{"id":6249,"date":"2010-03-23T07:01:03","date_gmt":"2010-03-22T22:01:03","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.debito.org\/?p=6249"},"modified":"2010-03-23T07:01:03","modified_gmt":"2010-03-22T22:01:03","slug":"franca-sendai-meeting-proceedings-photos-and-project-ideas","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.debito.org\/?p=6249","title":{"rendered":"FRANCA Sendai Meeting Proceedings, Photos and Project Ideas"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.debito.org\/handbook.html\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-thumbnail wp-image-1298\" title=\"HANDBOOKsemifinalcover.jpg\" src=\"https:\/\/www.debito.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/02\/HANDBOOKsemifinalcover.jpg\" alt=\"Handbook for Newcomers, Migrants, and Immigrants to Japan\" width=\"75\" height=\"100\" \/><\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/www.debito.org\/welcomestickers.html\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-thumbnail wp-image-1704\" title=\"welcomesticker\" src=\"https:\/\/www.debito.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/05\/welcomesticker-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"\\\" width=\"75\" height=\"100\" \/><\/a><a href=\"http:\/\/www.francajapan.org\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-thumbnail wp-image-1705\" title=\"franca-color\" src=\"https:\/\/www.debito.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/05\/franca-color-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"Foreign Residents and Naturalized Citizens Association forming NGO\" width=\"75\" height=\"100\" \/><\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/www.debito.org\/tshirts.html\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-thumbnail wp-image-1701\" title=\"joshirtblack2\" src=\"https:\/\/www.debito.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/05\/joshirtblack2-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"\\\" width=\"75\" height=\"100\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.debito.org\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/05\/joshirtblack2-225x300.jpg 225w, https:\/\/www.debito.org\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/05\/joshirtblack2.jpg 240w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 75px) 100vw, 75px\" \/><\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/www.debito.org\/japaneseonly.html#japanese\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-thumbnail wp-image-1700\" title=\"jobookcover\" src=\"https:\/\/www.debito.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/05\/jobookcover-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"\u300c\u30b8\u30e3\u30d1\u30cb\u30fc\u30ba\u30fb\u30aa\u30f3\u30ea\u30fc\u3000\u5c0f\u6a3d\u5165\u6d74\u62d2\u5426\u554f\u984c\u3068\u4eba\u7a2e\u5dee\u5225\u300d\uff08\u660e\u77f3\u66f8\u5e97\uff09\" width=\"75\" height=\"100\" \/><\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/www.debito.org\/japaneseonly.html#english\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-thumbnail wp-image-1699\" title=\"japaneseonlyecover\" src=\"https:\/\/www.debito.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/05\/japaneseonlyecover-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"JAPANESE ONLY:  The Otaru Hot Springs Case and Racial Discrimination in Japan\" width=\"75\" height=\"100\" \/><\/a><a href=\"http:\/\/www.cinemabstruso.de\/strawberries\/main.html\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-2735\" title=\"sourstrawberriesavatar\" src=\"https:\/\/www.debito.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/03\/sourstrawberriesavatar.jpg\" alt=\"sourstrawberriesavatar\" width=\"75\" height=\"100\" \/><\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/www.debito.org\/?cat=32\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-4921\" title=\"debitopodcastthumb\" src=\"https:\/\/www.debito.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/11\/debitopodcastthumb.jpg\" alt=\"debitopodcastthumb\" width=\"100\" height=\"100\" \/><\/a><br \/>\nUPDATES ON TWITTER:  arudoudebito<br \/>\nDEBITO.ORG PODCASTS now on iTunes, subscribe free<\/p>\n<p>Hi Blog. \u00a0We had a NGO FRANCA (<a href=\"http:\/\/www.francajapan.org\">Foreign Residents and Naturalized Citizens Association<\/a>) meeting last Sunday in Sendai. \u00a0We&#8217;ll be having another one this coming Saturday evening in Tokyo, so if you like what you read below, please consider coming to our meeting and joining our group.<\/p>\n<p>FRANCA Chair Arudou Debito gave a presentation on what FRANCA is and what it&#8217;s doing. \u00a0(You can download that presentation at <a href=\"https:\/\/www.debito.org\/FRANCA.ppt\">https:\/\/www.debito.org\/FRANCA.ppt<\/a>)<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.debito.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/03\/DSC01741.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" title=\"DSC01741\" src=\"https:\/\/www.debito.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/03\/DSC01741-300x225.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"225\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Attendees were<\/strong><br \/>\nFRANCA Sendai Chair Ben Shearon<br \/>\nRiji Ryan Hagglund<br \/>\nGuest and new FRANCA Member Shaun Dyer<br \/>\nand Chair Arudou Debito<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.debito.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/03\/DSC01742.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" title=\"DSC01742\" src=\"https:\/\/www.debito.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/03\/DSC01742-1024x768.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"368\" height=\"277\" \/><\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/www.debito.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/03\/DSC01740.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-medium wp-image-6252\" title=\"DSC01740\" src=\"https:\/\/www.debito.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/03\/DSC01740-300x225.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"225\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.debito.org\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/03\/DSC01740-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.debito.org\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/03\/DSC01740-1024x768.jpg 1024w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>We had a very productive meeting, talking for more than three hours on various aspects of making life better in Japan for NJ and NNJ (Non Native Japanese &#8212; an abbreviation I doubt will catch on). \u00a0We came up with the following ideas for projects:<\/p>\n<p><strong>PROPOSED FRANCA PROJECTS<br \/>\n<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Having all family members of household listed on j\u016bminhy\u014d Residency Certificate regardless of nationality (currently under GOJ revision, proposed changes by July 2012).<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>Having koseki Family Registry forms include NJ under spouse column.<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>Eliminating requirements for j\u014dji keitai, 24\/7 carrying of the \u201cGaijin Card\u201d, must present to authorities within set time period (3 days?).<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>Other letter writing campaigns (e.g. Sumo Association) as issues come up.<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>Stop border fingerprinting for all visa holders, esp. Permanent Residents.<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>Allow dual nationality even after naturalization.<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>Stop street \u201cGaijin Card\u201d checkpoints by police, bring into line with Police Execution of Duties Law for questioning J citizens.<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>Send positive stories of NNJ doing community activities to media (local papers), hope they take the story (we need more positive engagement with J society, not just \u201cwhining\u201d).<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>Allow for flexibility in registration and naming systems to reflect ethnic diversity (spellings, order, middle names for Double children). \u00a0Let us decide our official identity.<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>Include optional question about ethnicity (not just nationality) in National Census.<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>A Law against Racial Discrimination.<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>Survey on rental refusals (us or GOJ?)<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>List of small issues you can say in passing to GOJ bureaucrats, as \u201cpinprick protests\u201d?<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The last item, &#8220;pinprick protests&#8221;, was the most inspiring to me. \u00a0It&#8217;s a list of little ways that we all can just register small protests orally and\/or in writing, on the spot when we encounter an inconvenience or a targeting. \u00a0For example, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.debito.org\/?cat=33\">when you get border fingerprinted<\/a>, say a little something, or hand over a small piece of paper in Japanese, registering your displeasure with the process. \u00a0Or when a bank calls you for ask what your most recent overseas money transfer is for (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.debito.org\/?p=2293\">because the presumption is that NJ bank accounts receiving money from overseas must be doing money laundering<\/a>), say this or that in Japanese. \u00a0Or <a href=\"https:\/\/www.debito.org\/?p=1802\">police racial profiling<\/a>, or <a href=\"https:\/\/www.debito.org\/?p=5716\">Gaijin Card checks by hotels<\/a> or <a href=\"https:\/\/www.debito.org\/?p=1695\">video stores<\/a>, or anything else that systematically treats us as somehow less trustworthy or equal compared with the rest of the Japanese population. \u00a0We can register a little &#8220;I don&#8217;t really like this treatment&#8221; in comfortable Japanese.<\/p>\n<p>Enough of these little &#8220;pinprick&#8221; protests and it becomes mendoukusai for the enforcers to have to deal with us. \u00a0It&#8217;s already showing when you see apologetic border control bureaucrats (yes!), and hotel clerks who check us less and less frequently. \u00a0We should stand up for ourselves more, and encourage others to do so. \u00a0I will create an artery site a la debito.org\/whattodoif.html called debito.org\/pinprickprotests.html, offer downloadable bilingual text, and devote a blog entry to each category, linking them all together over time. \u00a0Contributions welcome.<\/p>\n<p>As for the suggestions for projects above, please come and comment at <a href=\"http:\/\/www.francajapan.org\/index.php\/Main_Page#Upcoming_Meetings\">this coming Saturday&#8217;s Tokyo FRANCA meeting<\/a>, and let&#8217;s get a good lot of ideas circulating.<\/p>\n<p>Thanks for reading! \u00a0Arudou Debito, FRANCA Chair, in Tokyo, speaking to the UN today.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>We had a NGO FRANCA (Foreign Residents and Naturalized Citizens Association) meeting last Sunday in Sendai.  We&#8217;ll be having another one this coming Saturday evening in Tokyo, so if you like what you read below, please consider coming to our meeting and joining our group.  FRANCA Chair Arudou Debito gave a presentation on what FRANCA is and what it&#8217;s doing.  (You can download that presentation at https:\/\/www.debito.org\/FRANCA.ppt).  What follows are some photos and minutes of the meeting.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[28,51,5,12],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6249","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-anti-discrimination-templates","category-franca","category-human-rights","category-immigration-assimilation"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.debito.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6249","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.debito.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.debito.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.debito.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.debito.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=6249"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.debito.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6249\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.debito.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=6249"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.debito.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=6249"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.debito.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=6249"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}