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Column of the Day: Potential risk of racial discrimination against Japanese

Today one of my friends kindly called my parents.

They were surprised to death. When I woke up, I found they had called me 9 times in the morning.

My friend called to tell them, “Be proud of your son”. (embarrassing. lol)

My parents did not understand anything in English, but asked me to send her response.

I’m to translate it into English and pass it to her.

They said they appreciate her phone call, they can’t evacuate for financial, and social reasons etc..

I pretty much know that I’m going to face the freezing cold reality out of Japan but when I went out today, my eyes started hurting, nose got runny and I’m still coughing. I can’t understand why other people don’t think it’s strange. My neighbor is coughing for weeks already.

Thinking about those physical problems, I think I shall move out soon as possible.

I’m also aware of the potential risk of racial discrimination against Japanese.

See also

Looking over the comments on the blog and other sites, an idea is provoked.

“It’s because Japanese is coward.”

Whether it’s true or not, the more contamination spreads, the harder it becomes for Japanese refugee to live and make themselves understood right.

It’s going to be harder and harder. so I wish I could be a pioneer and prepare for the followers from Japan.

Japanese will have to live in a small community to help each other.

Mochizuki
Mochizuki
The writer of Fukushima Diary.
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33 Comments

  1. my friend, i would like you to contact me, so i can invite your thoughts into forums that are supportive of those that are trying to push the truth…

    you know me, so stay in touch, i think i have an idea of what to do

    we have been working it from here for a long time….

  2. Are you finally going to Romania or to Chile (or somewhere else)? I do not know well the reality of Romania but I think that they are relatively tolerant in comparison with other countries of the region like Hungary or Poland, where fascism and racism is growing fast. Chile should be even more welcoming, considering that everybody there is descendant of immigrants (although they may also have Native blood) – in nearby countries like Peru or Brazil there is some tradition of Japanese immigration anyhow.

    However both countries are in socio-economic troubles, generally exporting emigrants rather than getting immigrants, and that will not bode too good for you (or any new arrivals from anywhere).

    I think that it is very important that you learn the local language as fast as possible: that will make you one more, even if somewhat exotic.

    Best luck.

    1. Racism against the Japanese in Poland and Hungary ? Where does that come from ? People are really nice there.

      Europeans in general like the Japanese because they don’t behave violently and in abusing manners unlike some other immigrants full of hatred.

      Mochizuki, you may face sometimes stupid comments from ignorant people, some will probably be arrogant, some will mix you with a Chinese (you shouldn’t take offense if that happened because it is very difficult for people to make the difference), but as long as you stay respectful (that won’t be too hard for a Japanese lol) and show your will to adapt to the new country, everything’s going to be ok. Don’t worry.

      1. Also, only pro nukes people could label those leaving as cowards for their agenda but these people are not the majority and their opinion don’t matter.

        If people ask you why you leave, just tell the truth, explain them what happened in Japan, how the governement and nuke industry are exposing the Japanese to radiations and except for the morons, you’ll find compassion and support.

    2. You post misleading lies my friend.Poland is one of most tolerant countries in Europe and in the world and always have been.I suggest you visit Poland by yourself and not spread some false information which I have no idea you get it from.

      Polish people admire Japanese culture and Japan is one of most popular countries in Poland.If some Japanese look for some safe harbour I suggest you go Poland, its safe, friendly, cheap and we ZERO nuclear plants you feel like at home (almost) and you dont need any visa.Next year (2012) there will be direct Warsaw-Tokyo flight with Boeing Dreamliner so easy come and back home.

      To live in Poland you will need only 110 000 yen its enough to rent flat 42m2 and live comfortable, if you have more it will be even better.Japanese ! Come to us, we will be happy and proud if you stay with our community.

      Greetings from Poland

  3. Always when people have to emigrate, there are a couple of problems.

    1. Papers.

    This means getting a long-term visa and permanent residence, not the tourist visa.

    As you know, I have written a lot about this. The main problem with most tourist visas is that you cannot extend them and you cannot get a working permit with them.

    There are countries which are easier and more difficult. The challenge is to find a country in which you can spend more than three months. Then you can make plans and possibly even move to another country.

    2. Employment/school

    Often employment is dependent upon good knowledge of languages, but not always.

    During this economic crisis, it will be hard for most people to relocate and find jobs.

    You’ll have to use your special resources (internet friends, knowledge of Japanese and English, knowledge of engineering)
    to find or create something.

    Possibilities are:

    -working for an English-speaking firm as an engineer

    -teaching Japanese at a high school or as a tutor

    -providing internet services (difficult to make enough money from this, but nice because you can organize your own time)

    -connect with organizations (anti-nuke, cultural etc) and work for them

    Remember that for a while people will ignore what’s happening in Japan. Ironically, this could be good for you because Japan will still have the prestige of a rich country for a few years.

    Possibly your job would then involve establishing contacts with Japanese firms, but then you have the moral question: do you want to support Japanese exports abroad? Is it still safe to sell Japanese products and do you want to participate in that?

    3. Cultural problem

    This is where racism is especially important. Many people like Japanese culture, but they’re usually educated urban people.

    Many others are racist no matter where you go.

    Racism is usually fear and selfishness of not wanting to share the same space with others.

    I have faced a lot of it, even though I look “white”. Sometimes people think they know everything about you because of your place of birth.

    The Japanese who emigrate will have all of those problems.

    BUT — FIRST PROBLEMS FIRST!!

    Solve the problems of residence and job, then worry about racism. I and other people will be here to advise you.

    First take care of leaving, then take care of having an income. Then you will also experience the pain of culture shock, but you’ll survive that too.

    Concentrate on leaving now, and try to have trustworthy contacts where you’re going.

    More later!

    1. What you are describing is not racism.

      Racism means a belief in inferiority between races.

      People that don’t want their country overwhelmed by foreigners don’t see others as inferior but they are scared to become a minority and lose their lands and rights and see their culture desapear.

      1. Of course it’s racism in its implications.

        How about Native Americans? Why did they have to be moved to reservations and exterminated?

        You can put some lipstick on a pig, but a pig will remain a pig. Racist is as racist does.

  4. Surely folks will understand it is government and business sleeping and profiting together that has caused this whole mess. The Japanese folks are the ground zero victims, and deserving of assistance. The Japanese people work for their living.

    The outcome would be even worse here in America due to the same reasons and We The People can’t do much about it right now. We gotta vote out the traitors and seditionists VOTE IN OATHKEEPERS and CONSTITUTIONALISTS.

    It is the islamocommucratic regime of corruption which is now in power and currently refusing to check Japanese imports for radiation because it would make nuclear power look bad: and we can’t have that because 70% of obama’s and others campaign funds came from nuke businesses.

    1. You are crazy.

      In communism I could go to any doctor, any time (including night-time) and have him help me. Without any money. It came from the taxes.

      I find it criminal that in the US there are children without health insurance. What are they spending our taxes on? Killing civilians, including children, and giving more money to banks.

      But Obama and the Tea Party are the same. They all love big business. Do you really think the Tea Party wouldn’t bail out the banks? Of course they would.

      Islamocommunism? I would laugh if I didn’t have to spit.

  6. Stay brave and sensible! You have your whole life ahead of you! You can always host your family later for visits and more. Most countries will allow blood-relatives, especially elderly parents, to enter and stay under your visa.
    Stay brave and sensible!

    1. And it is not that hard to get a retirement visa just about anywhere, provided the elders can verify a modest, steady monthly income and no major diseases, crimes, etc. Best to you & yours! =)

      1. My folks moved to a totally different country/world after retirement and they love it, more than they ever thought they would!!

    1. No discrimination in America? Why is every city in US divided by nationality? Inform right info, don’t just post it!

      1. That is by choice. I live in America, suburbs of Philadelphia. No one in neighborhoods I grew up in really cares about nationality. Bad reputation you have from news. My information is correct. 48 years old in America. It is is not as you say; not in the norteastern cities and suburbs.

      2. because whatever you do, people from different races and cultures who have to live together will naturally choose to live as communauties to preserve their ethnic base and culture.

        The concept of a multiculturalism and multi-ethnic society is a total fraud. It never worked in Humans history.

        1. You are a fool.

          Somehow you don’t find it weird to have a German grandfather on the one side, a Scottish-Irish one on the other, and to date someone who’s partially French? That’s not multiculturalism in your eye? To mine it is. I find it weird, as a European. Scots don’t usually marry Germans.

          Most empires have been multicultural, otherwise they wouldn’t exist.

          I want the US empire to fail today rather than tomorrow, but the multiculturalism is one of the very few positive things it’s produced.

          And no, I’m not an Obama voter. I went for Cynthia McKinney, although I am not black.

    2. There is rampant discrimination in America! A lot of it is hidden, so I guess that’s why people think there isn’t any. I speak from experience- my kids are bi-racial and they were beat up in school even given a concussion- for being half Japanese. This was in a small suburban wealthy town. It’s even worse in the cities. My daughter visited Orlando Florida on vacation and someone actually SPIT in her face!

  8. I have been reading your articles since June. I, myself probably in the same city as you are. I am Japanese but was educated in both US and Japan. I am amazed the ways you think and write, because your writing and thinking methods are very very similar to mine. I am much older than you are and if I had been younger I would choose the same destiny as yours. It is not destiny for you yet. I think it is just the new beginning. I am in a process of moving west domestically. I wish you a very best of luck in the future and keep up the good work. I am sure you will do just fine. Your sincerity is universal. Take care of you. I know Mari in Okinawa though I have not met her personally.

  9. I don’t think it’s a matter of “Japanese are cowards”. Anyone observing the situation can easily talk about what they’d do in such a situation, but I think the same thing would happen virtually anywhere else. People would sit on their hands and pretend nothing is wrong, because they don’t want to believe anything is wrong.

    When you think about a large scale disaster occuring, most people aren’t going to move away unless they have no choice or the damage is significantly evident. I doubt most even have anywhere else to go. People are tied to their everyday life in many ways, such as job, family, culture, finances, etc… but they also don’t like to accept sudden changes. The average person just wants to live a peaceful, happy life without negative interference.

    This may be strange for me to say, but it’s kind of similar to the World of Warcraft. Rival games have trouble prying people away because World of Warcraft players have spent so much time and money building their assets there. There’s also the huge social aspect of it, much like reality. They don’t want to leave unless all their friends go with them, or they have no choice, or unless they’re offered something significantly better that they’d never turn back.

    I watched another documentary on Chernobyl a few months ago. One of the people interviewed said that the nearby city (I forget its name) was built for the families of the workers of the nuclear plant, and when they were evacuated within a day or two of the accident, they expected to be able to return soon after. But, they were never able to, even to this day. That’s how serious nuclear accidents are. People simply can’t comprehend the scale of it.

    1. one of Chernobyl’s nuclear officials was asked when farmers could return to grow crops in the region… his response: in a 20,000 years…

  10. Hi there,

    Great job Mochizuki! I am from Romania; let me know if you go there. I know some Japanese who live there. It is easy for Japanese to study Romanian. I will be there for some time myself. I will actually EVACUATE with my baby (1 year and 3 months); better safe than sorry later. Perfectly agree with your way of seeing the the situation. I try hard to raise awareness—-most Japanese people laugh and ignore me! Some even asked: what radiation? Foreigners are somehow more aware of what’s going on!

  11. There may be many more emigrants from Japan and parts of America if natural disasters continue and increase in magnitude. Those of us on the ring of fire around the Pacific Rim will continually be affected by earthquakes, and the word is that these events are going to get worse. I was born in San Francisco and raised in Los Angeles, which are two cities that the American prophet Edgar Cayce said would sink into the sea along with Japan: “Los Angeles and San Francisco will disappear as land along the west coast of America breaks up. * Japan will sink into the sea.” With that in mind I would also suggest that Japanese refugees also seek to emigrate to other countries. Although refugees may face discrimination and racism in other countries, I have observed that Japanese are industrious and I believe they should be able to succeed in many parts of the world. Although dire events may be generations in the future if at all, it takes a courageous spirit to go out into the unknown to find your fortune. I live near San Francisco and may also have to find higher and safer ground.

  12. “It is much better to die in your own burning Castle
    than dieing somewhere alone and in Misery”!

    You need to understand that Radiation do not stop at Borders, the whole Northern Hemisphere is “as much polluted” like Honshu,
    (this pollution is minimal at the moment by my opinion) there is no escape!

    As a Japanese you know that you are absolute helpless
    in the foreign World and i am sure that this feeling
    will eat you alive!

    And please do not forget your Parents,
    they are very valuable
    and more important than your own Life!

  13. I agree with a previous coment regarding Staying and Paperwork.
    Visas(longer than 3 months, aka:turist), make shure papers are good, and you can at this days right now, rent a flatt for a Half Year, thats possibloe right now.
    I also recomend that for Vacations to.
    (look at apartment rentails/prospects in almoust any country, and flats can be rented for long terms, to, a way of easying the burden of radioactive fallout consequencess)

    Racism.
    well, after several decades of A. Kurozhavas movies, an a..hole in Japan, is an a..hole in the rest of the known world, no expetions.
    Racism is more a Local Object, fixed ares, and stay out of gettoes.

    It takes some time to gett tings going in any directinons(ask any Japaneas for that matter, a person that has moved frome oneside to the opposide part of Japan, and he would probably know what we are talking about),

    Long term planing for long terme (personal)economic downplaying, get used to it, and live with it.
    And as always good things happens to good people.
    Just be Patient.

    peace.

  14. Your next coming experiment is walking, breathing, eating and sleeping without all this radiation so close to you.

    Stop thinking too much. It’s bringing about fears. When you nourish this state of fears or simply live in fearing state everything can get scary. That’s all. So slow down all this as much as you can. Fears can pop up, but tell yourself it’ll be anyway different then what are thinking presently of.

    Stop thinking, close your eyes and let a bright sunshine appear. Let it warm you, envelope you. Feel the bark of a tree in your back, and stay with it a while.

    You will get fast ressourcement and you create this way space for your new events in life to be lived fully, you open nice opportunities and leave these frightening and squeezing oppressions who are legitimate, I admit, but never the less being active in your body and mind. So change it!

    Remind to discharge physical tensions and make warm blood flush through your body by some home exercices of your choice, softly. And appreciate.

    Please take notice of you.

    With affection

  15. I work with a lot of tourists in America, and Japanese are BY FAR one of my favorite people to deal with. The other Asian cultures seem to be so rude (I’m looking at you China). I wouldn’t worry too much about racism, everyone I know think the Japanese are good hardworking people.

  16. This is the actual problem with anti-Japanese racism.

    Most people believe that the Japanese just work, work, work and that they have a lot of money. They also believe that the Japanese are naive, because they don’t travel a lot.

    My biggest worry for Mochizuki-san is that someone will try to take away his money when he arrives. Maybe they will tell him that the apartment rent is three times higher than it is, or they will tell him that they will fix his papers, or that he should enter a business scheme and then they’ll take his money and run away.

    It’s hard to decide what to do. You have to trust people, and there are many good people. You will need friends to survive. But you also have to protect yourself from liars and thieves.

    The only thing that I advise is looking up how much apartments/houses for rent cost. Not luxury apartments with all the extra services for wealthy expats, just regular apartments in a safe area. If people are asking for much more than that, you know they are not trustworthy.

    Don’t enter any business deal too quickly before you know the people!!!

    1. You are so right, MX…
      It was a group of people in England, for example, who used to cheat on tourists, stole their baggage, and had a very ingenious way of stealing their keys and get into their rooms… one of them was a very beautiful woman… so be careful with women, Iori san 🙂

      Anyway, Iori, you should b careful where you keep your passport and money, as closer to you as possible, in pockets which are hard to find

  17. Please remove this totally irrelevant photo which has nothing to do with Fukushima Daiichi.
    Mr. Mochizuki should ask foreign residents of Japan about their experiences with discrimination in his country. He may be totally unaware about this.
    A fair reply to his column…

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About this site

This website updates the latest news about the Fukushima nuclear plant and also archives the past news from 2011. Because it's always updated and added live, articles, categories and the tags are not necessarily fitted in the latest format.
I am the writer of this website. About page remains in 2014. This is because my memory about 311 was clearer than now, 2023, and I think it can have a historical value. Now I'm living in Romania with 3 cats as an independent data scientist.
Actually, nothing has progressed in the plant since 2011. We still don't even know what is going on inside. They must keep cooling the crippled reactors by water, but additionally groundwater keeps flowing into the reactor buildings from the broken parts. This is why highly contaminated water is always produced more than it can circulate. Tepco is planning to officially discharge this water to the Pacific but Tritium is still remaining in it. They dilute this with seawater so that it is legally safe, but scientifically the same amount of radioactive tritium is contained. They say it is safe to discharge, but none of them have drunk it.

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