Comments by "Gordon Graham" (@gordonbgraham) on "What's it like being Half Japanese Raised Outside Japan?" video.

@carmelofalco4475 I have 5 kids all mixed race and with dual nationality. I don't treat them as "mixed". I haven't set up an "us vs them" dichotomy in their perspectives. The challenge is to avoid such a thing. They're Kenji, Mei, Kanna, Yu and Mia...individuals, each with his or her own unique personality. They don't consider themselves as "mixed". They're Japanese with a Canadian father. That's how they see themselves. That's how their friends and classmates see them. Strangers may see them as "gaijin", but they aren't concerned with that in the least, because it's natural for those who don't know them to assume they're foreigners. Ironically it is more often than not that foreigners insist on their bi-racial characteristic as being some kind of noteworthy aspect of their being when they themselves rarely if ever consider it on their own.
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@carmelofalco4475 I live in Japan, which is one of the most homogeneous nations on the planet.
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@christopherarnott The issue I have with the 'Hafu: The Mixed-Race Experience in Japan'. is it's too myopic in presenting only those who feel a sense of alienation vis a vis identity, while not presenting those who feel fully at ease in their identity and at home in Japan being mixed race/nationality.
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@carmelofalco4475 Mixed race/bi-national people are not unique. That said, everyone's life is a unique experience.
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@carmelofalco4475 I'm sorry you had difficulties here. We've had none whatsoever. We live in Chichibu, a small town surrounded by countryside. Moving to Japan from Canada was the best decision I've ever made. I'm glad to hear you and your family are living happily in Italy. La Dolce Vita! Cheers!
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@Skylar Avery I have 5 kids all born in Japan, all are bi-racial/national Japanese. None has an identity complex, largely due to the fact they were raised as individuals not 2 dimensional characters without individuality. That strangers consider them foreigners is of no concern to any of them. Their friends know them as Kenji, Mei, Kanna, Yu and Yuki. They are all Japanese who happen to have a Canadian father. They don't feel foreign. Ironically enough it's more often than not that foreigners insist on their not being Japanese than Japanese do.
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We have 5 kids, all either in or have gone through the public school system in Japan. We just raise them as Japanese kids as that's who they are. I've made a conscious decision not to set up an us/them dichotomy in their minds. All of them have many friends with whom they have grown up with and only see them as Kenji, Mei etc. Which is how they see themselves.
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We have 5 kids, all either in or have gone through the public school system in Japan. We just raise them as Japanese kids as that's who they are. I've made a conscious decision not to set up an us/them dichotomy in their minds. All of them have many friends with whom they have grown up with and only see them as Kenji, Mei etc. Which is how they see themselves.
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