“Fear” of foreigners?

29 comments

1. Surely just nerves?

2. If you want to remove that “fear” from them especially during important stuff like renting etc, try wearing formal outfit (no need for a jacket but a semi casual looking one is a plus) the amount of stare and fear will reduce. Yes sadly people here definitely judge on your behaviour and looks ot more than we might think. It did for me at least. Even just dressing like them (if it’s your liking) would definitely affect the initial interaction.

3. I know what you mean. I’m only about 170cms tall so I don’t get it as much, only a few times I can remember in my 18 years here I have felt genuine fright from someone. Once was a woman who saw me on the elevator as it opened, I was in clear view so it wasn’t as though I spooked her or whatever, but she seemed genuinely afraid.

   My taller friends speak of people crossing the road and crossing back on sight of them, but I’ve never had that.

4. Be prepared for anti-social keyboard warriors to start negatively commenting on this to try and bring you down and ruin your day.

   I made a post similar to this before and I ended up taking the whole thing down because of the amount of horrible comments made at me personally.

   Hopefully the same doesn’t happen to you. I just wanna put my 2 cents in and say I totally understand how you feel and have had the same problems living in Japan.

5. Some people are just straight up terrified to speak another language. Not saying it couldn’t be racism but I’ve seen the same reaction the other way too. As in some of my foreign friends immediately turning to me when spoken to for translation. Ah the look of sheer horror when they don’t understand and need help. Brings back memories.

6. “can speak conversationally” on this board colloquially means “can barely function as an adult”. People very, *VERY* frequently over estimate their language ability here and self-asess to handwave away the very common cause of this treatment being language problems. Not asserting that’s the issue here since there’s not enough info, and not even really possible for us to know for sure what your level is, but this is really common.

7. This strong, I got it only once in all my time in Japan. I was riding my bicycle in the middle of the day, was lost in the city, phone had no GPS signal for some reason, so I quickly stopped and tried to ask a young guy in a school uniform, in which direction Nagoya station is. “A! sumimasen”,,, He saw me, his eyes widened, he took his bag and ran away as fast as he could.

   It was more hilarious than anything else.

8. What area of Japan do you live in? I’ve had people react nervously when i first approach them but they quickly become at ease when I start speaking to them in Japanese. It’s been my experience that such anxiety comes from fear of an inability to communicate. I can’t think of a time when I’ve been blatantly refused something just for being a foreigner. I know the no foreigners thing is still a problem in some of the more rural areas of Japan but I’ve never personally experienced it.

9. You’re probably a weird dude, but haven’t been self aware enough to notice it – Before now… before Reddit helped you realize it (I hope). Or… you’ll listen to the others who also think there is any way this could be racism.

10. The real estate guy was probably inexperienced and nervous. Ticket booth lady wtf.

    Also, in Japan, you don’t normally ask random people question like that unless you’re actually lost and desperate… or old. So they might have been worried a little because a gaijin is randomly asking a weird question.

    For personal experience, during my early days in Japan, I noticed sometimes employees in businesses suddenly dropping their keigo when they find out I’m not Japanese(I’m asian). It’s understandable if old grandpa employees at ward offices do that to me(young) because I hear him talk like that to other young customers, but it happened to me at McDonalds. My friend overheard it, got angry and asked for the manager. I’m pretty sure it happened to me few more times without my knowledge when my Japanese was a little short.

11. A few incidents which are all absolutely f all compared to what immigrants get in the UK.

    The old lady jumping in the bushes when I was running during covid was funny though.

12. Just call them out on it. If they’re gonna act like dumbasses, then make them acutely aware that they’re acting like dumbasses.

    I definitely would have said something about the text to speech. That’s pretty insulting tbh. Maybe it’s super rude, but when I’ve had stuff like this, I just acted like I was better at Japanese than they were and acted like I was helping them with their Japanese and told them if they worked hard they could be 日本語ペラペラ one day. I’m gonna get downvoted for sure, but I really, really hated that shit. Doesn’t seem to happen anymore for whatever reason.

    Someone recently told me, “you look like you speak Japanese”. No idea what that means, but maybe I’ve been here long enough that my body language or something makes people feel more at ease?

13. 185cm 20, whenever I approach women, there doesn’t seem to be a problem at all?

14. The real estate agent situation just sounds like nerves and a fear of saying the wrong thing as oppose to “I am afraid of foreigners.”

    He likely wants to do his job and do it well without misguiding you. He knows he is being paid and there is a lot of money exchanging hands with something like real estate. Guess who is to blame if shit hits the fan because of a misunderstanding?

    Maybe he was a quirky guy. Maybe he had a bad experience and screwed up closing a deal and that happened to be with a foreigner as well. Obviously the next guy was just fine so its not a “Errbody is afraid of me.” thing.

    Perhaps some people are just not willing to put in the time and energy to communicate and help others while others are.

    Anecdote but I personally have met people that were “This is a pen.” levels of English communication (Not that I was one to talk because I could barely speak Japanese). Yet they were still willing to try and help me figure out what I needed or get where I was going.

    It literally was not their job or responsibility but they just wanted to help someone that was in need. Other people will just brush you off.

    Wouldn’t the same thing happen if the situation was reversed? I’ve seen that too. Japanese tourists were struggling to figure out where something was and the airport staff just shouted at them “No! No Japanese. No Japanese!”

    I helped them out instead because I was that guy that wanted to make sure they got where they were going. Becuase I’ve been there too. We all have.

15. It’s because people are embarrassed to reveal their broken English. What if the message doesn’t get through? What if I say something wrong or offensive? What if they respond with words I don’t know? etc. etc.
    The English they learn is for exams, not talking to actual foreigners.
    Even if they find out you can speak basic Japanese people still get nervous about not being able to get their point across

16. If you wanna be positive about it, it’s just them being terrified of having to use English.

    But yes, there are some straight-up racists in Japan. I’m not white, so I rarely have these issues, but in a previous job I’ve had people look at my name tag, then ask me to get a Japanese staff. Some were fine when I spoke Japanese, but a very small number weren’t.

    I learned to tune out the racists, try my luck a bit with the others. If they still don’t want anything to do with me then I just peace out.

17. From the fear interactions I had, it felt more of fear of the unexpected.

    There is a social dance you do when communicating with another person. You say “Hi, how are you doing?” and expect a “good thanks” or a “Not bad” or at worst “Could be better”, but if the stranger you are talking to breaks down crying and starts to talk about a complicated family situation, you are left with a “wtf should I do” kind of feeling.

    With some of the locals here they do not know your awareness of Japanese norms and even if you speak Japanese, don’t know how much you truly know. So they sweat that you are gonna throw a curve ball at them which they cannot handle. Especially if they have very limited experience with foreigners.

18. > The “no foreigners allowed” landlords or restaurants are one thing, it’s racist but I guess indirect.

    This is illegal, by the way, and can be reported or sued.

    > I guess it’s just racism..

    More like nervousness, fear they won’t be able to communicate well and the interaction will go south.

    > the lady just furiously shook her hand back and forth (no gesture) with a very menacing look on her face… I just backed away and left.

    Why not say something, ask her?

19. I know that look well. I see it all too often. Not everyday, but it happens regularly enough that I always have a fresh image in mind of someone fleeing before me in terror! In these types of situations, in my experience, it is 100% rooted in racism, and this racism is 100% rooted in the fear of the unknown. It is never my intention to frighten anyone like this, so I remove myself from the situation quickly and quietly. If fear festers long enough it turns to anger, then anger to violence and that is some shit I don’t want to deal with. Sometimes, however, I am confronted or even pursued by people…who will say “gaijin dame” or “gaijin kowai” or some such. The worst was a 6 yo boy, son of an acquaintance, who yelled “gaijin kowai” several times at me at a get-together. I asked him why he thinks so, and he said his dad told him so. That one hurt! I later saw racist bumper stickers on their family k-truck, and we are no longer acquaintances!!

    The alternative to the look of fear, is the feverish vampiric look of those that just want to consume me, or some part of me…those that randomly touch my hair, stroke my facial hair, poke my belly, squeeze my ass, fondle my genitals, absolutely hate it when I swat their hands away and admonish them. if I stick around long enough to ask why they did such a thing without my consent (this case is usually an acquaintance) they say because they wanted to know what my _______felt like so they just got a handful!!

    Then there is the “Teach me English” crowd…addressed on a different thread!

    But…all the above, while frequent, are outnumbered by good decent human beings who approach me as a fellow human being and have decent conversations with me, without non-consensual contact!! For them,and for that, I’m grateful.

20. Imo it’s more fear of meiwaku than fear of foreigners..

21. They are just panicked they have to speak English with you. The moment you know how to speak Japanese this thing disappears

22. I remember the first time I went to the cleaners as a newbie. I memorized what I wanted to say in Japanese and thought I was ready. When I walked up to the counter with my suit, the second I opened my mouth, the lady behind the counter burst out with “No English!” and ran away. She was the only staff…I was just standing there by myself.

    It happens…especially in the countryside. You could very well be the first non-Japanese person they have interacted with. Tbh, I also feel some stress when I have to use my Japanese in an unscripted, spontaneous situation. For some people it’s too much to deal with.

23. Japan, like most of east Asia, is very monogamous. You have same issue in China and Korea.

    Coming from places like the US, it’ll seem very different, because the US is a country built by migrants from different parts of the world. So no one stands out whether you’re Asian or white or black or Arab.

    As an east Asian who’s not fluent in Japanese (unlike many of you caucasians here), I actually have an easier time I think because I guess people just feel comfortable and work out quickly I’m Chinese or Korean and it’s been like this for centuries (Asians moving back and forth around these countries). Whereas America in particular is like this place people are still in awe (and at times dislike) at.

24. How can you cure the deer from being frozen in the headlights? A lot of that is anxiety, for many reasons, the overwhelming majority innocent. You’re the outlier here, your mere presence can cause it. Whether you like it or not. If you thought you could just blend in here, even with good language skills, you were mistaken. They sure help in time but you still don’t look the part. People need a bit of time to warm up to you. That bit of time is longer than your opening gambit of sumimasen. (Disclaimer: exceptions exist, differences exist within the country, and I’m not defending the status quo, I’m just describing it from personal experience.)

    Eff the ticket lady, I would’ve bought my tickets from here anyway, but beyond that you avoid these situations by asking fewer questions of strangers on the street. If you can, let them approach you first.

25. Most people are just not very comfortable trying to talk in a language they are not familiar with. Especially if they are on the job.

    Did you ever study a language other than Japanese in highschool that you never ended up pursuing? Try imagine doing your job in that language.

26. >Today I asked some people if the road to the station i

    To be fair, my wife is a bit jumpy when any stranger strikes up a conversation. An old lady approached us at a traffic light asking directions to Tokyo station and she almost jumped out of her skin when she heard the initial “sumimasen” from behind us.

    >The First Lady helped me out but when she asked her friend if she knew she was visibly horrified

    I wonder if her friend was worried that it was the beginning of a nanpa attempt. Because that totally sounds like a nanpa opening line 🙂

27. It’s more likely social anxiety than people actually being afraid of “foreigners” or hating them and being racist. They’re nervous in case they can’t communicate with you or you ask them something they can’t understand or you can’t understand them, etc. Japanese people are especially afraid of awkward social situations and communication, but plenty of other people are too. You’ve never been nervous to ask somebody something in Japanese or have to do something at the city office or whatever? I’ve definitely been there. I get nervous and shaky sometimes hoping I don’t end up in an awkward situation where neither of us can understand each other or nervous I’ll use the wrong word or stumble or make a social faux pas or whatever.

    I am not the best at socializing at the best of times but adding in a foreign language makes me nervous hoping they won’t say something I can’t understand or answer.

    I’ve experienced the nervous looking, hand literally shaking as they hand you your change or whatever cashiers and stuff and I’m 99.99% sure it’s generally that kind of social anxiety/nerves. I notice it’s often young men or teen boys who end up super nervous like that, they probably don’t have a lot of experience talking to foreigners, or even random strangers in general, so I just chalk it up to nerves because I’m a foreigner or maybe I’m extremely beautiful (that’s a joke lol)

28. I always get this at the conbinis in April-ish when new high school kids are hired. They sometimes try to avoid ringing me up at the register lol. Slightly annoying, but I get it.

29. Never had this happen, ever.
    And I can’t speak Japanese.

    But FLOL, they aren’t racist for being afraid to talk to you. Language barrier is a real thing and not everyone has the time, patience, or confidence to converse with someone who may not understand them.

    Funny enough, while reading your post and waiting at the bus stop, a random person came up to me and asked for directions.

    Real question: What do you usually wear?

    Half joking question: How often do you shower? 😂