From the Stephen Murphy-Shigematsu reading, I made note of three major points he made:
1) Murphy-Shigematsu describes how as a child, he avoided telling people his mother's name because people could not pronounce it, or did not try to pronounce it. How do people with immigrant parents respond to this issue or similar issues? Does this foreignness contribute to a feeling of shame or embarrassment of their parents?
2) Because of issues regarding interracial marriage post WWII, many interracial couples had difficulty marrying and moving to America. As a result, fathers often abandoned their wives and children, leaving them in a difficult situation of "otherness" in their home communities.
3) Interracial children were sometimes considered "flowers from the ashes of war". However, these children seldom had any other interracial adults in their lives for guidance and help understanding their statuses of "half". As a result, this children were forced to internalize their feelings, and often felt confused about their identites.
From the David Green reading, I also made note of three specific things:
1) Japan has a massive aging population that will continue to increase-- currently more than 25% of the population is over 65. This has contributed to a labor shortage. Low birthrates and an aging baby-boomer group will continue to plague the country with labor shortages.
2) Japan has a group of nationals called zainichi, which are nationals of Korean, Thai, Chinese, and other Asian descent. Their ancestors were former colonial subjects of Japan. Despite living in Japan and often being able to speak fluent Japanese, zainichi are considered separate from the Japanese people because they do not acquire Japanese nationality.
3) How can Japan use the refugee crisis as an opportunity to revise its immigration policy and increase the amount of available laborers? What obstacles would this create for Japan?