TRAFFIC by Alma Reyes
Why Japan is Far from Globalization We hear the common phrase “people don’t change.” Even Einstein said,
“The world as we have created it is a process of our thinking. It cannot be changed without changing our thinking.” In
that sense, maybe Japan cannot change either. To the casual eye, time may have witnessed some perceptible changes in the Japanese lifestyle and behavioral trends over the last twenty years. More Westernized fashion styles, food preferences, and home living standards, for instance, appear more apparent today. However, what dwells underneath those visible trends may have not altered much. Certainly, Japan has moved upwards from post-war impoverishment to one of the world’s strongest economic powers. Yet, is this enough to view the country as “globalized”?
Concerning the implementation of the English language and assimilation with foreign cultures, Japan still lags far behind many of its Asian neighbors. This comes as bewildering as we approach the middle of the 21st century. I recall my student days back in Kyoto more than twenty years ago when many Japanese then would stare at foreigners walking down the streets. I remember a Japanese stranger walking up to my American friend saying, “You have such long legs.” Inside trains, foreigners reading books in English would get intent scrutinies. Yet, after twenty years those scrutinies haven’t exactly faded. No wonder the foreign resident card is called “alien card”.
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illustration by: Dennis Sun
July - August 2021
