The Homeless In Japan
It's quite an interesting phenomenon, to see the homeless people who live by the river or in hidden corners in the city. Coming from Sydney I am not shocked or surprised to see homeless people trying to survive in some forgotten corner of the city. I am aware of how they destroyed their lives through drugs or alcohol and could no longer function.
Also in Sydney it often seems to be the ending place for many of the mentally ill as funds are cut from public facilities.
Not so in Japan.
When I first mention the subject of the homeless in Japan, the first answer I always get (and I say always) is that "they like the freedom of living by the river". To this I counter "do you honestly believe that people prefer the idea of living outdoors, being exposed to the weather over living inside with access to hot water and electricity?" I have never had a Japanese person disagree with this statement.
Then I wonder why I always get the answer, "they prefer it" "they like it" "they choose to live there".
Comparing the life of the homeless to that of a salaried worker, there is an element of freedom to be seen. The freedom from having to work from 9am to 9pm every day, the freedom from the responsibility of conforming to society. But this is balanced against the freedom to starve.
Every day I walk past one homeless man on my way to and from the station in my town. And another one to and from the station near my school. I wonder what caused them to have to live on the streets.
I look at my son and can't help but feel love towards him. I can only imagine that their parents loved them. They had a family who tried to give them a good start in life. How is it possible to go from the loved position requiring total devotion to being considered no better than a piece of garbage in the corner.
It really makes me think.
5 comments:
Here in Hawaii, the homeless population may have been forced into homelessness through some unfortunate event (rent increased, loss of job, disability, divorce gone wrong, etc.), but the majority actually prefer to remain that way.
You mentioned a sense of freedom in your entry and that is exactly what the homeless people here desire. We have shelters and other programs here whose sole purpose is to get the homeless people off the street and integrated back into mainstream society, but most of them do not want to follow the rules of the shelter (such as requiring a certain number of work hours). Others would rather live on the beaches and in the parks because it's more open than a house. They feel that the entirety of the beach or park is their house.
I think it's all a matter of perspective. For most of us, having a house, job, etc. is a way of life that is normal. To some homeless people, scrounging for food and sleeping outdoors is a normal way of life.
made me think of 1 homeless guy we met and talked to in 2002 at Ueno Park. Sad when your family left you and you're left alone.
@Linatic_sae
I agree, it would be the result of an unfortunate event that people would end up homeless, I doubt that people would choose to live on the street to begin with. But I can see how that once they are there, they might find a certain attraction to the lifestyle.
Though for me it's something I can't imagine.
@Lina
Very sad indeed.
Downtown Los Angeles where I work has the largest concentration of homeless in the United States so I am very familiar with them.
From my perspective and observations, the vast majority are homeless due to past/present drug/alcohol abuse. Certainly a percentage from some other mental illness.
I feel that a very, very tiny percentage are on the street due to economic reasons.
I feel bad that they are in that situation. But since I have witnessed alot of bad behavior, drug taking, openly drinking alcohol, and know that the vast majority did this to themselves, I have little sympathy for them.
The homeless I have seen and read about in Tokyo do seem to be of a different type then the homeless in L.A. They don't appear to be mentally ill or have past or present drug problems. In a way, it does seem that Tokyo homeless are that way partly due to economic reasons and partly due to choice.
When we think 'freedom' we think of a life doing whatever we feel like doing whenever we want to do it. I think the 'freedom' Japanese people are talking about is like the 'freedom' a prisoner feels after a long stay in a prison.
As for the homeless in my home country, I think a lot of them start life out at the bottom and see the way up as too long and hard of a struggle. I think a lot of people here start out with something and then give it up due to societal pressures or whatever.
Of course, I'm just speculating here.
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