2 ms·

Japan doesn't really need complex or quota-based immigration laws because foreigners are not super happy to live there forever once they've tried it. More so th

Japan doesn't really need complex or quota-based immigration laws because foreigners are not super happy to live there forever once they've tried it. More so than legal barriers, there are cultural ones. And there are borders in our minds just as much as on maps (e.g. preconceptions that we're stubborn to let go of). The US is different, of course. People like it here once they've arrived. I can't say why, nor do I buy the stereotype that US culture is more open or individualistic. But the US arguable needs laws quota-based and micro-managey, since they are managing a huge amount of people from more diverse backgrounds. Japan is managing fewer potential immigrants and guests, and most of their immigrants are geographically close to Japan. Despite the immigration laws being easier to grok and less authoritarian on paper, Japan is pretty strict in its enforcement of those laws. Put all I've said together and I don't know if one country is more reactionary than the other, but I think both countries are moving toward a more balanced, less eccentric immigration system at the moment. (why you should listen to me: I'm an American and lived in Japan for four years and had to go through the process of getting my wife a spouse visa 2 years into my stay. I dealt with immigration a few times. I went to many different cities and vacations and such, and talked to people that don't speak English and don't have a passport, so I have a representative sample set.)

hrktb 7y ago
It should be mentionned that the jobs these low skilled immigrants are called for are extremely shitty (sometimes litteraly, as for elderly people personal care for instance) and desperatly low pay. It’s become a running joke to call it legal slavery. If I remember well, the visa they get is bound to a specific activity, so for most the only legal way out of that situation will to give up on Japan altogether.
irq11 7y ago
”Japan doesn't really need complex or quota-based immigration laws because foreigners are not super happy to live there forever once they've tried it.” You’re just making things up now. People are clamoring to get into Japan. It’s one of the safest countries on earth, with one of the highest standards of living. Not to mention inexpensive health care and a surplus of good jobs. I lived there too, and personally saw the people trying to emigrate, from all over the world. And arguing that it used to be different misses the point: they’re becoming more open, and we’re closing off. It’s an indisputable fact. ”The US is different, of course. People like it here once they've arrived. I can't say why, nor do I buy the stereotype that US culture is more open or individualistic.” If you think US culture is any less difficult to adapt to for an immigrant, you’re incredibly naive. It’s always hard. There’s nothing special about the US, except that we’ve been traditionally willing to accept immigrants. That, itself, is changing, and reactionary douchebags are making it a damned sight more scary and less welcoming by trying to protect the “different” way of life from the scary, scary foreigners.

hrktb 7y ago

It should be mentionned that the jobs these low skilled immigrants are called for are extremely shitty (sometimes litteraly, as for elderly people personal care for instance) and desperatly low pay. It’s become a running joke to call it legal slavery. If I remember well, the visa they get is bound to a specific activity, so for most the only legal way out of that situation will to give up on Japan altogether.

irq11 7y ago

”Japan doesn't really need complex or quota-based immigration laws because foreigners are not super happy to live there forever once they've tried it.” You’re just making things up now. People are clamoring to get into Japan. It’s one of the safest countries on earth, with one of the highest standards of living. Not to mention inexpensive health care and a surplus of good jobs. I lived there too, and personally saw the people trying to emigrate, from all over the world. And arguing that it used to be different misses the point: they’re becoming more open, and we’re closing off. It’s an indisputable fact. ”The US is different, of course. People like it here once they've arrived. I can't say why, nor do I buy the stereotype that US culture is more open or individualistic.” If you think US culture is any less difficult to adapt to for an immigrant, you’re incredibly naive. It’s always hard. There’s nothing special about the US, except that we’ve been traditionally willing to accept immigrants. That, itself, is changing, and reactionary douchebags are making it a damned sight more scary and less welcoming by trying to protect the “different” way of life from the scary, scary foreigners.