Objects of Concern, Ambassadors of Gratitude: Children, Humanitarianism, and Transpacific Diplomacy Following Japan’s 1923 Great Kantō Earthquake

Abstract

Following the 1923 Great Kantō Earthquake, Japanese children became viewed and portrayed as distinct suffers with unique needs by concerned elites and average citizens on both sides of the Pacific. Our article examines how children emerged as objects of investigation in which adults sought to understand how the disaster affected them both physically and mentally. Their power, however, went beyond fostering empathy and eliciting sympathy. Children, we suggest, also played an important role in mobilizing relief in America and, later still, as Japanese ambassadors of gratitude who thanked and moved Americans with their purity and innocence.