Not sure if this should go in one of the /Travel subs, but this is more a question aimed at locals and long-time Tokyo residents and about their response to tourism. Lots of context here in the spirit of stimulating discussion vs. calling out myself as some paragon of virtue lol. I genuinely want to learn more perspectives on what tourists telling off other tourists might be. Happy to re-post if there's a better place for my question.
I have been reading a lot on the threads here about bad tourist behavior. There seem to be a few camps – [A] "That sucks! How vile! The obnoxious Karens/Chinese buses/Indian squatters/gropey Aussies/chundering Brits/shitty French are the worst!", [B] "the Japanese government should be doing more to fix/combat this!", [C] "but Japanese ojiis and obaas are rude and poorly behaved in public too, so it's hypocritical to fixate on tourists!" and [D] "I told Bad Tourist X to stop doing Y, and was told to fuck off," which leads to more [A] and [B], but also [E]… "some tourists think they're *so* much better than others just because they've been to Japan a few times. You do you!"
I count myself among the first clause of E – have been to Japan many times as a tourist, each time taking care to improve my Japanese and my knowledge of customs and history so I can be more informed. It dismays me when I see poor behavior from tourists who are either naive (jaywalking when everyone else is waiting at the crosswalk), willfully ignorant (taking photos when there are obvious signs saying no photos, or speaking in loud voices over short distances), or plain disrespectful (leaving trash behind – littering is universally offensive!). I've gently told off a few Chinese tourists for being bumblekins in the combini, e.g. "that's a bit loud" or "you're blocking the way, could you move?" and they are usually surprised and immediately correct their behavior once they realize I'm not Japanese (though I dress so), that I speak Mandarin, and that it's slightly American-accented. (The ABC halo still has some kind of clout with older Chinese tourists.)
I've thankfully never had a violent interaction in some of the ways people have here, either seeing people chase down geishas in Kyoto or behave terribly in drunk areas. And I'm not deluded – there are just some dynamics as a little lady of Asian descent that I won't come out winning: confronting a big blond with a higher alcohol tolerance than me, or "OMAE"ing some white guy who seems intent on hitting on Japanese chicks in Shibuya. But sometimes I itch for a moment where I can chew out some punk teen for putting their leg up on the subway seat, a Carol for taking pics of uniformed schoolchildren, or an Indian family for leaving food trash on the train. I am aware that the Japanese response seems to be either 1. side-eye and gossip in media res, or the other extreme: 2. park themselves at the Hachiko statue with home-made signs about what proper tourist behavior looks like. (to me, are roundabout solutions, given that the problematic tourist is unlikely to pick up on the side-eye/whispery context since they do not possess Japanese-level skills of Reading the Room, and 2. don't read signs). To me, directly addressing the issue in a neutral and educative way seems to be effective.
Is the general sentiment that tourists telling off other tourists helpful, or would I just be seen as a 3rd culture Karen? Would the proper response to act Nihonjin as possible—give the side-eye, gossip about how tacky/smelly/odious/dirty/littering the person is to my travel partner? Should I aim to be more understanding that less wealthy/educated people now have purchasing power, and that they will necessarily bring their own customs and ignorances with them and learn to accept it? Is my sense of vigilantism just a naive relic of 90s Global Big Brother Americanism—and unwelcome in the current age of liberal individualism, where it is looked poorly upon to tell an individual anything other than, "you do you"?
by ammosthete