I studied Japanese in Tokyo last summer and lived with Japanese housemates. All in all, I was there for three months and learning a lot during that time. Even though I got into my own rhythm, there were times where I wished I used my ‘gaijin’ card more to speak up about things that didn’t feel right.
Being an Asian American that could pass as Japanese, I felt the pressure to get the culture down. I was being spoken Japanese in public and wanted to play the part. I felt like I was as I learned the language and etiquette.
However, there were uncomfortable experiences I witnessed and experienced myself with an older male Japanese housemate. I took action but in ways that were non confrontational. I just felt like it would’ve went down differently in the US.
My expectation is that this won’t be most of people’s experiences joining JET (most people would steer clear of this sharehouse). But I do feel like there will be gray areas where we’ll have to speak up on things. My experience felt like a 'gray area' because no one was saying anything about this housemate.
So I wanted to ask: what was your experience speaking up or voicing your concerns while you were with the JET program? It doesn’t have to be regarding situations like this. Even saying ’no’ when you were asked to work extra, for instance.
Edit: everyone's responses have been super helpful, ありがとうございました。
by VividValentine