My sister lived in Japan for like a decade, and she sometimes complained to me that she'd try to talk to people in Japanese (she is quite fluent in it) but they'd respond in English because she's very clearly not ethnically Japanese. Sometimes she would keep replying in Japanese but a lot of people never switched to it, so it would get weird and she'd eventually switch back to English.
So, you know, stuff like that might also play a role. Japan is a kind of weird example for this because it's a very insular culture that can often be pretty xenophobic.
edit to add: Also, I'm pretty sure JET (the main way that Americans get to live and work in Japan) actively discourages fluent Japanese speakers from applying, or at least used to. My sister tried to apply with them right after graduation (after spending a year in Japan as a student) and was told that her fluency in Japanese was actually a problem, because it's an immersion program and they don't want teachers falling back on communication in Japanese. Or that was my understanding, I'm happy to be corrected if I'm wrong. This was like 25 years ago, my memory is not that great and also things may have changed a lot.
Honestly, it doesn't surprise me too much. If you aren't japanese, you will never really be accepted even if you speak the language well. I remember a while ago I was bored scrolling through Facebook reels, and this guy was interviewing people in Japan. I remember two he interviewed. A white guy and a girl that was half japanese and half black if I remember correctly. Both were born and raised in Japan and spoke the language fluently. I remember both saying they were always treated and felt like outsiders. They never fit in anywhere.
I just watched a short documentary about a young black girl who was raised in Japan. If you closed your eyes and listen to her talk, you would've never guessed she wasn't ethnic Japanese. She says the same thing though, being treated like an outsider even though she was born and raised there.
When I was stationed there for 4 years, they were in fact, extremely xenophobic.
If you aren't japanese, you will never really be accepted
This is something I'll always go to bat for Japan on. It's not actually that hard to be accepted here if you just participate in social systems, e.g. join cleaning day with your HOA, or do your turn at the monthly garbage pick-up day.
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u/Loud_Insect_7119 2d ago edited 2d ago
My sister lived in Japan for like a decade, and she sometimes complained to me that she'd try to talk to people in Japanese (she is quite fluent in it) but they'd respond in English because she's very clearly not ethnically Japanese. Sometimes she would keep replying in Japanese but a lot of people never switched to it, so it would get weird and she'd eventually switch back to English.
So, you know, stuff like that might also play a role. Japan is a kind of weird example for this because it's a very insular culture that can often be pretty xenophobic.
edit to add: Also, I'm pretty sure JET (the main way that Americans get to live and work in Japan) actively discourages fluent Japanese speakers from applying, or at least used to. My sister tried to apply with them right after graduation (after spending a year in Japan as a student) and was told that her fluency in Japanese was actually a problem, because it's an immersion program and they don't want teachers falling back on communication in Japanese. Or that was my understanding, I'm happy to be corrected if I'm wrong. This was like 25 years ago, my memory is not that great and also things may have changed a lot.