Multicultural communities in a global age: What the 311 taught us and beyond

With the revision of the Immigration Law in 1990, the number of migrants drastically increased during the 1990s, more than one million foreign nationals living in Japan today.

Especially recent immigrants naturally find it difficult to adapt themselves to unfamiliar cultural milieu, not the least because of their limited Japanese language skills. So local governments, NGOs and NPOs, communities, and volunteers actively try to provide non-Japanese residents with multilingual information concerning welfare, medical services, and education, all of which are generally regarded as basic human rights.

In addition, as Japan is frequently and severely hit by massive earthquakes like the 311 disaster, foreign residents also need access correct information in their own languages so as to quickly evacuate and literally survive at the critical moment. Actually, multilingual information and evacuation trainings, intended to keep foreigners well prepared for emergency, are available in many parts of Japan.

However, Japanese people in general still do not understand and even avoid people with different cultural backgrounds. What is worse, xenophobic reactions can happen in chaotic situations, as is shown by widespread rumor among the local people that foreigners were committing criminal activities in the devastated areas after 311.

The 311 disaster showed us that Japanese society has failed to develop enough multicultural understanding among people in general. Besides basic information in several languages given to everyone, Japan is required to construct more democratic, global-minded, and inclusive society for both Japanese and foreign people.