From: masuda@fcs280b.ncifcrf.gov (Michiaki Masuda)
Subject: Re: Not a Myth at All
Organization: Frederick Cancer Research and Development Center
Date: Tue, 29 Dec 1992 09:43:33 GMT

In article <1992Dec28.200807.5156@island.COM> fester@island.COM (Mike Fester) writes:
>In article <42855@sdcc12.ucsd.edu> mcovingt@sdcc13.ucsd.edu (Maiko Covington) writes:
>>Ah... racism again. ^_^ Hmmm... about the situation of 'Japanese
>>only' signs around Yokosuka and the embassies... It IS a form of
>>discriminization based on your race - if you have blond hair and
>>blue eyes, you are looked upon disfavorably.

  If you are saying this seriously, Maiko-san, I'm afraid that you are
incorrectly discouraging people with blond hair and blue eyes. We don't
have even blond jokes in Japan.

>> BUT! I think in some
>>ways it is just the easiest way for the owners of these
>>establishments to avoid past experiences of foreigners acting bloody
>>rude in their shops. 

>Could not establishments in the US therefore be equally excused for a policy
>of "We had a problem with a few blacks/latinos/Asians/whites/people wearing
>leather jackets in the past, so it is simpler for us to exclude all of them, 
>rather than targetting those misbehaving indiviuals"?

  I guess "No Leather Jackets Allowed" would do B-).

>> I do NOT mean to flame the military or
>>government workers (heck, my father is military) but I must admit
>>that I HAVE seen a lot of base workers misbehaving around the
>>Yokosuka area. Since Japan is a more or less racially homogeneous
>>place, they quickly make the leap that "foreign looks like those
>>guys that had the brawl in here last week, so we won't let 'em in
>>just to be safe".
>>	I think that one can get around this by demonstrating some
>>Japanese ability or dressing nice, or whatever. Actually, I feel

>However, what if you are a tourist and have no Japanese ability? Is it
>therefore alright for this afore-mentioned shopowner to discriminate?

   This is a situation different from that of military servicemen who
HAVE TO LIVE in Japan.
 
   Probably, the tourist would not expect that his/her lack of
communication skill allows him/her to have every opportunity to enjoy
everything that Japanese-speaking people can enjoy.

   If there's no reliable way of communication, it would be inevitable 
for a shopowner to show the tourist an attitude different from that
to a Japanese-speaking customer. Fear? Perplex? Frustration? Or despair?
In some cases, the service may not be offered when the owner cannot
be sure if he/she can satisfy the customer.

>A quick note: in a Japanese class I was taking, one of the students was a 
>68 year-old retiree, who was part of the Occupation of Japan. He says the
>"No foreigners" signs were up almost the same day the forces entered Japan.
>My grandmother-in-law says that "Japanese only" signs were up in Kochi BEFORE
>the occupation troops got there. 

   I think that there was a strong antipathy among many Japanese against 
the Occupation Army shortly after WWII. It might be reasonable because
they had been taught that Americans were evil brute. I'd interpret that the
"No foreigners" signs immediately after the war were rather partisan
activities and had a different meaning from that of the similar signs
which might be seen now. 

>And somehow, I get the feeling you would not be quite so understanding of those
>(eg) white shopowners who would exclude (eg) blacks because "They have a bad
>reputation". 

   I wonder if she has to demonstrate her understanding of what does not 
seem to be a good analogy to the issue under discussion.

--Michiaki
Newsgroups: soc.culture.japan