“Undesirable Citizens and Neighbors”: Japanese Immigration and Life in the Pacific Northwest, 1890-1924
On March 16, 2021, a shooting spree took place in Atlanta, Georgia and resulted in eight victims killed and one injured. The shooting, which occurred at three different massage parlors and spas, has prompted a deeper national discussion than one typically had after such a tragedy. With the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic, anti-Asian hate crimes have exploded since the outbreak of the virus as many Asian-Americans have been blamed for the spread of the virus. As the Atlanta shooting has highlighted the surge of anti-Asian sentiments across the country, the United States once again reckons with its ugly history of racism against Asians. Though many different groups of Asian-Americans have experienced discrimination in their history in the United States, the experience of Japanese Americans is well-known and pertinent to the discourse. Despite being seen as a “model minority” in the years since World War II, early Japanese immigration is riddled with examples of discrimination and viole