"A" Gaijin
Darkoa Naito in Red Boubou
Introduction
Before they are told that I am half Japanese, people living in Japan - including foreigners, who come into contact with me, never seem to consider even for a second that I might be half Japanese even though I am the mirror image of my beautiful Japanese mother - except of course my dark complexion and height of 5'9. Even after they are told of my racial mix they still find it hard to believe it because of my physique and complexion - not that I am a giant (there are many 100% Japanese women who are as tall as or taller than me). So what is the problem ? And does it matter at all ?
Me
With a few exceptions, most of the people I came into contact with outside Japan - including some Japanese, were able to tell by just looking at my face that I had Oriental blood, with many thinking I was a Polynesian and not mixed - because of my strong Oriental features. I have had Japanese people point me out to each other that I looked very Japanese - outside Japan. I even had a Japanese man, a complete stranger, walk up to me one day in London and insist that I was at least half Japanese. In another very weird event, two men whom I believe were German, on my first day in Germany, argued with each other over whether I was mixed African and Oriental or a Pacific Islander after seeing my face.
On the opposite end, I was once almost refused entry into the United States at Atlanta Airport because the immigration officer attending to me, who was an African American lady, refused to accept that I had Japanese blood. She asked me if I was not black as if to confirm with me that I was and gave me a look that implied that I had illegally acquired my Japanese passport. I replied by asking her if it was impossible to be mixed black and Japanese. There was no verbal reply to that and after 30 minutes and a body and bag search for clues that I was dodgy which only confirmed further my strong links with Japan, I was finally let loose.
In Ghana where I was based the first 20 years of my life, people could tell immediately on seeing me that I had Oriental blood but they also assumed that I was part Ghanaian and would tell me that whilst they appreciated that one of my parents was foreign, I was still a Ghanaian, and, 'one of them' because one of my parents was a Ghanaian, period. I was accepted into the Ghanaian society with no questions asked, and never even once discriminated against negatively on the basis of my not being 'pure'. Strange though, most of the Ghanaians I met 'outside' Ghana were shocked to find out that I had African blood at all. Most of them thought I was a Polynesian or Pacific Islander - because of my strong Oriental features.
Darkoa's Mother's Painting.
How It All Begun
Generally, after they are told of my racial mix, people tend to be very fascinated and suddenly become very curious as to how I came into being in the first place - that is, how my parents met. This curiousity is usually based on two things: firstly, mixed race Japanese people are very rare - at least those of my generation; and secondly, most people if not all, think Japan and Ghana are so far apart that Japanese and Africans could not have interacted with, much less, married each other as far back as 30 years ago. The time factor seems to be the biggest barrier to their accepting my combination. As always and as it happened, my answer has been that my father came to Japan to learn 'Judo' for two years as part of his Ghana Police training and he met my mother, then a successful graphic designer with Matsuya in Ginza, through a Nigerian friend who had been here longer and had many Japanese friends. They fell madly in love with each other, and decided to get married. I am not surprised they did because they were a very beautiful couple. And I believe for the same reason, my mother's parents and other relatives accepted and supported their marriage. My father returned to Ghana after his course, alone, and my mother followed a few months later leaving her family and trendy job and lifestyle in Japan, to settle down with him in Accra. I was born a year later, in 1970, my brother, Yaw, followed a year after, and my kid sister, Sumiko, who turned 18 recently, in 1981 - all in Ghana.
The Good Thing About Being Mixed Race.
The most important thing about being mixed race to me is that, I am a living example of different races/cultures being in harmony with each other. Apart from my physical features which are a combination of African and Oriental, after people get to know me better, they start to see distinctly Ghanaian and Japanese characteristics in me - such as in my composure, the way I talk, how I relate to other people, and my reaction to crises, to mention a few. My very loving and responsible parents brought me up with care and I am proud to say, in doing so, passed on to me the positive attributes of each of their races. Ghanaians, start to see the Ghanaian in me, the Japanese start to see the Japanese in me and, those of other races start to see a combination of Japanese and Ghanaian in me.
I love both my racial backgrounds and I am very glad my parents did what they did - married each other. I have relatives and friends from both races who love me very much and whom I value highly. I am proud of the physical and non-physical aspects of my being and will not have it any other way. My siblings and I were brought up in an environment that was truly international and combined elements of both the Ghanaian and Japanese cultures as well as European, American and other cultures. We had many mixed race friends (mixed Ghanaian and British or American or European or other) and friends of other races. Our parents brought us up with love and taught us to love others irrespective of their race or cultural background; they believed strongly that we could enrich our lives by learning from other cultures and strongly encouraged that. At school, I had mates from all over the world. We studied together and played with each other. We had similar wishes and desires and I saw no reason to discriminate against anyone on the basis racial or cultural difference.
Right from birth, my parents wanted us (my siblings and myself) to be a part of their societies and they taught us about their cultures. My mother, because we were living far from Japan, made sure Japan was a part of our daily lives - we spoke Japanese, listened to and sang Japanese songs, ate Japanese food and read Japanese books. She also made sure the whole family was part of the significant Japanese community in Ghana and we celebrated Japanese matsuri's such as the Tanabata and the Hina Matsuri every year.
Problems
Whilst most people outside Japan see me as Oriental, in Japan, as mentioned earlier, people - both the natives and foreigners, do not seem to notice this and with Japan being a culture where foreigners are generally not trusted, this means that I am at a great disadvantage especially when it comes to finding a good job, decent accommodation and generally where money/finance is concerned - despite having Japanese features, Japanese citizenship, a Japanese surname and Japanese relatives to support me.
Whereas my physical appearance should not be a big issue, it is unfortunately so in Japan (it has never been a problem anywhere else). Whilst personally, what I look like, in terms of race, does not matter - because I believe that there are more important issues - being treated humanely in every situation and not discriminated against negatively because one looks like or is a foreigner, having an interesting and rewarding career, good health and loving and caring people around - in other words, a healthy lifestyle. Appearance can make a lot of difference and can go further than any paper identification/credentials in deciding whether you lead a meaningful life here in Japan. This to me is sheer 'superficialism' or 'shallow mindedness' - whichever you prefer, and downright ridiculous after thinking foreigners have been in Japan for several centuries; even more so when one thinks about the number of Japanese living overseas.
Even though there is a growing number of Japanese people in Japan who appreciate the foreign side of Japan, the vast majority are not so 'gaijin friendly'. I see it as essential that Japanese people in general understand why it is necessary that we mixed Japanese are accepted into their society as we are by the other race we also belong to (for the simple reason that we belong to both races 50:50) and are treated fairly. They need to understand what being mixed race is, why we mixed Japanese exist in the first place (we are each the product of love), and that, it is not essential that one looks 100% or very Japanese.
Whilst I am concerned about how I get on in Japan from now on - settling down, having a satisfying career, good accommodation and lots of Japanese friends - to mention just the basics, being very aware of the problems mixed race Japanese face in Japan, I am also concerned about the welfare of the growing population of mixed race Japanese people especially those living in Japan. I am particularly concerned about the welfare of those whose Japanese parent has abandoned them because of pressure from their 'gaijin averse' relatives (a major problem), especially, the younger generation - toddlers, preteens, etc., who are too young to look after and also to defend themselves when their rights as humans first of all, a offsprings of a native Japanese, and, citizens of Japan, are being violated. If Japan does not accept its mixed race people and give them equal opportunities, what will become of them ?
Aside from the physical and legal side of things, there is also the psychological side - that is, the world is compartmentalized into different racial/cultural groupings, and everyone belongs somewhere, where they feel most comfortable or 'at home'. Individuals feel, because of strong influence from a particular culture, that they belong to the culture concerned. To me and my siblings, home is two places, Ghana and Japan. We were brought up with strong influence from both cultures and feel we ought to be accepted in each of these cultures just as the others that belong there.
Now and the Future
I currently reside in Tokyo, after deciding in the summer of 1998 to spend some time in Japan so as to 'get in touch' with my Japanese roots and also, very importantly, to promote good long-term relations between Japan and Ghana via activities at the local and political levels. I love Ghana and feel every bit as Ghanaian as any other Ghanaian does but I am also Japanese. Even though I have lived 2/3rds of my life in Ghana, I spent almost all of my time outside school with my mother, who brought me up the way she was brought up and taught me her values.
Conclusion
I would like to close by saying that it is not important to me that I belong to a particular race, exclusively. I am mixed, and with it, I have had mixed blessings - something that is not so common, yet natural in racial combinations. I do not feel I belong to, nor am I loyal to, one more than the other. I love Ghana and Japan, their peoples, and cultures - equally, and would like to be accepted by each of these cultures as 'one of theirs'. When I am asked where I come from, I say, 'I am "Ghanaian - Japanese" or "Japanese - Ghanaian", not one or the other as some would prefer it. Both is what I am !
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