New Takahashi Distinguished Chair in Nikkei Studies Reflects on a Busy First Semester

“I have loved working with SFSU students in my first semester, especially majors in Asian American Studies and members of the Nikkei Student Union,” Miura says. In addition to those student connections, activities have included a field trip to view the exhibit Living Tattoo Traditions: American Irezumi and Beyond at the San Francisco Public Library and a Zoom visit with author and activist Frank Abe, co-author of the graphic novel We Hereby Refuse: Japanese American Resistance to Wartime Incarceration.

Other happenings include a new website for the Edison Uno Initiative for Nikkei and Uchinaanchu Studies (EUINUS) and an upcoming Day of Remembrance event on campus during the evening of February 19^th. The Day of Remembrance commemorates the unlawful incarceration of Japanese Americans during WWII and invites reflection on contemporary experiences of racialized violence and xenophobia.

In May 2024, SFSU announced a $4.2 million gift from the Henri and Tomoye Takahashi Charitable Foundation to establish the Takahashi Distinguished Chair in Nikkei Studies. This faculty position is the first endowed chair in the University’s College of Ethnic Studies. It is also the first in the Asian American Studies department, which is the oldest and largest in the country and is at the forefront of curriculum development used by schools and universities nationwide.

“We are deeply honored to have Dr. Miura join our faculty and play a critical role in advancing Nikkei Studies,” SFSU College of Ethnic Studies Dean Grace Yoo said at the time of Miura’s appointment. “With her extensive background in Asian American Studies, particularly in Japanese American and Nikkei literature as well as Okinawan diasporic identity, Cassie will be instrumental to our college and University.”

Nikkei Studies centers the history, culture and experiences of the global Japanese diaspora and its intersectional communities. In Miura’s role, she focuses on increasing awareness, understanding and appreciation of the historical and contemporary experiences of Japanese Americans and the worldwide Nikkei diaspora. 

“This position is an opportunity of a lifetime, and I’m eager to build relationships and get to work,” Miura said when her appointment was announced. “On one hand, the history of World War II Japanese American incarceration remains vital to understanding contemporary issues, especially the rise of anti-Asian and xenophobic racism in the United States today. On the other hand, I regard Nikkei Studies as an evolving transnational field with room to engage more deeply with feminist, queer and Indigenous perspectives. Given the longstanding commitment to self-determination on the part of SFSU’s College of Ethnic Studies, I can think of no better place to situate my work.”

"Given the longstanding commitment to self-determination on the part of SFSU’s College of Ethnic Studies, I can think of no better place to situate my work.” 
—Cassie Miura, Ph.D.

Prior to coming to SFSU, Miura was an associate teaching professor of culture, arts and communication in the School of Interdisciplinary Arts and Sciences at the University of Washington Tacoma. There she also served as director of grants and special projects for the Office of Equity and Inclusion and co-principal investigator of the AAPI THRIVE Project, which was funded by a $2 million grant by the U.S. Department of Education’s AANAPISI (Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institutions) Program.

Miura holds a Ph.D. in Comparative Literature from the University of Michigan, and her research and teaching interests include Okinawan diasporic identity, Japanese American and Nikkei literature and more. Miura is a yonsei (fourth generation) Okinawan and Japanese American born on the island of Kauaʻi and raised mostly in the Pacific Northwest.

Visit the SFSU website to learn more about the Asian American Studies Department.