The Nisei clubs launched after World War II as a defense against racism and a way for Japanese Americans to maintain their cultural ties.
At its peak, there were some 400 clubs. Today there are likely only a handful.
One of those surviving clubs, the Atomettes, hopes to document their story in a new book, reports the Los Angeles Times.
“These clubs were very important to Nisei youth because they were a bulwark against racial prejudice and exclusion and offered them a place of belonging and camaraderie,” said Valerie J. Matsumoto, a UCLA Asian American studies professor. Matsumoto has herself written about the Nisei clubs in her new book, City Girls.
You can read about the Nisei club story in the Los Angeles Times. You can watch the Atomettes in action in the clip below.
