The Report of Organizations of American Historians Annual Conference 2024
Shinya Yoshida
The annual conference of the Organization of American Historians (OAH) convened inNew Orleans, Louisiana, in the spring of 2024. I was looking forward to participating in thisconference, not just because I had never been to the South before, but also because thiswas my first time attending a meeting of the OAH, the largest scholarly organization of U.S.
historians in the world. Upon arrival at Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport,the sound of jazz playing in the hall caught my attention. The French Quarter Festival wastaking place near the conference venue at the same time, which made me feel the vibe andcultural richness of New Orleans.
All the sessions and panels at the conference, held from April 11 to 14, seemedfascinating to me. The first session I attended was “New Directions in United States
Empire” on April 11. The panelists, all early career scholars, discussed the contested
boundaries of community and nation within the context of the American empire, ranging
from American Samoa to Hawaiʻi. The debate centered around the definition of "empire,"
methodology, and how to teach this history. Next, I attended "Race, Labor, and Politics inContested American Work Spaces." Spanning the 20th century, all the panelists offeredinteresting insights into how workers in the U.S. faced challenges related to race, ethnic
diversity, and international relations in their work environments. On April 12, “Sovereignties
in the Atlantic World: Black and Indigenous Intersections” caught my attention. As I
understand it, the session examined the division between African diaspora studies andIndigenous studies, showing how slavery and Indigenous sovereignty are two sides of thesame conceptual coin, with a particular focus on the cases of Maroons. "TransnationalConversations on Indigeneity between Native America, Japan, and the Japanese American
Diaspora" also explored the intersection of seemingly disparate fields. Prof. Kumiko
Noguchi’s presentation was especially intriguing. On the final day, I attended the workshop“Moving from Dissertation to Book.”
This conference was a great place for reconnecting with my old friends and building
new networks. By meeting Hiroko Saito (University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa) and Genki Komori(University of Nevada, Reno), who also received the JAAS Graduate Student Travel Grants, I
got to know what their Ph.D. experiences were like. On April 12, we, along with JAAH-OAH
committee members and Prof. Sam Lebovic, the recipient of the Japan Residency Program,
had lunch together. Later that evening, my dissertation advisor invited me to the banquet ofthe Immigration and Ethnic History Society (IEHS), where I had the chance to talk withseveral prospective Ph.D. students and prominent scholars in the field. I especially enjoyed1

my conversation with Prof. Kevin Kenny, who received the Saloutos Book Award this year—itwas a memorable experience.
All things considered, I really benefited from the annual OAH conference in 2024. I want
to express my gratitude to the JAAH-OAH committee members for providing me with such a
wonderful opportunity. My special thanks go to Prof. Shuichi Takebayashi, Prof. Renee
Romano, and Prof. Judy Tzu-Chun Wu for attending us.

2

OAH Conferences on American History 04/11/24-04/14/24, New Orleans, Travel Grant Essay
Genki Komori
04/19/24

It was invaluable experience of attending the OAH Conferences on American History thisyear for the panels I participated in, the book exhibition where publishers were so generous
that they helped me with my purchase of significant studies, and visit to the Louisiana Civil
Rights Museum.
There were many interesting panels that drew my attention, and particularly usefulfor me were as below: how the police contributed to gentrification of Atlanta; how American
merchant mariners were excluded from, but gradually included into, American citizenship;
how oral history can enhance photographs as historical sources in the case of female soldiersin the Iraqi War; and how the era of the NAACP’s legal activism connected to that of BlackPower. On April 11st, I learned how the police could, even intentionally, encourage
redevelopment of neighborhoods of color through the case of Atlanta. Labor was racialized,
and with the ongoing deindustrialization, the racialized labor was divested, which led toharsher police brutality. The same day, I found that American merchant mariners were in anegatively special social positions, where they were attributed as many devaluing judgements
as possible. However, necessity that WWII created led to depiction of the sea men as
essential for American security, through which they were integrated as US citizens. On April
12nd, I heard a presentation on how oral history can contribute to the study of photographs ashistorical sources through the case of female soldiers in the Iraqi War. This methodology isuseful when topics can be sensitive. For example, how female soldiers disposed of their1

Genki Komori

excrements in the battlefield was exemplified by photographs examined through oral history.
Finally, on April 13rd, Patricia Sullivan discussed how the era of the NAACP in the early
1950s was connected to the era of Black Power in the late 1960s. Unlike many historians whofocus on political activism, especially street demonstrations, she emphasized the role of legal
struggles in the African American struggle. Meeting with her was great experience because
my dissertation on the NAACP was first and foremost influenced by her study on theNAACP from its founding to Brown.
I would like to add the visit to the Louisiana Civil Rights Museum on April 14th.
Although it had only one rather large room, a variety of topics such as education, right toassemble, Plessy v. Ferguson, voting, equal protection clause, and the 105-miles march ofLouisiana’s civil rights movement. While Mississippi, Alabama, and Georgia are still popularstates for research on African American history for racial justice, the museum tells visitorsthat New Orleans is also a place where unique race-relation was established as well as theracial order was challenged in peculiar ways. Moreover, the operation of the long marchsuggests New Orleans was the only spot where African American activism was strong enoughfor any fight for racial justice: many localities in the state should have helped it. In short, thesmall museum has a large amount of information that can both reinforce and complicate thehistory of Civil Rights Movement in the mid-1960s America.

2Report of the 2024 OAH Annual Conference
Hiroko Saito, University of Hawaii at Manoa
I attended the annual conference of the Organization of American Historians fromApril 11 to 14. Thanks to the grant from JAAS, I had a great time in New Orleans. Though I
love my academic environment in Hawaii, it is always difficult to attend a conference in themainland due to the flight cost. So, I really appreciate this opportunity and the general
support from JAAS.
On the first day, I attended the roundtable on Emily Conroy-Krutz, Missionary
Diplomacy: Religion and Nineteenth-Century American Foreign Relations. I decided to join
this panel because my dissertation topic is strongly related to the history of American
missionaries activities in Asia in the late 19th century though I didn’t know about this bookbeforehand. The panelists were having a rich discussion on one book and it helped me not
only to develop the knowledge related to my research topic but also to learn how to readacademic books critically. Other than that, I also attended a panel titled “New Directions inUnited States Empire” and another one titled “Amidst and against a Patriarchy: Women as
History-Makers, Advocates, and Defenders of Rights.”
The second day started with the meeting with the OAH-JAAS committee. After abrief self-introduction and a discussion about the cultural differences seen in graduate andundergraduate classrooms, we went to lunch with Professors Shuichi Takebayashi, Judy TzuChun Wu, Renee Romano, Jennifer Dorsey and other two recipients. I am grateful that I
could have an opportunity to share my research interest and contribute to the mutual
understanding between Japanese and American academia. In the afternoon, I joined a panel“Queering Public History and Remembering Our Queer Past” because queer theory is myanother research interest. Both presenters were PhD students and adopted an interesting
method and approach using digital technologies. It was very inspiring for me to see otherdoctoral students working on their project with passion. In the reception, I talked to one
graduate student whose research topic is closely related to mine. These encounters are one of
the best parts of attending this conference.
On the third day, I attended three panels—“Mapping the Encounter Between
Religion and Empire in American History,” “Transnational Conversations on Indigeneity
between Native America, Japan, and the Japanese American Diaspora,” and “Teaching
Gender in 2024: Opportunities, Challenges, and Future Directions”—and the PresidentialAddress. In each panel, I had an opportunity to ask a question in discussion and had fruitfulconversation with panelists and other attendees. In the first panel, I learn how the relations
between American missionaries and the government were contrastive in Japan and Korea. It
helps me to reconsider my dissertation topic from the transpacific and intra-Asianperspectives. In the third panel, I asked about the practice of pronouns in classrooms. This
was a very challenging issue for me for a long time, so I really appreciate that I could have achance to hear experienced professors' actual practices.
After the workshop on the fourth day, I visited the National WWII Museum to learn
how the war is represented from the American national perspective. This visit was not a partof the conference, but the grant from JAAS enabled me to have a chance to visit thisimportant museum in public history.
During the conference and this visit in New Orleans, I had so many great encounters,
discussions, and learnings. It inspired me so much that I started searching for a conference
where I would be able to present my paper right after I left New Orleans. Thank you again forthis great opportunity, and I am excited to share my experiences with my colleagues inHawaii.