Kibei was a term often used in the 1940s to describe
Japanese American
are Americans of Japanese ancestry. Japanese Americans were among the three largest Asian American ethnic communities during the 20th century; but, according to the 2000 census, they have declined in number to constitute the sixth largest Asi ...
s born in the United States who returned to America after receiving their
education in Japan
Education in Japan is managed by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) of Japan. Education is compulsory at the elementary and lower secondary levels. Most students attend public schools through the lower ...
. Some Japanese Americans sent their children, many of whom had dual citizenship, back to Japan, so the children were educated in Japanese school systems and maintained the Japanese language as well as Japanese cultural traditions. Another reason was the strong
anti-Japanese sentiment in the United States
Anti-Japanese sentiment in the United States has existed since the late 19th century, especially during the Yellow Peril, which had also extended to other Asian immigrants.
Anti-Japanese sentiment in the United States would peak during World Wa ...
and these parents worried that they might be deported back to Japan. As a result, they sent their children to Japan, so they could survive either in the United States or Japan.
The exact number is not known—perhaps about 11,000. It is said there were about 10,000 Kibei among Nisei (second-generation) Japanese Americans.
Those men who were in school in Japan in late 1941 typically entered the Japanese army. Those on the West coast of the United States were
interned
Internment is the imprisonment of people, commonly in large groups, without charges or intent to file charges. The term is especially used for the confinement "of enemy citizens in wartime or of terrorism suspects". Thus, while it can simply ...
. Many volunteered for service with the U.S., especially as translators.
Another case was
Minoru Wada, an American citizen educated in Japan who served as an Imperial Japanese Army junior officer. He was taken prisoner in the Philippines in 1945. He provided U.S. bomber crews with vital intelligence, and led the aircraft in a highly successful attack on the headquarters of the Japanese 100th Division. He was motivated by a desire to minimize the loss of life through aiding to effect a swift end to the Pacific War.
Merriam Press
"''Japanese Officer Led a U.S. Air Strike Against His Own Troops''" (retrieved on August 30th, 2011).
Notes
Sources
*"Impossible Subjects". Mae Ngai. Part III (p. 173). Princeton University Press. 2004. Princeton, New Jersey.
* Dictionary.com, http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/kibei. Retrieved 11-30-09.
Japanese-American history
{{WWII-stub