Forfeiting Citizenship, Forfeiting Identity? Multiethnic and Multiracial Japanese Youth in Australia and the Japanese Nationality Law
The rising fame of multiethnic and multiracial or ‘mixed’ celebrities in Japan, such as tennis player Naomi Osaka, has brought into focus the roles of Japan’s Nationality Law and understandings of nationality and citizenship in shaping identity. According to Article 14 of Japan’s Nationality Law, pe...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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The Japan Foundation, Sydney
2020-08-01
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| Series: | New Voices in Japanese Studies |
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| Online Access: | https://newvoices.org.au/volume-12/forfeiting-citizenship-forfeiting-identity-multiethnic-and-multiracial-japanese-youth-in-australia-and-the-japanese-nationality-law/ |
| _version_ | 1818843378267193344 |
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| author | Aoife Wilkinson |
| author_facet | Aoife Wilkinson |
| author_sort | Aoife Wilkinson |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The rising fame of multiethnic and multiracial or ‘mixed’ celebrities in Japan, such as tennis player Naomi Osaka, has brought into focus the roles of Japan’s Nationality Law and understandings of nationality and citizenship in shaping identity. According to Article 14 of Japan’s Nationality Law, persons holding multiple nationalities must choose to forfeit all but one before the age of 22. In this article I aim to address how multiethnic and multiracial youths of Japanese descent in Australia are approaching the ambiguities surrounding their citizenship and nationality rights. To do so I will closely examine to what extent the Nationality Law affects their future decisions and identities by drawing upon evidence from in-depth interviews I conducted with mixed Japanese youth who are the child of one Japanese parent and one non-Japanese parent and live in Australia. Using Pierre Bourdieu’s theory of cultural capital, I argue that mixed Japanese youth in Australia perceive citizenship less as an agent of identity and more as an index of socioeconomic opportunity. My findings demonstrate that these individuals actively strive to maintain their dual citizenship and strategically align their cultural capital to realise meaningful cross-cultural careers that communicate between Australia, Japan, and their own mixed identities. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-19T04:56:55Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-2a65faa0565f4eb9952667be4c7e48e3 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2205-3166 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-19T04:56:55Z |
| publishDate | 2020-08-01 |
| publisher | The Japan Foundation, Sydney |
| record_format | Article |
| series | New Voices in Japanese Studies |
| spelling | doaj.art-2a65faa0565f4eb9952667be4c7e48e32022-12-21T20:35:11ZengThe Japan Foundation, SydneyNew Voices in Japanese Studies2205-31662020-08-0112214310.21159/nvjs.12.02Forfeiting Citizenship, Forfeiting Identity? Multiethnic and Multiracial Japanese Youth in Australia and the Japanese Nationality LawAoife Wilkinson0https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0994-4705The University of QueenslandThe rising fame of multiethnic and multiracial or ‘mixed’ celebrities in Japan, such as tennis player Naomi Osaka, has brought into focus the roles of Japan’s Nationality Law and understandings of nationality and citizenship in shaping identity. According to Article 14 of Japan’s Nationality Law, persons holding multiple nationalities must choose to forfeit all but one before the age of 22. In this article I aim to address how multiethnic and multiracial youths of Japanese descent in Australia are approaching the ambiguities surrounding their citizenship and nationality rights. To do so I will closely examine to what extent the Nationality Law affects their future decisions and identities by drawing upon evidence from in-depth interviews I conducted with mixed Japanese youth who are the child of one Japanese parent and one non-Japanese parent and live in Australia. Using Pierre Bourdieu’s theory of cultural capital, I argue that mixed Japanese youth in Australia perceive citizenship less as an agent of identity and more as an index of socioeconomic opportunity. My findings demonstrate that these individuals actively strive to maintain their dual citizenship and strategically align their cultural capital to realise meaningful cross-cultural careers that communicate between Australia, Japan, and their own mixed identities.https://newvoices.org.au/volume-12/forfeiting-citizenship-forfeiting-identity-multiethnic-and-multiracial-japanese-youth-in-australia-and-the-japanese-nationality-law/australiacareerscitizenshipcontemporarycultural capitalhafujapanese australianlawmobilitymultiethnic identitynationality lawnikkeisocial and cultural identityyouthjapan |
| spellingShingle | Aoife Wilkinson Forfeiting Citizenship, Forfeiting Identity? Multiethnic and Multiracial Japanese Youth in Australia and the Japanese Nationality Law New Voices in Japanese Studies australia careers citizenship contemporary cultural capital hafu japanese australian law mobility multiethnic identity nationality law nikkei social and cultural identity youth japan |
| title | Forfeiting Citizenship, Forfeiting Identity? Multiethnic and Multiracial Japanese Youth in Australia and the Japanese Nationality Law |
| title_full | Forfeiting Citizenship, Forfeiting Identity? Multiethnic and Multiracial Japanese Youth in Australia and the Japanese Nationality Law |
| title_fullStr | Forfeiting Citizenship, Forfeiting Identity? Multiethnic and Multiracial Japanese Youth in Australia and the Japanese Nationality Law |
| title_full_unstemmed | Forfeiting Citizenship, Forfeiting Identity? Multiethnic and Multiracial Japanese Youth in Australia and the Japanese Nationality Law |
| title_short | Forfeiting Citizenship, Forfeiting Identity? Multiethnic and Multiracial Japanese Youth in Australia and the Japanese Nationality Law |
| title_sort | forfeiting citizenship forfeiting identity multiethnic and multiracial japanese youth in australia and the japanese nationality law |
| topic | australia careers citizenship contemporary cultural capital hafu japanese australian law mobility multiethnic identity nationality law nikkei social and cultural identity youth japan |
| url | https://newvoices.org.au/volume-12/forfeiting-citizenship-forfeiting-identity-multiethnic-and-multiracial-japanese-youth-in-australia-and-the-japanese-nationality-law/ |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT aoifewilkinson forfeitingcitizenshipforfeitingidentitymultiethnicandmultiracialjapaneseyouthinaustraliaandthejapanesenationalitylaw |