Contexts and Consequences of Racialized Labor Relations between Japanese American Workers and Sawmill Town Management in the Pacific Northwest (1890 to 1930)

Summary

This paper will explore the historical context surrounding the relationships between Japanese American sawmill workers and sawmill town management in the early 20th century Pacific Northwest. Japanese American sawmill workers found themselves in a highly racialized labor structure, where they were often regulated to hard labor, "low skill" positions. At the same time, there is evidence to suggest that these workers successfully negotiated with sawmill town management, while taking advantage of the unstable logging market, to increase their job security and pay. Using concepts and lessons from the sociology and history of race, I will provide a preliminary exploration and interpretation of this relationship, and draw out its implications regarding the perpetuation of racial inequality on the towns, the challenges this racialized labor structure presented to Japanese American workers, and the ways they dealt with these challenges.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Writing Inequality, Endurance, and Transnationalism: The Archaeology of Chinese and Japanese Immigrants and their Descendants in North America   •
• Society for Historical Archaeology 2017

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Individual & Institutional Roles

Contact(s): Society for Historical Archaeology

Record Identifiers

PaperId(s): 262