
The Pacific Northwest has a rich history of immigrants from Asia. We explore how Chinese and Japanese immigrants struggled to define their social and cultural place in American society, looking at the narrative shift from “Yellow Peril” and “Enemy Aliens” to today’s “Model Minorities”.
Learning Objectives

Lenses of Inquiry
Places and Activities
This program is flexible, and can be offered in 3, 5, or 7 day itineraries.We arrive in Seattle, exploring the history of immigration to the city, the development of China and Japanese ‘towns’, and how these communities have maintained their cultures and traditions.
Travelling south, we consider the complexities of Portland’s relationship with Chinese and Japanese Americans by visiting the Japanese Gardens, gifted by Japan after WWII, the underground “Shanghai” tunnels, and participating in a haiku workshop.
We head east along the route travelled by thousands of Japanese relocated to the Minidoka Internment Camp. We meet with a survivor to visit the camp and learn of their experience.
We close our time in reflection, thinking about our experiences over the week and confronting our own biases and internalized messages about immigration, identity and race.
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“As a parent I felt the experience was well orchestrated and managed by Envoys. As a participant my daughter loved the whole experience; it is something she will treasure for the rest of her life”
— Linda T. , Parent, Hingham Japan 2015“I don’t think it is possible to pull a trip like the Amazon and the many activities that you directed without the sense of purpose you have, without your drive for experiential learning for teenagers. All our experiences with the Envoys team were amazing!”
— Angela , Traveling Faculty, RoundSquare Colombia 2015“The team at Envoys did their very best to ensure that the the “i’s were dotted and the t’s were crossed.” The staff was also quick to respond to any and all questions that arose prior, during and after the trip. My husband and I greatly appreciated the time Envoys took to provide preparation tips as well the planned activity schedules to help make our child’s South African trip a safe and memorable adventure.”
— Regina J. , Parent, Dalton South Africa 2014