forms of assistance such as access to medical care. When a Japanese-owned business became highly successful, it sometimes provoked backlash from European-American competitors vying for the same niche market. This dynamic returned the middlemen minority concept to the foreground: the Japanese business owner faced the elite customer on one side, other minority consumers on the other, and European-American competitors calling for regulatory or economic intervention to gain an advantage over the minority business owner.

Conclusion: Segmented Assimilation and Ongoing Inequality

There is still segmented assimilation of Cubans into American culture based on skin color, with White Cubans more often owning manufacturing plants within enclave communities and earning higher wages. Others remain confined to the labor force and are restricted from purchasing property in wealthier communities. Some Black Cubans are barred from living in areas that are effectively off-limits on the basis of race, despite possessing the same education and skills as their White Cuban counterparts. Restrictions in housing and employment continue to relegate certain groups to poorer areas, particularly in Miami-Dade County.

Taken together, the experiences of Japanese-Americans and Cuban-Americans demonstrate that racial and ethnic integration in the United States has never been a uniform process. Economic frameworks such as the middlemen minority theory and the ethnic enclave theory help explain how immigrant groups carve out economic roles within a stratified society, but they also reveal the persistent ways in which dominant-group ideology, legislative discrimination, and racial hierarchies have shaped — and continue to shape — the opportunities available to minority communities.

References

Feagin, J. R., & Feagin, C. B. (2011). Racial and ethnic relations (9th ed.). Pearson.