Teacher’s Guide
by Gary Mukai

THE FOUR IMMIGRANTS M ANGAA JAPANESE EXPERIENCE IN SAN FRANCISCO,
1904–1924
BY H ENRY (YOSHITAKA ) KIYAMATRANSLATED, WITH AN INTRODUCTION AND N OTES,BY F REDERIK L. SCHODT

Introduction

The Four Immigrants Manga offers U.S. high school students a
unique glimpse into early 20th century immigration to the UnitedStates from Japan. This teacher’s guide was developed to provide
teachers with four small group activities based on selected episodes
from the book. The episodes were chosen based on the significanceof the events in the history of U.S.–Japan relations. In addition, abrief background on Japanese immigration to the United States isprovided in order to set a historical context for the various
episodes depicted in this book.

Organizing
Questions•

What types of experiences did Japanese immigrants have in the
United States during the early 20th century?

•

How did the Japanese immigrant experience in the UnitedStates affect U.S.–Japan relations?

•

How are these immigration experiences similar to or different
from the family immigration experiences of students?

Prior to using this teacher’s guide, please familiarize yourself withThe Four Immigrants Manga by reading Frederik L. Schodt’s
introduction, notes, and commentary. In addition, make copies of
episodes 26, 40, 49, and 52. Stone Bridge Press, the publisher of thebook, grants teachers permission to copy only these episodes foruse in classrooms. Other inquiries should be sent directly to Stone
Bridge Press, P.O. Box 8208, Berkeley, CA 94707; tel: 510-524-8732;
sbp@stonebridge.com; www.stonebridge.com.
In the four activities contained in this guide, the experiences offour Japanese immigrants in the early 20th century are introduced
to students. Henry (Yoshitaka) Kiyama depicted these experiencesin comic strip form and published them as a book in 1931. EachJapanese who has immigrated to the United States has a uniquestory. It is important to point out to students that although wecannot make generalizations about Japanese immigration
experience in the United States solely based on Henry Kiyama’s
depictions, the depictions cover many significant episodes in early

STONE BRIDGE PRESS: The Four Immigrants Manga1teacher’s guide20th century Japanese immigration history and offer a uniqueglimpse into that history through comic strip form.

Connections
to National
HistoryStandards

The Four Immigrants Manga is an excellent primary source
document to offer high school students studying early 20th century
immigration to the United States. Specific connections to the
National Standards for United States History, National Center for
History in the Schools, University of California, Los Angeles,
include:•Era 6: The Development of the Industrial United States (1870–
1900)
Standard 2: Massive immigration after 1870 and how newsocial patterns, conflicts, and ideas of national unity developed
amid growing cultural diversity (see especially, “immigration
restriction measures,” p. 147)•

Era 7: The Emergence of Modern America (1890–1930)
Standard 2: The changing role of the United States in world
affairs through World War I (see especially, “Gentlemen’s
Agreement of 1907,” p. 171; “West Coast hostility to Japaneseimmigration,” p. 172)
Standard 3: How the United States changed from the end ofWorld War I to the eve of the Great Depression (see especially,“Immigration law of 1924,” p. 178)

Connections
to State
Frameworks

Objectives

Specific connections can also be made between The Four
Immigrants Manga and state history/social science frameworks.
For example, the California History-Social Science Framework,
Sacramento, California State Department of Education,
recommends “ethnic studies” at the 9th grade level; also, the“significance of immigration in producing ethnic diversity” is a
key theme in examining U.S. history and geography at the 11th
grade level.
knowledge•

to learn about early 20th century immigration experiences ofJapanese in the United States

attitude•

to appreciate the experiences of people who have immigrated
to the United Statesskill

Materials

2•

to work effectively in small groups•

Handout: Japanese Immigration to the United States, one copy
per small groups of four to five students

STONE BRIDGE PRESS: The Four Immigrants Mangateacher’s guide

Procedure•

Episodes 26, 40, 49, and 52 from The Four Immigrants Manga, one
copy each•

Activity #1: A Crisis over Japanese School Children, one copy•

Activity #2: Picture Brides, one copy•

Activity #3: Alien Land Acts, one copy•

Activity #4: Immigration Act of 1924, one copy

1. Point out to students that they will be examining early 20th
century Japanese immigration experiences in the United States.
During this examination, students will be encouraged to reflect
upon their own families’ immigration histories. Distribute thehandout, Japanese Immigration to the United States, to groups offour to five students. Allow students 20 minutes to readthrough the handout and consider the questions at the
beginning of the handout. Debrief these questions with thestudents as a class.
2. Distribute one of the activities, #1–#4, to each group as well as
the corresponding comic strip episode. Allow students the restof the class period and a subsequent class period to work on
their activities and group tasks. Each group should select agroup facilitator to share or facilitate the sharing of the group’s
work with the rest of the class. Refer to the following pages of
The Four Immigrants Manga for explanations of episodes 26, 40,
49, and 52: episode 26 (pp. 140–141), episode 40 (p. 145), episode49 (pp. 146–147), and episode 52 (p. 147).
3. Ask each of the groups to come to the front of the class to shareits group’s work.
4. After each group has shared, debrief this activity by asking thefollowing questions:• How did the Japanese immigrant experience in the UnitedStates affect U.S.–Japan relations?
• How is your family’s immigration history similar to or
different from the immigration experience of the Japanese in
the United States?
• Why is immigration important in your life?

Assessment

Students engaged in activities through multiple intelligences.
Keep this in mind when assessing student outcomes.
•

For Activities #1 and #3, you may want to consider
craftsmanship, visual or sensory imagery, language use, andcohesive themes, as well as the students’ general
understanding of the specific immigrants’ experience in yourassessment of the poem(s) and letter(s).

•For Activity #2, you may want to consider craftsmanship,
appropriate detail, themes, and symbolic meaning, as well as

STONE BRIDGE PRESS: The Four Immigrants Manga3teacher’s guidethe students’ general understanding of the specific immigrants’experience in your assessment of the artwork and dialog.
•

For Activity #4, you may want to consider the students’ ability
to synthesize information from the historical background andfocus on key concepts and/or ideas, the appropriateness of therole-play format, and time management, as well as thestudents’ general understanding of the specific immigrants’experience in your assessment of the role play.

Another suggested assessment approach to use with these
activities is a reflective journal, in which students record theirattitudes towards the concepts and information provided in theactivities. Immigration may be a very sensitive area for some.
You may consider having students identify certain sections of thejournals for teacher and/or other students’ comments.

Follow-up
Activities

4•

Have students research their own families’ immigration
histories. The format can be of your or the students’ choosing.
Some possibilities could include short story, scrapbook,children’s picture book, photo album with captions, andresearch-style report.

•

Have students write a textbook entry on “Japanese ImmigrantExperiences in the United States.” Consider how well theinformation is synthesized and interpreted and how effectively
historical documents or other primary sources are used.

•

Have students assume the role of a newspaper editorial writerfrom the following hypothetical newspapers: U.S. Daily Newsand Tokyo News Bulletin. Have them choose a historical or
current event from The Four Immigrants Manga and write an
editorial. Use the editorials to determine how well students
draw upon their newly acquired knowledge and perspectives
related to immigration. How persuasive are their comments
and/or points of view?

•

Have students research the immigration history of a particularethnic group in the United States, and examine the impact thishas had on the U.S.’s relations with the ethnic group’s countryof origin.

STONE BRIDGE PRESS: The Four Immigrants Mangahandout
JAPANESE IMMIGRATION TO THE U NITED STATES
Keeping the following questions in mind, read the following handout.
•

How did the Japanese experience in the United States impact U.S.–Japan relations?

• How was the experience of the Japanese in the United States impacted by U.S.–Japan
relations?
•

How is the Japanese immigrant experience in the United States similar or different from yourfamilies’ immigration experiences?

The first Japanese came to North
America the result of shipwrecks in the
Pacific Ocean during the early- to mid1800s. Emigration to the United States
began in 1885. In the early 1880s, Japanwas experiencing a depression andfarmers, in particular, faced tremendous
economic hardships. Many farmers losttheir land. In 1885, the Japanese
government passed laws that allowed
Japanese to emigrate, and by 1890 the
census indicated that 2039 Japanese werein the United States. By 1900, 24,326
Japanese were in the United States.
There were two main reasons for thelarge increase in numbers of Japaneseimmigrants. First, the 1882 Chinese
Exclusion Act stopped immigration from
China to the United States, resulting in alabor shortage in the western part of theUnited States. California farmers, forexample, needed laborers to work in thefields. Thus, there was an increase i ndemand for Japanese immigrants who
would work as farm laborers.
Second, the Emigrants Protection Law
was passed by the Japanese government
in 1896. This law required each Japaneseemigrant to have someone responsible
for his/her financial support in the
country of destination. Through the
Emigrants Protection Law, the Japanese
government attempted to protect its
people going abroad. As a result of thislaw, United States labor contractors began
to work with emigration companies i nJapan to ensure that the Japaneseemigrant would have adequate financial

assistance and a guaranteed job in the
UnitedStates.
Theseemigrationcompanies attracted many Japanese.
Between 1899 and 1904, almost 60,000
Japanese came to the United States. Many
were attracted by stories of wealth andcomfort in the United States by people
workingforemigrationcompany
workers. These emigration companies
were also supplying Japanese labor to
Hawaii, which was at the time a territoryof the United States.
For many Japanese immigrants,
however, the stories they heard about thewealth and comfort of the United States
were exaggerated. Most encounteredtremendous hardships upon arriving i n
the United States. The types of
employment found by the Japanese wereprimarily in farming, railways, factories,
canneries, plant nurseries, housekeeping,and fisheries.
Most of the immigrants were youngmen. In the 1900 census, only 1000 of
24,326 Japanese in the United States were
women. As a result of this, a practice that
became known as “picture bride”
marriagedeveloped.
Most
young
Japanese immigrant men couldn’t afford
to travel back to Japan for a bride, so
requests were made to their parents,
relatives, or friends in Japan to findprospective brides for them. Since thesetypes of marriages often involved theexchange of pictures between theJapanese men in the United States andJapanese women in Japan, the practice
was referred to by Americans as “picture
bride” marriages. By 1919, there was

STONE BRIDGE PRESS: The Four Immigrants Manga5

handout
much U.S. resentment of the practice andtheJapanesegovernment
stoppedissuing passports to Japanese picture
brides in 1920.
Other issues and events affecting
Japanese immigrants in the United States
also had profound effects on U.S.-Japan
relations. Japanese and all other Asian
immigrants were not allowed to become
citizens of the United States; they were“aliens ineligible for citizenship.” This
meant that Japanese in the United States
could not vote or work in occupations
requiring U.S. citizenship.
On October 11, 1906, the San Francisco
School Board of Education ordered thesegregation of 93 Japanese and JapaneseAmerican school children. Many leading
educators in California and throughout
the United States protested this decision,
including President Theodore Roosevelt.
The Japanese government was also
outraged by this decision. The decision
was reversed in 1907.

6

In 1908, Japan, under pressure fromthe United States, voluntarily agreed torestrict further emigration. This was
known as the Gentleman’s Agreement,
which strictly limited the immigration ofJapanese laborers into the United States.
In 1913, the California legislature passed
a law prohibiting aliens ineligible forcitizenship from owning land. This law
was called the Alien Land Law.
A
subsequent alien land law was passed i n
1920 thatmadetheleasingorsharecropping of land by aliens ineligible
for citizenship illegal.
The Immigration Act of 1924, which
was passed by Congress, provided for the
total exclusion of aliens ineligible for
U.S. citizenship. At that time only whites
and blacks were eligible for citizenship.
This decision greatly impacted U.S.-Japan
relations. Japanese immigration to theUnited States stopped except for a few
isolated cases of Japanese entering theUnited States for family or special
occupational reasons.

STONE BRIDGE PRESS: The Four Immigrants Mangaactivity #1
A CRISIS O VER JAPANESE SCHOOL CHILDREN“Episode 26: A Crisis over Japanese School Children,” was drawn by Henry (Yoshitaka)
Kiyama for the hardcover comic book that he published in San Francisco in 1931. The
comic book was translated by Frederik L. Schodt and republished in 1999 by Stone Bridge
Press (Berkeley, California) with the title of The Four Immigrants Manga. It is one of thefirst original material comic books ever published in the United States. This episode isreprinted with permission from Stone Bridge Press. The following description was
written by Frederik L. Schodt in order to help readers understand the context of the
comic strip’s episode.
Concerning the school segregation of Japanese in San Francisco in 1906, Mr. Schodt
writes:Organized groups like the Asiatic Exclusion League, backed by labor unions andotherwise “progressive forces,” advocated the segregation of all Asian children in
San Francisco schools. With newspapers conducting inflammatory anti-Japanese
campaigns, after the 1906 earthquake there were boycotts waged against Japaneseowned restaurants and frequent attacks on Japanese individuals in the city. On
October 11, 1906, the San Francisco Board of Education ordered all Japanese andKorean school children to join the Chinese, who were already segregated. Thisaction caused an uproar in Japan and led to the unprecedented involvement of aU.S. president—Theodore Roosevelt—in local San Francisco politics. Roosevelt
considered the anti-Asian California legislators and politicians “idiots” and was
genuinely concerned that San Francisco’s inept handling of its Japanese school
children might bring Japan (which had just defeated the Russians) and the U.S.
to the brink of war. The problem was eventually resolved by a compromiseknow today as the 1907-8 “Gentlemen’s Agreement” with Japan. Japanesechildren were allowed to attend San Francisco schools (unless, according to one
frequent complaint, they were overage, or had limited English ability); in
February, Congress passed an immigration act that Roosevelt signed, ending
further Japanese immigration via Hawaii, Mexico, or Canada; and Japan agreed
to stop issuing visas to Japanese laborers going to the United States.1

Group Task
After reading “Episode 26: A Crisis over Japanese
School Children,” discuss the conflicts being expressedby the Japanese immigrant men. Imagine you aresecond-generation Japanese Americans in San
Francisco in 1906 and are ordered to attend segregatedschools. Write a poem that captures your feelings
regarding this segregation.

1

The Four Immigrants Manga, pp. 140–141.

STONE BRIDGE PRESS: The Four Immigrants Manga7

activity #2
P ICTURE B RIDES“Episode 40: Picture Brides,” was drawn by Henry (Yoshitaka) Kiyama for the hardcovercomic book that he published in San Francisco in 1931. The comic book was translated
by Frederik L. Schodt and republished in 1999 by Stone Bridge Press (Berkeley,
California) with the title of The Four Immigrants Manga. It is one of the first original
material comic books ever published in the United States. This episode is reprinted
with permission from Stone Bridge Press.
As pointed out in the handout, “Japanese Immigration to the United States,” most of
the early Japanese immigrants to the United States were men. According to the 1900
census, 24,326 Japanese lived in the United States. Of these, only 410 were married
women. In 1910, there were 5,581 married women in a U.S. Japanese population of
72,157; and in 1920, there were 22,193 in a U.S. Japanese population of 111,010. It is very
difficult to know how many of these married women came as “picture brides.” The
Immigration Station in San Francisco on Angel Island, however, estimates the numberof picture brides admitted for 1912–1919 as 5,273.
Many early Japanese immigrant men had their photographs taken and sent them toJapan so that their parents or acquaintances in Japan could help to find them brides.
The comic strip illustrates the anxiety brought about by such an experience. Please notethat the comic strip adds a very humorous touch to the experience of exchanging
photographs for the purpose of marriage. As is the case with marriage, it is important tokeep in mind that this was in fact a very serious experience.

Group Task
After reading “Episode 40: Picture Brides,” use copiesof the grid on the next page to illustrate scenes fromthe Japanese immigrant man’s future with his bride.
Incorporate historical information from the handout,“Japanese Immigration to the United States,” as well.

8

STONE BRIDGE PRESS: The Four Immigrants Mangaactivity #2
P ICTURE B RIDESSTONE BRIDGE PRESS: The Four Immigrants Manga9

activity #3
ALIEN LAND ACTS
“Episode 49: Alien Land Act,” was drawn by Henry (Yoshitaka) Kiyama for thehardcover comic book that he published in San Francisco in 1931. The comic book wastranslated by Frederik L. Schodt and republished in 1999 by Stone Bridge Press (Berkeley,
California) with the title of The Four Immigrants Manga. It is one of the first original
material comic books ever published in the United States. This episode is reprinted
with permission from Stone Bridge Press.
As pointed out in the handout, “Japanese Immigration to the United States,” Japaneseand other Asian immigrants in the United States were aliens ineligible for citizenship;
this was the law until 1952. The Alien Land Acts passed by the state of California in 1913
and 1920 (as well as similar acts passed by other states) were efforts to stop the purchaseof land for agriculture by Japanese immigrants. The “Alien” in “Alien Land Acts”
referred to aliens ineligible for citizenship, that is, all Asian immigrants. The 1913 Alien
Land Act made the purchase of land by aliens ineligible for citizenship illegal. There
were two ways, however, to legally get around this act. One was to lease land; the otherwas to purchase land in the name of one’s U.S.-born children, who were U.S. citizens atbirth. The 1920 Alien Land Act made leasing land by aliens ineligible for citizenshipillegal.
These acts were declared unconstitutional in a state court decision in 1952. Also, afederal law was passed that same year and abolished the “aliens ineligible forcitizenship” status.

Group Task
After reading “Episode 49: The Alien Land Act,” discuss
some of the laws passed against immigrants from Japan.
You may want to refer to the handout, “Japaneseimmigration to the United States,” as well. Note thefollowing statistics: In 1909, Japanese farmers in California
owned about 17,000 acres and leased or sharecropped nearly
140,000 acres. By 1919, after six years of the Alien Land Act,
Japanese owned about 75,000 acres and leased or
sharecropped nearly 385,000 more. This acreage represented
less than 1 percent of the arable land in California, but theapproximately 35,000 Japanese agriculturalists produced acrop worth $67 million annually, about 10 percent of themarket value of California’s produce. 1
Imagine you are an American or Japanese farmer in
1919, and there is discussion brewing about another alien
land act that would make leasing and sharecropping by“aliens ineligible to citizenship” illegal. Take a position on
this discussion and write a persuasive letter to yourcongressperson.

1“Alien Land Acts,” Kodansha Encyclopedia of Japan, volume one; Tokyo: Kodansha, 1983.

10

STONE BRIDGE PRESS: The Four Immigrants Mangaactivity #4
IMMIGRATION A CT OF 1924
“Episode 52: Good Bye,” was drawn by Henry (Yoshitaka) Kiyama for the hardcovercomic book that he published in San Francisco in 1931. The comic book was translated
by Frederik L. Schodt and republished in 1999 by Stone Bridge Press (Berkeley,
California) with the title of The Four Immigrants Manga. It is one of the first original
material comic books ever published in the United States. This episode is reprinted
with permission from Stone Bridge Press.
As pointed out in the handout, “Japanese Immigration to the United States,” theImmigration Act of 1924, which was passed by Congress, provided for the total exclusionof aliens ineligible for U.S. citizenship. At that time only whites and blacks were eligible
for citizenship. This decision greatly impacted U.S.-Japan relations. Japaneseimmigration to the United States stopped except for a few isolated cases of Japaneseentering the United States for family or special occupational reasons. This remained thecase until the passage of the so-called McCarran-Walter Act of 1952.

Group Task
After reading “Episode 52: Good Bye,” discuss some of
the conflicts the four immigrants felt while
experiencing life in the United States. Using
information from this discussion as well as
information from the handout, “Japanese
Immigration to the United States,” develop a fiveminute role play. The scene should be in Japan atsome date in the future. Imagine that the four
immigrants are having a reunion and are reflecting
back on their past experiences.

STONE BRIDGE PRESS: The Four Immigrants Manga

11

Gary Mukai specializes in the development ofcurriculum on Asia, U.S.-Asian relations, and the
Asian-American experience.

This Teacher’s Guide was prepared especially for
Stone Bridge Press and may not be reproduced or distributed without
the express permission of the publisher, except by educational or
nonprofit institutions and organizations to assist them in teaching
The Four Immigrants Manga.
Additional copies of this guide are available
for download in Adobe Acrobat format at
http://www.jai2.com/HK.htm
Stone Bridge Press specializes in books and software about Asia. We
have a selection of literature in translation, as well as languagelearning materials and books on culture, business, anime/ manga, andart and design. Examination copies are available to qualified
instructors; for further information go to
http://www.consortiumacademic.com/policies.php
Other inquiries should be sent directly to Stone Bridge Press,
P.O. Box 8208, Berkeley, CA 94707; tel: 510-524-8732;
sbp@stonebridge.com; www.stonebridge.com.
6/99 rev 1