Gaijin complex

I don’t know if you have ever heard the word “Gaijin Complex“. If you google it, you will find lots of articles on the subject and the first thing that I read was very negative so I thought I should clarify it from my point of view..it is just my personal view on “Gaijin Complex” as someone who grew up in Japan.

I do not believe that “Gaijin Complex” is about racism. When Japanese people say “Gaijin” (foreigner), they are usually referring to white people. I hope it isn’t the case but they refer to Chinese people and Korean people by calling them “Asia jin” instead of “Gaijin” but when it comes to white people, they tend to say “Gaijin”. Japanese people generally feel inferior towards “Gaijin” and they don’t really know how to interact with foreigners. It is not because they have something against foreigners but it is because they are not used to dealing with foreigners on a daily basis and also because of their inferiority complex towards them.

For example, Japanese men are generally uncomfortable when they are compared with male Gaijin because Japanese men are shorter, have a smaller frame in general and they believe that they are not as cool as male Gaijin. But I have to emphasize that this is a general notion and not all Japanese men or Japanese women inferior towards Gaijin but many Japanese people tend to feel somewhat inferior mainly because of the media.

It can be annoying and you may even feel offended when Japanese people don’t seem very friendly or pretend not to notice you but please keep an open mind. It is not about racism. Japan is a homogeneous country so people are not used to different races and languages..and Japan is an island with the unique sets of values, policies and traditions. Japanese people conform to their own social norms and rules but they understand that “Gaijin” don’t necessarily understand the Japanese common sense. 🙂 That being said, I do feel embarrassed whenever I hear the stories about foreigners being turned away from traditional Japanese restaurants, public baths. It will lead to discrimination lawsuits in America even though stores and restaurants often have signs saying “we reserve the right to refuse services to anyone.” I hope that Japan will become more globalized so people will be more comfortable with foreigners and speaking English. 🙂