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The March Trip |
This is not aimed at the Japanese or foreigner exclusively, but rather to both groups. It's opinion-based, gleaned from ten-months in Japan, and though it has some generalizations-sorry about these- they are for informational purposes.
It's funny how quickly people can fall into a set pattern of perception. This perception is a product of so many personal and social factors, like world events and national economy. For example, it is my understanding that before the economy crash and recession in Japan, the prevailing social ideas about foreigners, Americans specifically, viewed gaijin as comparatively lazy. This, I have heard, was trumpeted by a prominant politician of the time. And rest assured, you can hear some stuff now, too. Did you know that Japanese generally will expect non-asian foreigners to not only speak english, but be American? In that same fashion (contrariwise), I caught an earful of stereotypical crap spewed by liquor-lubricated transient teachers and ex-pates, while riding the stools at Kemby's in Hiroshima. It's easy to pull things from conversation. Most often it begins with, "these Japanese," or something similar. The entire nation of Japan can be put into little corresponding boxes that way. "The Absent Father," "The Eager-to-Marry OL," and etc. It's easy. It's too easy, and that in and of itself should be the clue. People are anything but simply-defined. Layers of media and history mix with an individual's self national and global interest, education, and socio-economic status. All but the most primal fears and ideas(like, say, being eaten alive) are educated into us. A nation has many faces, at least as many as it has people! A Disturbing Impression of my fellow Gaijin...
There are just masses of gaijin living in Hiroshima, just like any other reasonably-sized city in Japan. One of the reasons my father was reluctant to have me traipsing off to this particular corner of the earth was the possiblility of negative feedback. That is to say, there could be serious problems if I experienced racial discrimination. I'm as white as any polish-american, so there's little chance that I could become inconspicuous. Dad was in the navy all those aeons ago, and when he was younger it was just a given that Japanese would on the whole be, hmmm, none to glad to see a foreign face. And some travelogues dating even a couple decades ago showed negative reception for Americans. There are waves of westerner after westerner coming into Japan to teach English language at private-study "schools", on the single merit that it is their mother tongue. Many of the EiKaiwa school teachers have no background in teaching, and do not speak but a bare minimum of Japanese (ex: hello, how are you, what time is it, etc). This, in my opinion, coupled with sometimes insufficient teaching methods- those geared toward halting progess to entice return visits- does not help the fact that after years of schooling, most Japanese people can not speak English. Which is not to say that English is an easy language to learn. I myself have done some english teaching work, and I admit freely that it's not an easy job to do well. If anything, I would have to admit it seems one of the most difficult, expecially after some linguistic study. Participants in, for example, the heavily represented JET Program (Japan Exchange Teaching) and others certainly seem to do their best as in-school assistant teachers. In my experience, the good ones outnumbered the bad ones, and ignorant is not synonymous for bad (necessarily). Indeed most gaijin are here working hard and letting the cultural experience permeate the only way it truly can: by getting out there amongst the people. Students and teachers and models and businesspeople alike are just living their lives, doing their best and having fun while doing it. Hurray for us, because sometimes we dont quite get it and we go along anyway. And, as been said, we as outsiders aren't supposed to. Anyway, it is among a (seemingly, hopefully) smaller percentage of the Ei-Kai teachers, tourists, and the foreign businessmen that my quarrel lies. For you see, sometimes it is not as my father feared, but quite the opposite. There are many, many westerners in this country who take advantage of the current positive response to their presence. Well, let me clarify, they take advantage of people. The typical Western Predator is usually male (sorry guys, it's true) and goes to Japan because of some sexual tendency, real or imagined, towards asian women. Want an example? Try HERE for an apt portrait from GAIJINWEB. It may seem ridiculous, but this person is not out of his element in the gaijin pockets of Japan. Clearly this example might be complete crap, just done for attention, but the fact remains that these sorts of people not only exist, but exist in abundance. Of course, to be fair, I will say right now that it is not a one-sided thing. There are numerous Japanese girls who want a foreign-looking boyfriend, but when I speak to them most admit it is only because they have the idea that foreign men are "nicer". Debate that in your head either way you wish, because it's true (stereotypically) and false (all people are not the same). It is not only these men that bother me, there's more! There are men and women who, completely unashamedly and unabashedly will use and abuse Japanese left, right, and center, taking advantage of the tradition of hospitality and the simple kindness of others. There are many of these, they will act generally ignorant and helpless in order to glean money, free room and board, favors, etc. in a manner that is pretty demeaning, but many well-meaning Japanese think they are helping and not being taken advantage of. With their very existence, these kinds of westerners poison the rest of the foreigner population, damaging the image of honest and well-meaning people. There are even anti-foreigner groups in Japan. In Hiroshima I have only heard of one incident of such a group even making the news, but the fact that Japanese were going around in black vans with megaphones (something that is done disturbingly often in this country, and is louder than one would think) protesting the foreigner presence... it was unsettling. The Point... So what am I getting at here? Im not exactly sure myself (there it is folks). This may be nothing more than a rant about the high expectations one has of their fellow human beings, which are bound to be a disappointment. Or maybe it is just to inform, for example, people like my parents who worried for my safety so much in the time I have been out from under their watchful (somewhat glaring) eyes. I believe the well-meaning gaijin and japanese far outnumber the freaks, jerks, and morons out there, but I also believe the western predator outnumbers the japanese who prey upon foreigners. In America, these sorts of people exist in vast numbers, so I should not have expected that they would be on their best behaviour as guests of a nation. It is only that I have been treated so well here, and find that people such as the western predator make me want to be the best guest that I can be.
As far as stereotypes go: pick one.
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