The Dark Secret Behind Japan's 0% Homelessness Rate
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 31 พ.ค. 2024
- In the many ways that Japan stands out, there is one particular thing that makes it completely unique. Despite having a population of 125 million people, it is the only country in the world that has a homeless population rate of almost 0%, something that was previously considered impossible.
But if you look past the headlines, the situation starts to look very different. The reality behind this seemingly amazing success, reveals a disturbing and dark picture of what life in Japanese society is like and what is really going on under the surface. So how did Japan manage to have 0% homelessness rate and why is it actually not good news for the country?
0:00 - Intro
00:56 - Part 1: The Official Explanation
04:09 - Part 2: The Dark Reality
Credit for a clip used in the Part 1 (1m 23s - 1m 42) goes to @OrientalPearl, go check out her videos!
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Japan Government gives out free homes to the people. Why homeless? 🙄
Good content, but the sound effects, those xylophones are absolutely ridiculous. So distracting and unnecessary, it ruined the whole point of the story. I stopped watching after 3 or 4 minutes.
Finland has actually 0 homeless. Not just hidden homeless.
I admire the spirit of this video, my friend. However, you left out an even darker aspect behind the reason for Japanese very low homeless rate. People also choose to go to prison in otder to be housed and fed. Especial the elderly poor. Even more shocking, the women's prisons in Japan are composed of mostly these types of women, poor, single, older ladies who cannot find a permanent job. It is indeed a shocking situation. Unfortunate you did not mention this in your video.
N.O.P.E. - 30 yr veteran of Japan here. Born and raised in 東京. There are PLENTY of homeless people in Japan. But, you don’t see them during the day because most of them make ends meet with menial jobs. After 1700hrs, you’ll see them in parks, under bridges, under the highway intersections and along 隅田川, the largest river in Tokyo. Most parks are filled with the homeless at nights in Tokyo. I’ve gotten to know many of them at night when I was a kid.
Why not just move them to the country side where there are many abandoned houses
I too am in Tokyo. While yes I do see homeless every once in a while, compared to the US, numbers are minuscule. I've seen HUGE homeless issues around Phx, Arizona, California (everywhere), Seattle, Orlando Florida NYC, and it's just terrible there. Japan housing too costs a fraction of US, and also my rent has never increased (this is by law, landlords raising rents is extremely difficult).
In Japan do people arrest and persecute the homeless like they do over in America? Over in America also, they attach a lot of stigmas and bias to homeless also such as trying to teach everyone that all of them are drunks or drug addicts also.
...
In Japan also do they differentiate between physically disabled homeless? Physically disabled homeless are different than people who have mental illness and are actually pretty normal except that they just can't keep up so people won't employ them as much or for as long.
@@noahriding5780 have you ever even met a hobo? I've had them get extremely pissed when they ask for money and you offer food or water. I've even given money to several homeless because of a sad story they told just to watch them tell the same lie to a group of people and earshot away. You have no idea what you are talking about, people largely don't become homeless unless they have a major issue like drugs or mental illness.
@@dannylo5875i know it…especially in the USA were theres plenty of spaces. But yet homeless people liked to be near the cities where theres free food etc! Its sad! The cause of homelessness too, first of all, housing. 🤑🤑🤑🤑🤑
hi, Japanese here.
homeless issue is deeply connected with life protection benefit (welfare benefit for poverty). The government provide life protection benefit 2million people max as if there is a quota, which means the government reject to provide help for some people who actually cannot stand by themaelves. these people who were rejected to be supplied life protection benefit by government will be likely homeless. this is the country ,people in needs cannot reach proper information to get help. i must say why people become homeless has various backgroud but mental health(depression) issue is one of the biggest factor. homeless people in Japan does not talk or try to mingle with society neither try to escape to drug, but they are facing the potential risk of suicide. the reason why men tend to be homless more than women is women in poverty tend to work as sex workers. there is other hell with women. I trurely wish our society accept failure of life and supoort chance of rebuilt.
also wish people pay attention for mental health issue more seriously.
Is it possible that these people can get money provided to them if an outside source helps? Or a job like cleaning an apartment or something if given to them?
what is included in the life protection benefit?
@@Megamibunny I believe that it’s almost impossible for homeless people to apply for a regular job since all jobs in Japan require address. If those homeless people want to rent a apartment they have to have someone as an guardian (either relative or employer), but if they have someone to rely on why would they be homeless in the first place. It’s quite a vicious circle.
@@Megamibunny Cleaners are occupied by old people who cannot live with pension supply only. Whatever regular, part timer, or well/poor paid - if you want to get a job in japan, you must have resident address which is challenging for homeless. as far as I know, homeless people tend to do daily contract construction job, get 60USD-80USD around per day. Of course never enough for renting, or saving.
There's a massive gender gap problem. Plus, you need younger people more in touch with society. It seems a very harsh environment, indeed...
I was homeless in Australia for 4 years, I lived out of an internet cafe for 95% of this time.
Started off paying 30 dollars a day for 18 hours of cubicle time, 5 dollars for 2 meals a day and unlimited water.
After spending 2 thousand dollars I was upgraded to VIP which was 24 dollars per day for 24 hours of time. 370 AUD and I had a roof over my head and 2 meals a day with uncapped internet service.
The owner of that net cafe saved my life by his care and understanding and not just kicking me out when I was sleeping, he and his workers would even tell police officers to stop waking us up when they came in for inspections. Jun you legend of a Human, thank you from the bottom of my heart mate, you not only helped me but you helped out dozens of us who just fell prey to a terrible government.
Why would they care if you were sleeping? You paid for the cubicle time, what you do with it is your business. Unless you were bringing in a sleeping bag I guess, but even then... you paid for the time.
This is such a touching story of kindness and compassion in a difficult situation. It's wonderful to hear that there are people like Jun who go above and beyond to help those in need. It's heartwarming to hear that you had someone looking out for you during such a difficult time. I hope things have improved for you since then, but it's important to remember the impact that small acts of kindness can have on someone's life. Thank you for sharing your story.
🙏🏼
What did you do for money?
Was on Government pension for "emergency housing recipients" it's no longer a thing today as it falls under "new start" it gave roughly 220 AUD every week, basically the wage of a high school kid working at a fast food joint at the time. Tried looking for work but no one would hire me due to not having an address to put down, people told me to lie and I just couldn't bring myself to do it. @@michaelwayne4568
Asking any government to report on their own performance is like asking a student to grade their own exam papers. So regardless of what any official figures state, they'll never be trustworthy or accurate because even "independant" assessors can't risk upsetting the same people who appointed them to the role in the first place.
That why you need an independent bureau of statistics.
yup. the same is true with every nations GDP. it will always be a rough estimate.
As a Japanese, I can confirm this looks throughly neutre and true. The homeless problem is omnipresent, but the government “hides” the real number to be the cleanest country. I have this acquaintance of which a family member was “homeless”, the family entirely disappeared one day because of the social harassment by neighbors calling them “shame of neighborhood” and socially isolating them. Japan is in a sense very disciplined country, but for me it’s too intolerant. You did one mistake, people treats you with that mistake for life…We are humain, we do mistakes🫡
Why did the family let one member be homeless instead of taking them in? What are they, an American family??
@@alexcarter8807 I don’t know where are you from tho here is Japanese society logic :
1. Asking help to others looks socially bad (no.1 rule of the society is don’t bother others including your family)
2. If the family takes him, the rumor’d go around the family in the hood “they have a homeless in family. What a shame, stop hanging out with them” “Don’t hire him, he’s been homeless, it means his useless”
3. The family gets isolated, the 2nd rumor goes “they are weird”. The family gets more and more isolated.
4. The family becomes depressed, the 3rd rumor “they have someone depressive, it’s too negative. It’s a shame, don’t be around them”
5. The family commits suicide. The last rumor “the family committed suicide, it’s a bad luck. Ignore them, it’s a shame”
If you help them, you’d the target of social execution and be in the same situation. This is why once you do mistake in your life in Japan, it’d be done for life lol
@@alexcarter8807 Many American families TRY to take in their lost members. Drug addiction and violent mental illness is a hard burden some people cannot afford or even survive...its either kick out the member who just set the kitchen on fire for the second time or end up homeless themselves.
@@hakimhayashi maan, Japan can be brutal. I knew from my experience that Japanese can be unforgiving, but in this context my teachers behaviour makes lot of sense. They treated me as delinquent for not behaving exactly as group did. Now I understand why they were so adamant on need to be identical to rest of group. Good to be gaijin I am never going to be accepted anyway so I am just Gona be me. Also ostrichiced ppl make good friends they don't care about these nonsense anymore and accept you.
@@extended_e I’d say yes and no. Yes it’s also about tolerance, no it’s different angle when it comes to foreigners in Japan. I know a lot of non Japaneses who got accepted in Japan: job, social status, house etc. Cuz most of them accepted Japanese social customs staying “themselves”. True that there are a lot social rules in Japan. Although I myself immigrated to France, there are vast of social rules to follow for me. It’s just different rules when you are foreigner. To master the local language at debatable level is the key if you really wanna integrate yourself to any local society. Unless you stay only among foreigners being expat or as a trophy husband/wife. This way, yeah you’d be ”gaijin" forever, there are lot of them in Japan.
This is my theory and how I found my place as “yellow monkey” immigrated to France. You may have your one. But you can stay unique, don’t stay foreigner.
i lived in the mangakissa (cyber cafe) for 2 months. it was good and the people are nice. there is showers, water and food available. Its is safe and really good alternative to sleeping on the street
I wonder how much that cost for a night?
Kool hobocyclist , better than here in America where more & more are becoming homeless in San Diego , California tents line the streets with homeless people seems a 3rd of them now are females ect... As companies lay off more workers the homeless rates grow faster than social services can find places to house the homeless so the city has passed a law making it illegal to live in tents on public side walks the homeless will now be offered a place and if they refuse they will be taken to jail or a mental hospital .
Is there dubbed anime
I’m surprised they have showers!
@@LoyaFrostwind Yeah me too it was only 200 yen extra at some of them and they gave shampoo and soap
I lived in Okinawa for 7 years and would always use the manga cafes in large cities like Tokyo and Osaka as a cheap getaway (compared to a more expensive option like AirBnB). Everyone looked so clean and well-kept, it never occurred to me that they were basically homeless and using the cafes as a residence. I only had one negative encounter with a homeless person my entire time in Japan - it was a mentally-ill woman who followed me for 3 blocks in Osaka screaming at me "urusai!" (Shut up!) for no reason.
@sparkle8120
YOU WOULD TREAT A WOMAN WHO CLEARLY SUFFERS WITH HER MENTAL HEALTH IN SUCH A WAY THAT YOU WOULD LAUGH IN HER FACE?
THAT JUST SPEAKS VOLUMES. SMH
Urusai doesn't mean shut up.
@@perplexed6088 It means loud or noisy but it can be used standalone to mean “shut up”
@sparkle8120 you obviously don't know anything about mental illness. If a person has both delusions and auditory and visual hallucinations they are unlikely to act with decorum. You should learn about mental health because no one is exempt from it. The world is littered with people getting nasty surprises about life.
@sparkle8120 My father was Schizophrenic. It's not like "they know what they're doing". I can imagine that her brain told her that this person was screaming bad things at her even though it's not true these things their brain make them hear and see are very real to them.
I went homeless and was on the street for years, getting diagnosed with ptsd, and major depressive disorder got me the help I needed, but I'm one of the lucky ones
Understand what you say I was home less due to depression and mental health issues
I am going through same problem. What can i do
@@minhazrahman7023 great get a job and stop using crack you got this
@@minhazrahman7023is there a shelter you can stay at while finding work with health benefits?
Salute to you. Sure some luck is involved but I think it’s important to give yourself a ton of credit when it’s due. Rising up out of a bad situation is absolutely something to be proud of and I personally salute you for it. I’m not so naive to believe everyone has the same ability/opportunity to do so, but I go out of my way to support those who are trying to uplift themselves and others. Here’s to many more years of success, stranger. You are valued and respected no matter what, never forget that.
I live in Nagoya, Japan. I’ve been in this country for almost 11 yrs, and there’s plenty of homeless people around. It’s really a sad sight to see. 😢
Can confirm. Lived there for a year and a half. When I noticed the (supposedly nonexistent) homeless people scooping up my aluminum cans on trash day, I started putting a 500 yen coin in the bag. I hope it gave some of them a warm meal that day.
I used to live in Nagoya. I remember watching the cops at Nagoya station one day come out to roust the homeless that had set up on the sidewalk outside the McDonalds. There was about four or five of them, drinking One Cup Ozeki and generally just enjoying the warmth of the day.
The cops came over, told them to move on. The homeless guys didn't.
The cops came back, and proceeded to literally bounce these guys up and down off the pavement as they 'assisted' them out of their spots. Me, being a fresh off the plane foreigner, said absolutely nothing, knowing if I did I'd be next. Instead, I went into Tokyu Hands.
a 0% immigration rate?
So this report is not true, cz i was thinking no way theres homeless people all over the world🤷🏻♀️
It's global
One of the trippy things, as a resident of Japan, I see homeless camps everywhere, some even within city centers and fashions districts, for instance the Sakae area in Nagoya, there's a homeless community parked under the elevated highway with dozens of tents and ramshackle huts of plywood, corrugated metal and plastic tarps. There are metal bins for warmth and lots of litter. Japan is just really, really good at ignoring negative aspects of Japan, aggressively so.
So this video is lying
I've seen videos extensively covering slums in Japan, and I can't help but feel you're exaggerating.
@@chocolate9726 Misleading, rather
I visited Osaka in 2002, and saw an area where many people had made shelters with tarps and car batteries. Me coming from a sparsely populated country, the shear size of this makeshift tent city was mind boggling.
I watched a video recently showing the homeless population right under that famous road crossing in Japan so not sure this video is right
I was working in the US under a work visa and my job provided housing for me but very low monrhly pay. When the job location moved, they were unable to provide me with housing so I lived in my Bronco for 3 years on the streets of Los Angeles circa 2004. I met hundreds of people in a similar situation and about a dozen of us would communicate with each other on a daily basis about the availability of the best spots to park at night. It had its rough moments for sure but I'm glad I went through that experience as I'm much older now with my own family and a roof over our heads.
Living in my Bronco was a humbling experience, but it also taught me a lot about resilience and resourcefulness. I learned how to navigate the challenges of living on the streets and how to stay safe in a city that can be unforgiving to those without a home.
Despite the hardships, there were moments of camaraderie and support among those of us in similar situations. We looked out for each other, sharing tips on where to find food, shelter, and resources. It was a community of sorts, albeit a transient and constantly shifting one.
Eventually, I was able to save up enough money to get back on my feet and find a more stable living situation. Looking back, I am grateful for the experience, as it taught me to appreciate the simple things in life and to never take my circumstances for granted.
Today, I am grateful for the roof over my head and the family that I have built. I often think back to those days in my Bronco and the resilience and strength it took to survive on the streets of Los Angeles. It is a chapter of my life that I will never forget, and one that has shaped me into the person I am today.
Thank you so much for this video!
Canada had very close to 0% homelessness until the 1980s, when all the mental hospitals were shut down. People asked “What will happen to the residents of the mental hospitals after they are closed.” No answer was given. However, after the mental hospitals closed, the number of homeless people obviously increased.
1) There were _always_ homeless shelters all across Canada. I think you mean street homelessness. Before that became common, un-sheltered homelessness existed on the outskirts of towns, or anywhere there were disused buildings or properties.
2) It was around the late 1980s that crack made its appearance in Canada. Soon after, homelessness exploded.
3) The emptying out of mental hospitals began in the 1970s, due to immense pressure from activists and media.🤨 For many years, group homes and cheap rooming houses alleviated the problem, but in later decades exploding real estate prices and a reduction or freeze in welfare rates greatly decreased the supply of such accommodation. When this occurred, causing homelessness, the activists blamed governments for closing the hospitals as they had demanded.😠
4) The surge in homelessness around 20-25 years ago had to do mainly with opioids ('opiates', until synthetic forms not derived from opium necessitated a new term). Again, this was thanks to activists.🤨 They publicly badgered the medical field until doctors finally relented under incredible pressure to begin writing vastly more opioid prescriptions. The activists had insisted that people with pain were being inhumanely denied relief, while the doctors, who knew their field quite well, insisted that a vast increase in addiction would follow. The decisive factor was the media.
Reporters, spurred by activists, wrote countless emotionally-charged articles calling the doctors callous and unfeeling, and as I said, they finally got their way. Later, when addiction, homelessness, overdoses and deaths skyrocketed, the media then blamed the doctors for doing exactly what they had demanded.😠
Moral: when activists and media team up to force change, disaster is quite likely to follow.🤨 It is my belief that every major problem facing Canadian and Western society is rooted in activist pressure to follow their theories about how to improve society and increase justice.😠 In my view they are not the right people to decide anything. They are unaccountable to anyone and never admit guilt for their serial blunders. _Never._
This is exactly what happened in the US when Reagan closed all the mental institutions! These people were released into society with no support. Tax dollars were to go the half way houses and social support but no money was forthcoming. Now we are living with the consequences!!
Same in USA
Same in UK
In the 80's, Ronald Reagan defunded federal mental health programs that resulted in a huge surge of homeless throughout the country
Strict drug laws are not the reason why Japan has low rates of drug use. There's lots of countries with strict drug laws that have huge problems with it. There's low use rates there because Japan's culture very strongly emphasises being law-abiding and to not doing anything too far out of the accepted norm.
Well I mean… true but the strict drug laws still definitely help 😂😂
@@bababababababa6124 No, they don't. Look up the stats. Harsh drug penalties often just totally destroy someone's life and compound the issue. Countries that have legalized drug use are often able to reduce drug related societal problems, while those that strongly punish drug use in many cases just make the problem even worse, because they just make it harder for the person to get back on their feet.
Strict drug laws, low corruption and strong economy is what help countries like Japan having such low drug use. I am sure you want to pick examples like Mexico to prove that strong drug laws doesn't help reduce drug use. Yes a legal system that caters towards the drug cartel and a country where a lot of people are still living in the slums. No matter how strict the drug law is, it will be useless. In fact making it more lenient will things even worse.
I mean, strict laws work if there's trust for the institutions that enforce them. That's why strict laws (say, against corruption) work in Singapore and Denmark but not in some developing countries.
If you are accused once tiny “drug possession” your life would be absolutely end in Japan. The society’s never forget what you did and your “crime” record never leave so your real estate or job searching’d be done for life. So we are so afraid of doing any illegal stuff.
I have been to Tokyo 3 times, there are homeless all over Akihabara and I have also seen homeless in other areas.
To say there is no homelessness is a lie by the government.
I used to live in Okinawa. The poorest prefecture in Japan. Homeless people were a common sight, along with people missing a suspicious amount of teeth. You'd even see people having deep conversations with absolutely no one. Most people don't know this side of Okinawa because they're tourists or US military, but Okinawa has some of the most ghetto places in all of Japan. It really is Japan's version of Hawaii.
Even the history of how Japan has treated Okinawa reflects the US's treatment of Hawaii and its natives.
Except the United States saved Hawaii from Japan and Japan would've wiped out Hawaii given the opportunity. Hawaii to this day is one of the least tolerant places in America to outsiders and has this strange idea that only they are worthy of living on this island paradise and basically only are living in modern times because of the tourism industry funding all of there economy and yet still they blame the tourists for everything wrong in there society. Look back at how people on island nations actually lived pre colombian contact and if you think you'd be better off in 2024 with that lifestyle I feel sorry for you.
The indigenous people of Okinawa, the Ryukyuans, have faced discrimination and marginalization at the hands of the Japanese government for centuries. Okinawa was once an independent kingdom, known for its rich culture and unique traditions. However, after being annexed by Japan in the late 19th century, the Ryukyuans were forced to assimilate and give up their language and customs.
During World War II, Okinawa was the site of one of the bloodiest battles in the Pacific, resulting in significant destruction and loss of life. After the war, Okinawa was placed under US military control, leading to the construction of numerous US military bases on the island. The presence of these bases has had a negative impact on the local environment and economy, as well as the overall quality of life for Okinawans.
Despite these challenges, Okinawans have continued to preserve and celebrate their cultural heritage. Traditional music, dance, and cuisine are still widely practiced, and the island is known for its beautiful beaches and lush landscapes. Okinawa may be Japan's version of Hawaii in terms of its natural beauty and tourist attractions, but it also has a complex and often overlooked history that deserves to be acknowledged and understood.
I used to volunteer to feed the homeless in Yokosuka. They were so nice when I gave them packets of noodle, they handed me gifts of origami crane, it was really sweet. I wanted to cry. It's too sad.
Sounds made up
*I lived for 18 months in Okinawa and Tokyo with friends before pursuing graduate school as I was looking to transition out of the corporate world into the public sector; long story. I do remember seeing the benches with bars to prevent people from sleeping on them in parks and public spaces. Moreover, I do remember seeing the cyber/manga cafes always occupied. I never would have guessed that anyone there would have been homeless. But, it would be fallacious of me to automatically deduce that all of them or that a large percentage of them were homeless simply because the person in this video forms an opinion without citing actual sources and actual numbers; merely repeating claims by some in NGOs without verification or corroboration. Further, having had experiences with NGOs, I know that some of them have certain political proclivities and biases. Thus, they tend to exaggerate numbers. Again, I simply cannot tell you what percentage of them may have been homeless in those manga cafes. Now, did I ever see a homeless person? Yes. But, seeing homelss people there was rare.*
I must admit --- however, I never saw a worse homeless situation than in my home city of Los Angeles. My native city is an utter embarrassment and a joke; and the politicians only make things worse with their supreme ineptitude, horrendous policies, soft on crime policies, and tolerance of criminal behavior by homeless people. Last, I hate to break it to people: But, hitherto -- I HAVE NEVER SEEN A HOMELESS ASIAN PERSON IN LOS ANGELES MY ENTIRE LIFE. As the dude in the video mentioned, (which I would agree) there is a cultural component to this......
I dont wish being homeless on my worst enemy.
I was homeless for about a month.
Worst time in my entire life.
I held a job for 3 weeks of the month.
I lost it because my phone died one night and I was 2 hours late for my shift, only a month into having it.
The misquotes and ants would eat you up at night so it was impossible to sleep.
Being in Tx you'd be drenched in sweat at night trying to sleep.
Simple things youd take for granted, like water, would be a hour walk away from a 24 hour gas station sink.
Was rough af.
i hope you are doing better sir
i hope ur okay now. a lot of people think this wouldnt happen to them but we dont know for sure. we should bring awareness to stories like this
I was homeless for 8 months in southern California. I'm not an alcoholic or an addict. It is scary living on the streets and most people treat you like sh#t. That includes the police
How'd you get out?
How does your phone dying make you late ?
All of this was news to me. What an eye-opener. Thanks for the video.
This was a revelation , Thank You,
I volunteer at food bank charity in Tokyo, plenty of homeless and severely poverty stricken people lining up there. Your point about mental health issues being taken care of by the health system is technical correct, however mental health is a very taboo subject here and most people wouldn’t seek help which is obviously a huge contributing factor to the real homeless rate.
If people are homeless due to an aversion to the dog eat dog nature of society, I suspect they'll have the same aversion to psychology.
Psychology only measures how adjusted we are to a post-industrial capitalist society, someone can be of sound mind while rejecting the need to consume and acquire (Minimalism/Frugality are valid ideals) but their unwillingness to engage society would be deemed an "illness".
Additionally, having faith in some religious belief may be acceptable in one society yet be deemed mental illness in another.
In the west, schizophrenics have a higher tendency to fixate on delusions of grandeur, and their claim that they're the chosen one is considered evidence of illness, however many religions can claim to be chosen by God without any diagnosis or repercussions (it's even used as justification for wars)
P.s. Sorry. I didn't really make a clear point, I'm not disagreeing with your post; just expanding on the intersection between mental health and freedom of belief, and additional barriers to mental health diagnosis.
no it is not a taboo subject, and homeless is not a problem there, stop spreading false bs
@@allentoyokawa9068 its definitely not a taboo subject but people do not take it seriously unlike other countries in the west
@@allentoyokawa9068bruh?? Lol aight keep saying that
@@allentoyokawa9068 bro is a japan propagandist lmao
I saw a story on Japanese news a couple years ago that affected me strongly. There was a middle-aged woman who worked part-time as a food demonstrator (sample lady) in supermarkets. She couldn't afford an apartment, so she slept on a bus stop bench at night. She kept her lifestyle a secret from relatives because she didn't want to worry them.
One night a local man with mental issues came up and demanded she get up so he could sit down on the bench. She ignored him, probably hoping he would go away. This made him so angry that he hit her with a plastic bottle full of rocks that he was carrying, unliving her. He was eventually caught or turned himself in, I don't remember which.
What a terrible life she must have had.
That is so sad, I'm so sorry. 😭😭😭 She was a brave lady though & tough as nails! I'm sure she was a hard worker too. She should get a memorial.❤
Being on the street can be so dangerous. Sure there are many nice people but there are also those who have violent tendancies. My grandfather used to be a train-hopper when jobs were hard to find & trains the only way to get there. He said the worst thing were the dangerous people in the homeless camps. You could end up dead or injured. He of course was a gentle soul who didn't fight. He was glad to not do that anymore.
Thank you for sharing that. I'm thinking that when you said "unliving her" you meant that the man with mental issues killed her. In other words, he hit her...killing her.
This is why states should pay for homeless SHELTERS, not tents and they have kitchens and bathrooms for them and they are helped to get employment...so everyone who has an opinion needs to look back in the 70's and 80's we had shelters for them in Cleveland OH it gave them needed help and a sense of community...but now some idiot thought of tent cities hell a few in Cali took judge owned parking lots and the taxpayers paid 5000 A WEEK to the judge for rent in a tent!!!
Unliving her What the hell is that ?
On a brighter note. The homeless people of Japan are free. Free of the burden of conformity, work place bullying and harassment and Japanese regimental etiquette.
The average Japanese citizen lives in a small box . Has no savings. Works for peanuts. Works 30-40 hours unpaid overtime. Doesn’t choose their own career. Owns nothing. Has never experienced love. Aren’t allowed to express opinions. Have no self identity or awareness. Lack critical thinking skills. Have been brainwashed from kindergarten age to think groupthink. Are terrified of being different.
The homeless option doesn’t seem that bad.
17 years in Japan and it’s a blessing to be a foreigner as I’m not expected to be a soulless robotic drone.
Spent a total of 9 months in Japan. I saw homeless people, but they are kept from the spotlight, out of sight out of mind. I was actually chased off by police when I tried to take a picture of the cardboard houses.
Good job on the video brother
Weird. The dark secret seemed lighter than my country.
I used to study at cafe located in train station near by where I used to study. I witnessed a lot of homeless people trying to rest in the public resting corner of the station. Some may be trying to sleep while sitting on a chair, and or some just killing times enjoying a safe place to stay, non of them beg for money nor bothering people.
One day, I found out that no more homeless people showing up in the station any more. It made me suspicious, but till one day, I found out what actually happened. The guard shout at a homeless person who was sleeping on a stool, and chased him off the station. He used the radio asking his colleague to make sure the homeless person didn’t return. At first I thought maybe the homeless person did something bad and is on the black list, but same thing happened to other homeless people. The weather report said there will be cold snap coming in, and it sure did, multiple times.
I kind of worry the homeless person will be freeze to death since I already saw him curling up like a worm shivering on the road trying to get some sleep for a while. He was very skinny, I could see his rib bones from the front.
I gave him a sleeping bag, a pillow, several clothes and jackets, pants, heat pockets and socks. Some money ,food ,and a big bag to carry these things as well. He thanked me, and that’s the last time we ever spoke.
After that, I got some problems in my life to solve, and not able to go to that area for months. When I finally went to that area again, I found out that many familiar homeless faces disappeared. I thought they made it and quit the homeless life, but when I asked one of the homeless person I’m familiar with, he told me the answer.
There was a big election around that time, and since it was a tourist spot, these homeless person and beggars were very kindly asked to move there ass, since they will make the major look bad. Himself returned there since the election ended a few months ago, and he thought it may be safe now to come back.
The homeless person that I gave the supplies, he didn’t make it. Many of the homeless people didn’t make it, since the cold snap was worse and longer than previous years. Only those who know how to survive as a homeless survived, and others were just wiped out.
And this, is our secret to how my city remain the homeless rate. You can’t be homeless if you are dead.
What country?
@@wattsinaname6975according to their channel they're from Taiwan
Terrible. There is a larger faction of humanity that wants things as you describe-let them go away, disappear, die, while sadly, a smaller number of people are like you, with compassion and awareness of shared humanity. Although that homeless man did not survive, at least you allowed him a moment of compassion, understanding, and hope. This is as valuable as the material gifts. Blessings to you.❤️
Yeah, and you have Orange Julius trying to ship them off into Concentration Camps. The pig head is actually campaigning on that.
@@BKNeifertwho's that that you are talking about?
I was homeless as a youth and now live a relatively wealthy life. To forget how it felt, to become wasteful or ridicule the suffering of others would be to forget who I am.
There are very few legal paths back up from the gutter. Falling through the cracks can make you change who you are just to get by without humiliation. That’s no life.
A nation is judged by how they treat the least of their people.
A nation is judged by how rational it is - rather than ridiculous.
We have a conscious and a mind we should have humanity and that is a heart to help one another. We are not excused on not doing anything.
@@seagreenmint5 The Left exploits your emotion and accomplishes nothing. Government is rational - or it's a circus.
Is the consideration dependent on the circumstances that led to the situation? Bad choices and preferences vs some unavoidable incidences might be viewed differently.
It's a brutally competitive world. In 20 years we will see who is still strong and wealthy in the race for dominance. A few falling behind so that others get the message not to take it easy is well worth the tradeoff. Who cares a few of your neighbors do not approve of you and your family. It's honest treating that which is unpleasant as unpleasant.
The more I learn about Japan the more I have to review my positive view on the country.
What shines through for me is the fact that stamping out hard drugs would hugely alleviate homelessness in the US. Also, we could help a lot of homeless people with practical accommodations, instead of the foolish idea that every homeless person should have their own full-size apartment, paid for w/ public funds.
Japan shows that initiative & respectability come from within. Can you imagine them tolerating graffiti, urine, broken windows & doors (basically willful full scale destruction) & terrorizing helpless neighbors in public housing? A large part of our problem in the US is entitlement, bad attitude & lack of discipline. God forbid, we not be "nice"!
Amen to that!👍
That's a tall order when the federal govt. is not only unwilling to protect our border, but is suing the state of TX in order to keep the border wide open to anything and everything. 🤦♂️
Strict drug laws are not the reason why Japan has low rates of drug use. There are lots of countries with strict drug laws that have huge problems with it.
There's low use rates there because Japan's culture very strongly emphasizes being law-abiding and to not doing anything too far out of the accepted norm.
I run a Food Not Bombs chapter in Yokosuka; Japan absolutely has a homelessness problem. We feed the homeless every month, and we also worked with other groups like Tokyo Spring that feed the homeless.
Also the censuses only count those that are visibly homeless at any given time; in reality the numbers are significantly higher than Japan wants to admit.
What you are doing is awesome!
This is true of ALL attempts to count homeless population numbers, unfortunately. Even American Point in Time counts that rely on committed volunteers undoubtedly miss a lot of people.
I love in an outer Bay Area, California exurb, and my town is actively....not friendly...to the homeless. (Compared to the County Seat ten miles away, let alone the inner Bay Area cities). On the Point in time Count Day one person involved that I know visited all the areas where she knew they were hanging out typically. They were all mysteriously absent that day. And miracle of miracles, the town's numbers were way down!
I knew about Japanese homeless from Tokyo Godfathers.
How many people show up on average when yall do an event?
@@Thesandchief Roughly 20-30 folks, give or take
I'm a westerner who's lived in Japan over 15 years. To be honest, I liked the fact that I could go downtown without anyone asking me for money. I wondered where the homeless people were, but then I found out. There's the blue tarp phenomenon. A lot of homeless people get a hold of a relative cheap tarp. For some reason most of those are blue in Japan. They use that for shelter under bridges, in certain parks, along rivers, and in the woods, amongst other places. For a while I was working in Yokohama. Kannai Station attracts homeless people because there are underground pedestrian passages where they can set up some cardboard and whatever else they have to sleep on. One day, I saw a pretty rough-looking homeless guy walking around, with his pants falling off. It was really sad to see a businessman in a suit laughing at him. That kind of person is a lot worse than the typical homeless person. To not understand that you've got it better and that you too could be in a bad situation is pretty pathetic. Thinking back, I'm not sure that I've ever been asked for money in Japan, whereas in the old country, it would be a daily experience as long as I was out and about. A couple of times I've given homeless people food. I was surprised to see some guy sitting in the corner of a local train station. I bought him some food at the convenience store there because I had seen him earlier. When I gave it to him he seemed honestly surprised and asked me how I knew he was hungry. There's definitely homelessness in Japan, but it's a whole different thing compared to western countries.
Asian countries don’t have as big a drug problem and instill a shame of begging, so I imagine most homeless just want to be left alone or are mentally ill. In America, you have absolute drugged out lunatics demanding money on the streets.
he also miss the fact that japan population is insanely low and no new born happens ,means homeless are very small % / precentage since there isn't many people around duo to japan being one of the biggest country in the world not producing enough children and majority of people there are adults and old people
Yeah, I feel like Japan is doing good. I saw someone sleeping in front of a bank the other day here in America. There are drugs and predators all over major cities. Someone asked me money for food I said I buy him a sandwich. He ran off. Know why? He didn't actually want food. He wanted drugs.
"It was really sad to see a businessman in a suit laughing at him" - This hurts my perception of Japanese culture. Hopefully he's more of an exception. I appreciate that you did help out and gave that other man food. Nice work!
May God Bless you in Jesus name ❤
That's strange, because when I was in Japan, I saw homeless. I slept in the same city parks with them.
II find this topic interesting and have seen people cover this a few times throughout the years. Cool video. ^_^
me and a couple of my friends each rented a overnight internet cafe room a couple weeks ago when we visited osaka. we only did it because our hotel was in tokyo and we wanted to experience dotonbori at night. I can't say i'd ever do it again, it wasn't a very pleasant experience. the room was small, smelt bad and of course i feel bad for increasing demand for these rooms.
Yeah if you really don't have a need for such a space as a iCafe Rm and have a place to live of course it's gonna not be good , however if you was homeless such a iCafe Rm would be a God Send after sleeping under a highway bridge or on a cold park bench like tossing a starving person their favorite BBQ meal .
@@timmyjones1921 you’re right. I wish we had something with similar utility in America. Here we just fence up underpasses and put holes in benches.
I visited Japan in 2005. I took a walk in the early morning in Toyko. There were some homeless people along the street. However, the police chased them away so that they would not be seen.
That was quite a while ago. However, I realized that many countries are not truthful with their social proclamations, whether they concern homeless people or the high educational achievement of their school systems.
Facts this is Korea in a nutshell
How did you know they were homeless? Maybe they were just tending the goldfish
@@JoyofBooking maybe they just didn't have home 🤔
Japan hides alot of things.
thry seem to brush things under the carpet and expect things to go away.
life does not work like this though.
it's really sad.
I had heard of the "lost generation" in Japan before, but it was presented in comparison to the "silent generation" in the U.S. - those that experienced the Great Depression and came into maturity during WWII
The psudo-homelesness people living in cyber cafe's is an interesting thing I never made a connection between. It also amazes me that cigarettes' still aren't classified as a drug. If you added that in for Japan you would probably see a 70% plus rate of drug usage. Smoking is super common from what I have learned but I have never gotten the chance to visit.
while i was in korea (i know, entirely different country and culture), i noticed their spas were dirt cheap and you can literally use one as a hotel. just pay for the night (super cheap), grab a mat, and go to sleep. i did this while i was on a weekend pass just to try it for myself. i even remember thinking "holy shit, this is an option if things go south in the US".
well, now i'm home and things are looking kinda south
It’s not like you can disappear in a foreign country for too long…very temp situation at best.
Just hit up Koreatown in LA. I've known people who did that when they didn't have a place to stay.
@@mabeaute8963 visa programs are mental deterants which require your belief.
Korean bath spas can be $40 entry in my location for 24hrs
Who's seen, Tokyo Godfathers ?
if you compare this to normal homelessness this is a MUCH better option. other videos show that some of these net cafes are like proper hotels with free food, internet access and good HVAC.
only thing holding it back is Japan's abysmal government and society shaming these people into recluses and staying there forever.
i'm surprised there are no NGOs made yet to help these people try to join the regular workforce. if done right these could become temporary rehabilitation centers that serve this purpose while providing them a place to stay.
edit: nice job dom this video blew up, 1.5M views, could this be your most viewed vid on the channel?
I work in one of the NGOs to help homeless people get a home, receive social welfare, and eventually, find work. Although we are still small and powerless, I hope we can make small changes one by one.
There probably are ngo’s but the problem is likely hard to identify unless they want to be identified
GOOD! they should be shamed
There's also the deep-rooted Japanese culture of "don't be a burden on others." Japanese society pressures people who fall on hard times, victims of sexual harassment at work/molestation on trains, etc., to not draw attention to themselves, so a lot of them end up feeling like the situation is their own fault and they don't deserve help. There are NGOs, but they have to actively go out to the secluded corners of parks, riverbanks, etc., to find homeless to help. A youtube channel called "The Japan Reporter" covers this and many other social problems in Japan.
@@ericng5707 double-edged sword. the US could do with a bit of this shit badly, their self-centered society is on the verge of collapse lmao
A night of august 2015 in Tokyo I actually met (basically said "kampaï" that mean "cheers" passing aside of them and they invited me to share) a group of japanese homeless peoples (in thé red district of Shibuya or Harajuku I think) 2 of them spoke really fluidly english (due to travels if I remember well) something that isnt that common in Japan, and they was helping other ones among this Tokyo homeless community , I hope they're good right now
It's heartwarming to hear about your encounter with the homeless individuals in Tokyo. It's not often that we get to connect with people in such situations and your experience seems to have been a special one. It's nice to know that there are kind-hearted souls out there, like the two individuals who spoke English fluently and were helping others within the homeless community. Hopefully, they are doing well and have found the support they need. Thank you for sharing your story.
@@PoisonelleMisty4311 yes these peoples were really kind , they was collecting clothes and things for the other ones so i gave them a plain white T that Air France give you with a teethbrush when your luggage Is lost and one of them even actually walked with me to the métro station at sunrize and gave me a Subway ticket when I told him I was about to fraud .. I still Can visualize the platform with the rising sun.. then i felt asleep in the Tokyo 8 Line and woke up almost at same station not knowing how much 8 turn I slept , another guy a working white shirt man was sleeping on his seat as well ^^ pretty common over there they say
It’s crazy how many homeless we have in the US. Just here in my area, more & more people have taken to panhandling on intersection corners holding a sign saying they’re homeless. It’s so common now & it’s actually made a lot of people wonder if they’re all actually homeless. To my knowledge, the most successful one was an older man who held a sign that said “Not going to lie, I need beer money.” He actually wracked up quite a bit just for being honest about it. I’m not sure if that’s good or bad though.. lol
I didn't hear this problem mentioned. The problem of acute social withdrawal called Hikikomori: "...cooping oneself up in one's own home and not participating in society for six months or longer..." This is another social problem in Japan that is swept under the rug out of sight of main stream society. It has been going on for over 20 years.
Japan, as a society has a rather sick psyche.
The more I learn about Japan the less I like it, except for the beautiful language and landscapes, it seems that at every age the population is confronted to hardships ''where are the families of these rejected human beings and where is compassion, it seems there are a lot of robots instead...
Now that ignorance is spreading like wild fire I'd rather be safe than sorry. 💯
@@antoniatrotta-houdin1573 I'm in the USA and I'm not ashamed to say we need the Japanese system for our homeless (drug/mental) problem. If we don't do something, drastic, soon this will be a fallen empire.
That is what I was thinking also. Maybe the young adults are at home with their parents.
Definitely it’s not zero homeless rate in Japan because I can find homeless people living in tents in some parks. Another thing to share is, when I came to Tokyo in the late 90s, there was even a very visible and sizeable “homeless village” right outside the west exit of the extremely busy Shinjuku Station. It’d been there for years but people just walked by pretending they saw nothing. Only after a small fire after 2000 did the police finally take action, and forcibly dismantled the tents. Later I learned that the homeless living there were only driven to the nearby parks in the quieter areas in Shinjuku.
1. Japan has a 0.003% homeless population. It doesn't mean there arent any homeless ppl it just means there just isn't that many. In the video you'll see he said th US has 0.18 but when you actually go there you'll see large camps of homeless ppl. So even with 0% homelessness rate there will be a large # of homeless ppl
2. The 90's was a long time ago. The development since then is very different to what they have now.
Isn't it the same all over the world to walk around without worrying about homeless people? It is the same in your country.
With all of the old vacant homes being empty why are they homeless?
"finally take action "? that's so sad...taking away their homes.
@@user-gx9xf2zb6o However the size of the homeless village outside one of the busiest stations in Japan is much larger than any I have ever seen in other developed countries including train stations in New York, London, Paris, Rome etc. I’d expect Japanese people, having much neater streets compared to other countries, would want to do something about it. But that didn’t seem to happen.
Japanese homeless dont tend to beg for money or disturb or inconvenience others. They seem to have a high sence of honor and pride in being good people and keep to themselves for the most part at least in the countryside. Almost like they dont want to be bothered themselves but in my experience, I greet them like I would anyone else because they are humans too and they appreciate it. Many times they are treated like living ghosts passing by.
That is so sad, I thought Ireland was bad but we had a famine where nearly everyone was effected so the populous have some heart when it comes to this 💚
The sad part is almost everyone thinks homeless people got that way from the way they want to live, and completely forget that they are 3 pays away from being homeless themselves. Many of those people couldn't really care less what happens to the homeless, and that's why it's the problem it is. They think it can't happen to THEM, but guaranteed, it can. One layoff, one house fire, one car accident, one landlord being unreasonable, yep it sure can.
You have a point, it is important to acknowledge there is a fine distinction between personal responsibility and a negative feedback loop of events beyond the control of the person in question.
Yes, there are people who get caught in that loop and lose everything... there are also people who live in an irresponsible way when they could have saved money.
I only have about 8 months of cushion to my name. I worry that I have no way to save for retirement at 27, and don't trust the economy, and yet, I still struggle with the self control not to eat out, but my choices are still *mine*.
I would just grind harder, personally.
@@JudiciaryProductions good thinking in theory, as well as in practice, but it doesn't always work as fast or as well as everyone expects.
Oh, B.S. Responsible people take three jobs BEFORE they get in that position. And have a "rainy day fund" -- which in the Ramsey Plan is six months of living expenses and NO DEBTS. Yeah, if you live irresponsibly, you can expect bad things to happen to you. Work, HARDER than you ever imagined -- like I did, seven days a week -- and then live within your means and save. It's not that hard, really, to be a grown up.
@@davidb2206 sometimes it goes beyond finances. Use your head! You can have 10 jobs and your house still burns down, or get hit by a car and not be able to work any of them cuz you're in the hospital with a busted back. Your bills don't stop because your injured
I lived in Japan in the 1970s, and there were homeless people even back then, mostly living in and around train stations. The numbers had increased when I came back in the 1980s.
No it has went down stop the false bs
@@allentoyokawa9068it went up temporarily due to certain situations such as recession which was a big problem during the 80s and early 2000s. Yes it has gotten better but they’re just saying back then it wasn’t like that.
I was in Japan in September. There were streets in Osaka like Skid Row, it was full of homeless, even people taking a piss outside of convenience stores under zero shelter, just whipping it out.
Interesting video, thank you for shedding light on this topic. You what else i have never heard anyone talk about? How disabled people function in Japan. You NEVER see them, hear about them, etc. Invisible or visible disabilities. I know lots of Americans who want to work in Japan but just physically can't hack the workplace hours and wouldn't be expected to in the US, myself included.
Why do they want to work in Japan?
I was just in Tokyo. There were multiple people living in cardboard boxes at the pedestrian underpass at the Metropolitan Government building in Shinjuku. There were also a few in one other pedestrian tunnel we went through. I do have to say though, no pan handling, no bad odor, they appeared to clean up the area during the day and only camped at night. All the locals completely ignored them. Police never rousted them during the ten days we were there which surprised me as it was at the Metropolitan building.
It was also like that in 2013. At that time, I saw them under tarp. I even saw a man peeing on the wall (I took an early bus to the airport from Shinjuku when a Typhoon was about to hit).
“Stealth camping”?
China & Singapore also almost 0% homeless rate
providing access to shower, food and laundry is at least in part a helping hand. they should have this feature everywhere else. Beyond that, may be these cafes can provide an address for the person which can be used in job applications. in this day and age, when every human is catalogued and put in the data base, via national id number, etc, it is inexcusable to deny people jobs because they dont have a house address...that is so unfair.
Just like the Trumpalos complaining about the low cost "Obama Phones". So they say they want these people to "get a job". You need a phone to get a job. So why were the Obama phones such a crime against society?
I wish it was this easy, but a lot of people don't see homeless people as humans, further denying them basic human needs
@@J3nnyp4nny clean water and soap also a place to stay is need to be payed too. The problem is standard of living cost goes too high. I never see an economic boom to be something good. It is benefit the upper level but harsh on the bottom.
Even if the Internet cafe wanted to help, it would be up to the Japanese Post Office to make the necessary changes. The cafe can’t just invent their own address system unilaterally, because their customer’s mail would never get delivered
@@Muhahahahaz weird, you can register a business address and get deliveries anywhere the post office will reach in the US. Guess it's just a better country
Whatever they're doing, we need it here in CA. I was stationed in Japan in the early 2000s, it was gorgeous for how crowded it is
Nice to see footages from Boiling Point (one of my favorite Japanese deadpan comedy by Beat Takeshi) in this vid.
I lived in Japan for 40 years. Homeless people in Japan are not violent and do not do drugs. They do not even ask passersby for money. Some of them collect recycled goods and turn them into money, but many live on the little money and coupons they receive from the government.
I live in Japan and often get asked for money by homeless people. “You give me money.” is one phrase I remember quite clearly.
@@christiangold887 Sure? That homeless might want to study English.
@@m554 Maan would love to work in japan, I heard they in dire need of labor work also for the incoming event The Osaka-Kansai Expo 2025
@hwolfART living in Japan is kinda hard because of all the rules and stuff. But you’ll probably be fine.
@@kittykinykiny8358 have u been to japan? what u think i heard kansai especially Osaka is friendlier than most areas
I never tried drugs and still became homeless. I have scoliosis, herniated discs, sciatica, tendinosis, overactive bladder, and possibly IBS. I'm medically limited to desk work and struggle to get interviewed despite having a BA and MA.
Medical discrimination 😢
Sry to hear that
Well if the government weent spending all the money on hand out and medical care. To junkie lazy criminals. People like yourself could get the help you deserve!
Hang in there Scott and good for you getting your degree. Don’t ever give up on yourself or your dreams. 🙏
you don't deserve such a bad treatment, you are beautifull and wondrous consciousness having a human experience. The industrial economy and many western and eastern countries have very bad attitude. You are considered a slave to serve the system while you are born with beautifull sensitive creative being🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰
Very Interesting 🤔
What is the name of the piano track that was playing in the background?
I was fortunate enough to take a tour of Japan through my high school a little over 10 years ago. We saw a park where several homeless people were gathered. Our tour guide pointed them out and said something along the lines of that it was very troubling because it was easy to freeze to death. She said that it was very difficult to help them because they are sick. She seemed pretty compassionate toward them, and she was very nice in general.
Knowing quite a good number of japanese people and having lived there, I can tell you that most probably her words were carefully tuned for your ears...
Japan has too many deities that they worship and bow down to; it's very sad in Asian world, God's of this deity for that. When God the Father the true and one and only God HIS whole commandment is fulfilled with love your neighbor as I have loved you🙌🤲. That is the best news ever. ❤
@@nancymundy_77777 nah
@@nancymundy_77777 fairy tales for little kids.
I'm Japanese and have to agree with the people saying she was "walking on eggshells," so to speak. Just judging by what you've told me, it sounds more like she was making a point out of how much of a nuisance or eye sore they are, but in a very roundabout "polite" way.
She's a tour guide, though. I don't necessarily blame her. The fact she acknowledged their existence at all is nice.
I lived in Japan for 4 years when I was in the Navy. Not only is homelessness a stigma for them but they hate foreigners. One time when I was going back to base after a night out with my friends, I saw a homeless man holding out his hand and in his hand was a cup. I looked inside my pocket and found some change 500Y and some other coins. I walked by him and dropped the coins into his cup. The homeless man looked at me and realized a foreigner had taken pity on him, he yelled "Gaijin!!!!" he tossed all the coins in his cup at me and spat on the ground. I shrugged. At the end of the day he is going to be homeless and proud of his xenophobic heritage while I sleep on a warm comfortable bed. Life is funny like that.
You made this wild generalisation based on an ancedote ?
@@Bryan-eq6nt So many other stories with similar anecdotes begin to suggest a trend? But there are xenophobes everywhere in every culture, of course.
Homeless guy was probably mentally ill. Why was he there otherwise?
@@Bryan-eq6nt As a Vietnamese, I will speak for many other Southeast Asian friends as well because this is something we all agree upon. Japanese, and Korean as well, are fucking xenophobic even when they stay in our country. OP's story might sound harsh but it's truthful. I do aware there are good Japanese folks, some of them even migrate out of their country to escape their bullshit culture. But those open-minded Japanese are only a few and most of the Japanese I encounter just have this fake persona of being nice while talking shit behind people's back.
I wonder if the Japanese are more hateful towards foreigners than South Koreans?
Los Angeles, CA they ride the metro trains until they get thrown off at the last stop at 4AM. Some ride busses all night. There's bathrooms on trains and they can sleep sitting up. They have to wait from 4AM to 5:30 to get back on the trains.
I spent about 2 weeks in Japan recently, in Tokyo, Osaka and Kyoto. I only saw maybe 3 people that seemed homeless the whole time. All in the same area near Shibuya in Tokyo. Living in a cyber cafe is something completely different than living in the streets which is what people think when they say homeless.
Fascinating. I live in Tokyo but I never knew that. I did notice that there are far less homeless on the streets than 10 years ago. I also noticed how the newer net cafes have completely enclosed rooms with a lock. I thought it was overkill for a few hours of renting internet but I also thought it must be nice for people who lived off of net cafes. seeing this video everything makes sense now.
That is because there is not a homeless problem, this is just propaganda
Going against the grain here, but I think the cyber cafes are a good idea. Surely better than sleeping rough - & not that expensive. Here in UK, a room for the night in even the cheapest hotel is over £100, which I think is outrageous.
Not the most ideal but if you can have privacy, shower, eat and sleep, it’s definitely better than nothing.
I think the point is, private companies make money off of this. The government ignores the root of the problems. While in the short run, it is an end to a means but it’s a bandaid to the real problem.
The U.S. employs a lot of these same tactics. I work in a public library. From my work with the public, I am well aware that the typical person who is experiencing homelessness likely has temporary or part-time employment, appears neat and tidy, and does not fit the stereotype that most folks have in their minds. People often pay for temporary shelter in motels, sleep in their cars in places like Walmart parking lots, take RVs to campsites with monthly rental rates, "couch surf," etc. Some people even try to stay in storage units. Some shelters do charge residents a fee. Other shelters have strict rules regarding drugs, alcohol, work requirements, and time limits for how long a person can stay. Inhospitable design is very much a feature of many American cities. In my hometown, the city removed the tables and benches from the public park nearest my workplace because the customers of a nearby business complained about the type of people who gathered there. The city also added useless metal grommets to a bench-height retaining wall that surrounds the garden. The purpose? To make it too uncomfortable to lay down, of course. We have our fair share of folks who are noticeably, obviously experiencing homelessness, but there are many that you don't see.
Human capacity to produce suffering and intolerance of every kind remains appalling as ever.
In Akihabara under the bridge I always saw alot of cardboard boxes with homeless people sleeping in it
"Out of sight, out of mind" seems to be a really common principle in Japan, and this video does a great job of explaining why that is. There's such a huge emphasis throughout several Asian countries on reputation -- and while there are some good things that come of such social pressures, a lot of suffering/problems can also just be pushed into the shadows. A problem like this "working homeless" issue could likely be fixed if the government would at least admit it existed.
I see some parallels in the US criminalization of homelessness though -- we just throw people in jail in a similar way to "hide" them. And the underlying issues (addiction, poverty, etc.) remain unsolved. But it's not about emphasis on reputation here, it's about American ideals of "pull yourself up by your bootstraps" and a distaste for social programs that get unfairly called "handouts."
Yep. Until not too long ago i didn't even know or doubt how utterly insane their society is before i finally collected enough of their ideology of hierarchy, history and their 'bushido' code and some other historical reality, social norms and etc and it finally clicked why 'on paper' its the most peaceful place in the world but in reality the birth rate is dead and most of them are so depressed and miserable, overworked and overall unhappy... And how a lot of the crime and other stats may as well be bullshit. Basically, statistics require numbers, and numbers require official recognition. But hey if to OFFICIALLY recognize rape and harassment you have to go through hell and most prefer not to... There's no rape and harassment! If OFFICIALLY someone in a net cafe is not homeless, there's no homelessness! If OFFICIALLY there's no domestic abuse, no theft, no other horrors, then OFFICIALLY its the best place in the world! Who cares if everyone's depressed and its so bad people are dying from overwork and no one's having babies so the population's dying out, right~?
Though i disagree with the social program stuff and its parallels for the US and the rest of the world. Japan's pretty much #1 for social programs... And all this crap still exists, heck, sexual assault and harassment wise it might be one of the worst in the world! People do the best when they're free. They're not free at all in Japan, weighted down both by gov social crap, and their insane societal and hierarchy laws. In the US they're bound far less by social stuff, but still very much ruined by government programs and handouts. Before the government got involved in healthcare, even a homeless man could afford medicine, either privately or in a 'friendly society'. Without the government's involvement in home ownership and standards, the homeless could get small proper or half proper homes built via charity or by themselves if given small plots of land. Without government's involvement in minimal wage and work requirements, the homeless could have possibly shitty, but multiple sources of income to get themselves sorted out!
@NX3 it’s not that much different or better/worse than other countries. In Egypt they can arrest you for just walking and kidnap you, accusing you of being a spy or terrorist. USA is the rich and funding the rich; going in an ambulance cost thousands of dollars and put you into depth. The sundown cities that hang and beat black people.
Then you have Indonesia with that one guy who exhorted billions of dollars and ran off. The list goes on. Countries are what you make of them. Even how trashy the USA is, people enjoy it here and make the most out of it.
Hand outs aren't just for people in the US. Handouts go to corporations and even farmers.
Utter human misery total heartless culture that’s collectivism for you, they need the good Samaritan story from Jesus parable he was always about helping the poor and needy
@@Rhaspun Yes, in the US corporate profits are privatized and losses are socialized, and then the very same wealthy people benefiting from this system scream about the poor getting financial assistance. It's utterly loathsome.
Those net cafe refugees may be leading a life much better than those who actually have to sleep in the rough, but the lack of a permanent address is a real obstacle for them in their quest for a permanent job. A permanent address may not be necessary for part time job or gig work, but a permanent job in an established company definitely needs one. The lack of such essentially means that they face a lot of challenges to move out from their current dire strait situation.
That is very interesting, for many years I gave a different address than my real for employers to maintain privacy and I assumed that if they ever noticed it, I'd just say I moved recently.
I was never noticed and at most, I just gave the street or district and that didn't stop me from getting the offer. I was never homeless, just didn't like for them to know where I lived.
@@fofopads4450 Done this many times through absent mindedness, I show up I work, I get paid. You don't need to know where I lay my head at night.
Just rent a mailbox
@@larryc1616 That's what I was thinking
@@larryc1616 UPS.
What was that music in the last few minutes? It sounded very contemplative and a bit sorrowful.
I was not ready for thatttttttt.....
Bloody brilliant that you've brought awareness to this systematic and sad issue.
"A problem kept out of sight is a problem easily ignored" that accounts for SO many problems with the World right now, my goodness! How easily industry and governments keep things hidden from the public.
"Out of sight, out of mind"
@@3nertia Indeed. Industries and governments lying their arses off to the public, who they're suppose to be caring about. People are worth more than that shit.
Which reminds me of a modern wisdom:
We vote with OUR POCKET, and our online clicks.
Stop paying for greed and destruction, and be the change by buying thcally even if it hurts or it s hollow.
@@deejannemeiurffnicht1791 Yep. "Vote with your wallet" I heard, but tomato tomato - that doesn't work quite as well in text 😅😝
@@Johny40Se7en Not if you only SAY it, not DO it.
I was in Tokyo and took to jogging in the local park and there was this hidden section behind some trees. It was a mini homeless city. You can't see it from outside.
Salute to your bravery for showing us the dark reality behind the government claims of Japan .
You should do Singapore. Apparently, the homeless simply "disappear" there. Nobody seems to know what happens to them, or at least they're not telling.
The Act currently makes it illegal to sleep rough in Singapore, and people found doing so can be institutionalized into one of the temporary welfare homes. It may also be why so many do not come forward to seek help for fear of punitive consequences.26 Jun 2019
According to the Destitute Persons Act, begging is illegal in Singapore and repeated offenders can be fined up to $3,000 or jailed up to two years.19 Jul 2018
@@jck2216I have heard that the homeless simply disappear in Singapore, never to be heard from, ever again.
@@jelsner5077 Maybe they were "volunteered" into their organ donor program...
In Singapore they don’t play around.
@@sharonisenberg290 Don't spread lies.
I don't know, speaking as someone who was a homeless street musician in America for a year, I would have been grateful for something like this. It sure would have beat sleeping outside.
As someone who was homeless for 10 years that cafe would have been the best thing ever.
Every American city used to have something just like that back in the old days. Its called a "Lodging House", just the same thing except no computers. Over time they were seen as a corrupting influence on neighborhoods, so early 20th century campaigns were waged to "eliminate substandard housing" ie: affordable housing.
They were gradually done away with over a long period of time. Hostels and "Capsule Hotels" are kind of a sneaky way they've partially brought this stuff back.
When he said those little cubicles weren't that cheap $17-$28 a night I had to say something, that is dirt cheap compared to America. I pay nearly $2000 - before utilities - a month for a 2 bedroom apartment, which is actually considered "affordable" lodgings where I am.
@@killazilla44 It would still be around $850 a month with none of the benefits an apartment would get you like a private bathroom, storage space, kitchen, etc. That might be more affordable then places like New York or LA but you can afford a mortgage in most places in the US for that much money. My mortgage is less then $400 a month. Even with that though, The biggest hurdle there is for homelessness is the price to start renting an apartment or home. Even with my mortgage being low it still cost me $5000 up front as no place will let you buy a house with $0 down and its the same for apartments as they always want a huge security deposit or multiple months rent up front and most people just can't get that amount of money without a place to live first. The "Lodging House" that @RaptorFromWeegee mentioned would be a step to a better solution but most places in the US have restrictions that prevent them, or people that vote against them and even if they could built them, the owners would be way to greedy to make them affordable enough for people using them to still save money, same as the expensive Cyber cafes. Minimum wage in the US is still $7.25 so even with two full time jobs that is only around $2400 a month. Which leaves very little room if any at all to save money after rent, food, phone, insurance, and other bills.
@@stevecole90099 wow... living in the usa really by like "your parents put $5000 down and pay $400 a month in mortgage in 1970". Now its 2023, you are an adult now, now you have to pay atleast quadruple that per month to even qualify for a basic entry level apartment, forget home ownership.
On July 1 2003 I was coming up the escalator from the Subway at Hakata Station in Fukuoka at midnight. All over the floor inside the station were homeless people sleeping on sheets of cardboard. I wonder if that’s still happening. I went there a few times after that but never again at midnight.
Anybody else had off grid power ad in this video?
Thank you for this well-put-together video. I lived in Osaka for many years and saw the homeless population in the central city grow, be moved, coalesce in a new area. The cyber-cafes phenomenon is very real, and there's also "Triangle Park" near Shin-Imamiya station, a kind of semi-lawless zone where homeless, or barely housed, people are the norm. I lived nearby for a year.
You've hit the nail on the head here, and the clips of "Tampopo" to illustrate 1980s Japan were a lovely touch!
and o how you avoided these 'sub-humans ' eh? Even YOUR defense is offensive. THESE ARE HUMAN BEINGS HERE!
As a westerner who's worked with American homeless this seems better. Cyber cafe dont have the stigma and they are still maintaining good appearances which could be a sign of mental health and still working (hasnt lost all hope) is pretty amazing.
I was wondering if it was a better alternative too. If it’s not too troublesome, I’m kind of curious though 🤔 do you think something like this could actually work in America? In theory the cafe still needs enough people using it to keep it in operation, and perhaps normal customers help if not enough homeless could utilize it for whatever reason. But... well, to wear my ignorance on my sleeve, I’m wondering if in your experience a lot of homeless have inadequate work as opposed to no work?
There is sometimes a stereotype, particularly with some states over others, that those who become homeless due to things like addiction or such, might not actually be good about holding jobs, or not caring to be responsible in that way. I haven’t had the opportunity to really hear broadly about if this is true or not. On the other side I hear a lot of conversation of how hard homeless people work and it’s still not enough.
I’m really not sure which is the more accurate picture, and this concept works in Japan because they are generally so driven and apparently (if stats can be believed) not in a place of addiction.
So I wonder, is there enough homeless people in America who have enough work to sustain their living situation this way to make it work?
And also it makes me wonder if many homeless people would have kids with them at first... would something like this be able to help them keep them in their life more or....
well, sorry, one thing at a time. I’m just really interested in this as an idea to help out and wonder what aspects might prevent it coming to America. It sounds so helpful.... I’m not in a place to act on the idea but I don’t know...
I think the biggest factor here is drugs and alcohol use.
It's good you included the words, "could be..."
@@teresitaperegrina3741 Wrong. Japanese drugs and alcohol abuse isn't the biggest factor for homelessness. It's the work culture and societal pressures that do it. It's not like other countries (i.e. America where one can easily point to drugs as the problem and call it day). There's so much to do with homelessness in Japan and drugs and alcohol abuse is so far from it. Start with economic hardships, market stagnation and ridiculous social stigmas...then you'll start finding the biggest factors.
@@ObsessedwithZelda2No. In US cities those cyber cafes would be paying 30k/month rent for the storefront and could never get by renting spaces to working homeless unless subsidized. But if subsidized they'd be subject to regulations which would 10X costs and make them close to useless. Then there's the problem of drug addicts, mentally ill, and criminals, who would take the cafes over with tacit support from city administrations.
The Matrix parable. Souls are surviving and have shelter, but they are dependent on the system, and if they are "exposed", the system cuts them off.
Can't they just "hack" through and see there is no spoon
Retsuko highlights this pretty well. How people become homeless, living in a cyber cafe, and doing small time work. And how they become invisible even to their own family.
When I grew up we had almost no homeless people in Sweden, because the state supported everyone who needed it, except a few who resisted it. Then things changed and unfortunately we have many homeless people now and it's very cold in the winter.
Lol there are no homeless people in Sweden because in winter they freeze to death and die. Don't fall for the propaganda that they get a free house and live happily ever after.
You’ve let millions of 3rd world, incompatible people desecrate and destroy your beautiful country, and you still feel bad for them?
Sweden, you were the chosen one.
This is not about you.
@@Liusila yeah, until the migration came
I studied in Japan a few years ago, for context I was coming from Seattle where we have a MASSIVE homeless problem and I remember going to give a homeless man who I saw a few dollars and I got so many dirty looks from passerbys. Probably one of the only times I felt like I’d actively done something against that culture and it definitely stood out.
Sponsoring homelessness does not solve homelessness. This is what US populist politicians refuse to understand.
Forget the dirty looks. I hope you gave the money anyway. Sounds like you were the only one with a heart of compassion.
It's not shameful to help the homeless, but shameful to not help.
@Scott … is this bait? Why are you trying to associate Christianity with calling homeless people bums and saying to never give them money…????? Most people who end up homeless are not in that situation because of drugs or substance abuse. That comes *after* they’ve already been wrecked by the trauma that comes with having to live on the street. It’s nice that you’re donating and volunteering at soup kitchens (if you’re actually doing that and not just suggesting it) but please try to have some more compassion. Don’t just assume the worst of others because they’re not in as good a position as you, *especially* as a Christian.
Fake news...Japanese dwellers are not beggars..
I stayed at an internet cafe in Japan when I visited, it was epic!
This really makes me think of Shikabane from Aggretsuko
It's been about twenty years since I have been to Japan. However, I saw a lot of homeless people camping out on subway platforms and inside city parks. Unlike in the US, they were generally much more circumspect. For instance, at the park, they would camp out inside the bushes rather than on the benches.
Great video dude, I've only seen one other video on youtube address this topic, iirc it was vice or something like that. Addressing a topic that isn't often covered. SE Asia in general is a nightmare in terms of work culture.
Great documentary. Thanks for this important study. Carrying for people who fall out of the main economy is an ever-increasing global problem.
So that proves that homelessness and poverty is an inevitable thing that any society faces, even Japan, especially Japan
I am originally from Helsinki, but I have lived in Southern California most of my life. In Helsinki today, I understand that homeless people are given homes, nothing fancy, but safe, they can go to work. Here in Los Angeles if you leave your encampment, your stuff may well be gone when you return, you are stuck, it is tough to get a job under those conditions.
America unemployment rate increases and homeless keeps climbing …. 😢
Homeless in l. A. Primarily mentally ill and substance sbuse. Ones I know turn down help. It is sad.
What if the people in Helsinki don't want to work but would rather sit around drinking and doing drugs all day? They still get a free place to stay and do drugs?
@@TheCoon1975 If you have a stable living situation without worrying about access to necessities, you're much less likely to abuse drugs. Plus I'd imagine they also provide rehab
@@adamjarrett5490 Ok but what about the ones that don't want rehab and just want to continue doing drugs?
They covered the cyber cafe homelessness in the latest season of Aggretsuko. While it wouldn't completely fix the issue, I feel like pod hotels and more efficiency apartments would help in the US.
Temp/part time work is a bit of a problem in the US too. The big gap isn't just wages but benefits vs no benefits.
Issue is many Americans would accept the tiny area to sleep.
@@IL_Bgentyl Tiny homes are trending now, but I think it depends what your options are whether it's appealing.
I do agree in general Americans like their space. But having a safe place to sleep is a big deal.
American culture is too different. It won't work. Our homeless people have mental issues and drug problems. Also, we live in a society where we expect a lot with very little effort.
@Victor Salas those are just excuses. Millions of drug addicts work and contribute to society. The problem is the us coddles bums.
@@PoisedSkydiver We had an uptick in people homeless for other reasons because of the pandemic. Housing costs have shot way up in my area. You used to be able to get a small apartment with a full time minimum wage job. Now you'd have to make $18+ an hour to qualify for the cheapest apartments in the county.
I'm lucky to be able to live with my parents still.
Mostly I think my area needs more efficiency apartments (and regulations to curb people sitting on empty house/apartments). The pods idea is more an alternative to shelters where you may have a group sharing the same room than a long term housing solution in my mind.
Actually saw a homeless person on a river bridge in Tokyo (Saw far more homeless in LA tent cities last year).
Welfare in Australia is such that no one has to be homeless, yet there are people who actually prefer sleeping in a cardboard tent.
I wonder if they have what we call "Tafeln" in Germany? These are places run by volunteers where food is dispensed for people in need, generally provided by supermarkets etc. that hand over expiring products. It helps a lot of people who are not necessarily homeless, but generally in serious problems.
I'm sure they do but in the video, it is stated that Japan has a very hostile attitude towards homeless people so help is probably limited.
At least Japan doesn't have a deep rooted drug problem like LA or SF. It's so much easier to "solve" the problem than in the US.
very right. we have a lot of poor in india. except for the very abject poor, most of the poor are working hard and living responsibly, even if they are living in shanties on the road.....there are alcoholics here and there, but the drug problem is still under control...if that blows up then india will actually and really go down the drain
It’s also easier to solve the problem if you don’t have millions of migrants taking the jobs of the poor and the young.
US a drug problem is mental illness, untreated
I live in Nara, I love it here because the winter and summers do a excellent job at cleansing the region of homeless.
Very informative video. Its far better for someone to spend the night in a cyber cafe then sleeping on the street.
Wow that's deep... This video is extremely interesting.Thank You ! ! Coming from the guy who was homeless in L.A. But then I got a commercial driver's license, and it changed my life.
Spent some time in Japan. Been to Tokyo, Yokohama, Kyoto and everywhere in-between. I like to do a lot of walking and exploring and I can tell you there is homelessness. It's just not upfront and visible like other countries. Actually, they tend to be pretty considerate, and from my perspective seem to not want to be a nuisance.
.... Ain't Nuthin Pretty Bout Drinkin Out The Bottle On A Rainy Day Wit No Food And Money In The Baccstreets In Osaka
Could it be because there isn't a rampant drug addiction problem like there is in the U.S. and Canada?
@pippishortstocking7913 I blame the ppl in this comment section giving them money for drugs and calling it "compassion"
plus they ware suits and nice clothings....impressive.
@@pippishortstocking7913 the attitude that 'its just the drugs' is one of the largest things holding places like the US back from actually solving homelessness. Because if you think its because of the drugs, you will give people ways to get clean.
But because it ain't the drugs, they sure get clean, but they stay just as homeless.
It's a bit odd to me with the price of the cyber cafes that you wouldn't see more hostels to take that place. Using bunk beds you could easily enough fit 3 guys to one bedroom. 6 guys in a two bedroom home is a bit of a tight squeeze, but still should be a step up from a cyber cafe, and a bit cheaper too. I suppose that would be difficult for the quazi-homeless guys to organize themselves, and maybe it's a bit too risky for the landlords. But if you did it on a large enough scale, especially with proper insurance, the risks from each individual property would be less relevant.
It honestly seems like there's room for a real win-win here, if someone could hit the formula right.
So basically Japan has many temporary housing options where ppl could stay and be safe and somewhat clean and presentable for a relatively cheap price. It seems like a much better option than the US, where homeless usually means you either have to stay at filthy, drug ridden, dangerous shelters or completely become reliant on government assistance
"Homeless" people in the US who panhandle and beg for money are believed to make more than working Americans. They can support $100+ a day heroin habits. They don't WANT to work..It's easier to rely on the naive generousity of passers-by. Just look at the huge number of homeless encampments all over.