Comments on: Address: “Cardboard Box 7, Nishinari Park”

By: AsiaPundit » Blog Archive » links for 2007-01-25

AsiaPundit » Blog Archive » links for 2007-01-25 — Thu, 25 Jan 2007 04:31:12 +0000

[...] JAPAN - Address: “Cardboard Box 7, Nishinari Park” “I’ve dealt with one court case involving a homeless man in Tokyo, and he kept the registered address of his family outside the city (despite the fact that his family had disowned him). Is that much better? What alternative does a homeless person in Japan have?” [...]

By: Mutantfrog

Mutantfrog — Thu, 25 Jan 2007 02:22:20 +0000

There are certainly homeless advocates in Japan. I know people who have been active in building awareness of/protesting against the Nagai Park eviction, and the homeless are naturally being represented by pro bono attorneys who are supported by activists.

By: Adamu

Adamu — Thu, 25 Jan 2007 02:01:50 +0000

OK, this is what I must have seen: A Tokyo dancer has put together a stage production involving 6 area homeless men. After practicing in schools and public gymnasiums for 6 months, the group will perform in public for the first time at a hall in Shinjuku Jan 23.

By: Joe

Joe — Thu, 25 Jan 2007 01:38:20 +0000

Also, I don’t know whether homeless advocates exist in Japan.

There’s actually a lot of pro-homeless judicial precedent in the US. American judges tend to recognize that homeless people don’t have many options when it comes to sleeping, cleaning up and taking a dump, and they have been quick to overrule city ordinances which unreasonably infringe on those activities. This is ntaurally due to some plucky attorneys who decided to challenge the law.

Of course, courts in Japan don’t have nearly as much power to mess with the government, so the pressure would have to be on the legislative side, which I imagine would be much less responsive.

By: Adamu

Adamu — Thu, 25 Jan 2007 01:30:02 +0000

Perhaps the Wire isn’t well-known in Japan, but one very relevant classic bit of American TV is: Sesame Street. And even then the authorities don’t seem to have taken one of its core lessons to heart, namely that some people do live in trash cans. Not only that, but the trashcan dwellers (or “grouches” if you will) are friends to the children. Homeless activists have realized this and recently have brought homeless men into the classroom. Why are the authorities so hard-hearted?

By: M-Bone

M-Bone — Thu, 25 Jan 2007 00:39:23 +0000

I think that US authorities should watch “The Wire” first….

Do you know if it is out in Japan? A masterwork like that deserves as much play as it can get.

Watching the third season of “The Wire” (about allowing a certain amount of illegal activity in one area and fostering cooperation between police and criminals to keep violence down) reminded me of the situation with Japan’s homeless but more clearly of the Yakuza (during the majority of the postwar period).

By: Adamu

Adamu — Wed, 24 Jan 2007 08:42:48 +0000

The homeless can’t seem to catch a break in Japan these days, particularly in Osaka. Maybe if the authorities saw The Wire they’d figure out that the two sides can have a mutually beneficial relationship if they can just find some equilibrium where the authorities can look tough on vagrancy while not actually making a dent in the homeless people’s lives. Or is that exactly what they’ve had up till now?