Gaijin complex is not racism


I have received overwhelmingly critical responses for my article titled “Gaijin Complex”. Apparently many people felt that I was ignorant and didn’t really understand what it was like to be turned away and discriminated against. I get it. But I am still going to say this..Gaijin complex is not about racism. 

-Japanese people feel inferior to foreigners, mainly white people. That’s the concept of gaijin complex. So when you talk to Japanese people in Japanese and they still act awkward, it is because of this gaijin complex and they are embarrassed and feel uneasy. That you can deal with that, right? Just don’t sound too forward or too aggressive.

-Don’t take it so personally. 

There is no excuse for a restaurant owner to refuse my former American student (learning Japanese) service because he was white. Unfortunately it still happens in Japan. But try to understand where they are coming from and feel sorry for them and move on. Lots of places would love to serve you and give businesses to these places who want to serve you. Remember, just because you were turned away from a restaurant, it does not necessarily mean that they are racist against your race. They could be racist and they could be just feeling awkward. It is unacceptable but it is what it is. So try not to jump into the conclusions that they are rejecting you because of your race.

-Some Americans (especially) still go there with a sense of entitlement that everybody should speak English. Unfortunately most Japanese people don’t speak good enough English and their shame culture make things even more complicated.

I again do not intend to justify any forms of discriminations but if you want to make your stay, especially your travel a fun one, I would try to learn about Japan and the language as much as possible before going there. That can ease some awkwardness in case you have opportunities to interact with local people during your visit.

Yes, I think I am more tolerant of racism because it’s everywhere. No matter where you go, you can’t escape discrimination and racism. But racism is a very strong word to describe the gaijin complex experienced among most Japanese people and it is up to them to overcome that discomfort and try to treat outsiders equally. But even in a very diverse society that I live in California, everybody is racist to an extent. But in America, you can get into a lot of trouble by saying certain things and refusing business to certain race because people are extremely sensitive because of the history of slavery and all that.

Unfortunately here is the fact of life you must accept before even thinking about moving to Japan for study or work.

-You are always going to be treated as a foreigner. Even if you speak Japanese fluently, it is going to take a while for Japanese people to get used to you and become friends.

-Some people may refuse service because they don’t want to deal with foreigners.

-You will not be able to hold certain positions..unfortunately Japan is still very backward in this sense and they are now starting to accept foreign workers but they are very segregated even within the same company.

….and if you cannot handle this? what should you do? 

I suggest that you leave Japan and just visit but don’t live there. It is what it is and you can’t change other people or the country. They are very shy, historically shut down and it is still a very homogeneous society with a strong sense of national identity.

“How can you justify gaijin complex? You are Japanese and never experienced this type of discrimination so you don’t understand how we feel as foreigners living in Japan.”

 

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