[corresponding author: tarisyamaharani@student.ub.ac.id]
Nihon Shuwa ( 日本手話 ): How the Deaf Fight and Sign Through Barriers in Japan
Tarisya Maharani Ohorella, Ghulam Phasa Pambayung Universitas Brawijaya, Universitas Airlangga
INTRODUCTION
“Deaf people can do anything hearing people can do, except hear” (Yale University Library Online Exhibition 2023).
This saying was delivered by King Jordan, Yale University's first Deaf president in 1988, along with great passion and the fighting spirit against Deaf discrimination. Deafness is defined by WHO as those who “mostly have profound hearing loss, which implies very little or no hearing. They often use sign language for communication.” This hearing difficulty creates several problems for persons with disabilities. In terms of health, people with deaf disabilities have higher rates of obesity, suicide attempts, mental distress, and poorer health literacy (Barnett et al. 2011). Socially, people with deaf disabilities will tend to have difficulties in developing communication skills, and understanding language structures, and are also vulnerable to the phenomenon of audism. Audism is broadly defined in the ideological contexts of individual, institutional, metaphysical, and laissez-faire prejudices (Eckert and Rowley 2013). Audism refers to a phenomenon in which people with hearing disabilities experience oppression because they have difficulty or cannot hear. This oppression is stimulated by a sense of supremacy towards the Deaf, causing audio-centric prejudice and discrimination.
Discrimination caused by this audism mindset is damaging the existence of the Deaf community. When this mindset becomes part of community institutions, especially
ABSTRACT
When talking about inclusive society, one should ponder the point of creating a society that provides equal opportunities regardless of the backgrounds of its members. An identity background one can have is to be hearing-impaired. Promoting inclusive society also means eradicating any hindrance faced by them. A number of countries have tried to do so, with many having failed. In that case, Japan is another case where the government is trying their best to design an inclusive society. Through this paper, the writers will try to elaborate the condition and struggle that is faced by the Deaf of Japan. Using Tan and Ang inclusive society characteristic as a theoretical framework, the writers found that, despite the fact that there has been efforts made by the government of Japan to integrate Deaf people into its society, namely by introducing Japanese Sign Language (JSL) and national Deaf organization, they has not been able to create inclusive society for the deaf. Their struggle is simply not enough to face problems such as the scarcity of Deaf educational institutions, interpreters, and representations. Despite there has been many studies examining the identity and struggles of the Deaf in Japan, the writers consider this writing as a precious contribution to inclusivity studies.
Keywords: Deaf Community, Sign Language, Inclusivity, Japan
institutions that are essential in nature such as education and access to work, then the risks faced by the Deaf community will increase. If equal access is not given to minority communities, then latent problems in society will become time bombs in the future. Society needs to develop from the integration stage into an inclusive society, where an inclusive society will commit to adapting to the individual needs of its members, instead of enforcing societal expectations and demands on its members. In the context of forming a society that is inclusive of people with disabilities, especially the deaf group, this commitment can be started by instilling an anti-bias mindset in society and its institutions. This urgency increases when we also consider the demographics of the Deaf community.
Statistically, over 5% of the world's population suffers from disabling hearing loss (World Health Organization 2021). At a glance, five percent may appear as a small number.
However, when calculated, the overall five percent is over 360 million people in total. In 2016, around 341,000 in Japan had a hearing impairment condition. This number increased by approximately 17 thousand deaf people in Japan in 2011 (NICT, 2016). Of course, the increasing number of people with deaf disabilities in the demographics of Japanese society is something that the government should pay attention to. However, despite the large population of deaf people in Japan, public awareness about the Deaf can and should be increased. Previously, there have been several efforts made by the government and also non- governmental organizations in increasing public awareness of the existence of the Deaf community. The government has ratified The Convention of Rights of Persons with Disabilities and is also a member of the World Federation of the Deaf. But whether the efforts that have been made are effective in improving the welfare of the Deaf community in Japan, requires in-depth analysis and research.
The next question should be, how do the Japanese Deaf community differentiate themselves from people with no hearing difficulty around them? To answer this, we need to examine the Deaf identity in Japan. But first, it is necessary to examine the idea of identity itself. Identity is a wide array of characteristics possessed by an individual that connects them to a group of people with the same traits (Leigh, 2009). Identity stems from one’s interaction with its social environment, and is shaped by the process of socialization (Wendt, 1999). It is one’s consciousness about who they truly are. So it is within the conclusion that how one experiences life since their early ages, heavily influences one’s identity later on. Hence, we can say that the main function of identity is to differentiate between an individual and another, for there are no two individuals with the exact same characteristics and life experiences altogether. That said, being deaf is a unique experience in and on itself, suggesting that “Deaf identity” does indeed exist.
Around the globe, it has become a common Deaf culture to differentiate between the usage of deaf and Deaf. The word “deaf”, refers to the condition of the hearing- impaired, while the counterpart symbolizes the identity of the people having said impairment.
However, it is also unwise to use a one-size-fits-all perspective when looking at deaf people (Leigh 2009), since an identity is constructed by several factors, namely social background, economic condition, political view, religion, culture, gender, and so on (Nakamura, 2000). In other words, identity is a socially constructed conception of oneself. Deaf people raised in an environment that facilitates interactions with other Deaf peers, will likely drown in Deaf
culture (Nikolaraizi & Hadjikakou, 2006). In this case, the Japanese Deaf community has constructed its own identity to identify themselves with. The existence of the Japanese Federation of the Deaf is one of the most influential factors in constructing deaf identity in Japan (Nakamura, 2006). It is unsurprising, then, to acknowledge that the Deaf Identity of Japan is rooted deep insofar as having their own sign language, established national Deaf organization, and, even more impressive, a segmented education for the Deaf (Quay, 2005).
Now that we can see how the Japanese deaf identity is dyed-in-the-wool, we should move our attention to whether their lives as Deaf is a struggle. Turns out, Japanese Deaf identity is only rooted as deep in their own community, not widespread as we have thought before. In an unsupportive environment, their lives can get much harder than it should have been (Nakamura, 2006). This leads to a critical questions regarding deaf people as individuals or as a vulnerable group: what are the struggles they face and has anything been done to eradicate them?
ANALYTICAL FRAMEWORK
To explain better about Deaf community in Japan-their struggles as a part of People with Disabilities (PWD)-and to what extent Japanese society shifts towards inclusivity, this article will further identify two essential characteristics of an inclusive society. Though the concept of inclusiveness itself has a lot of complex and interlocking issues of social life, these two characteristics are the essential building blocks to the construction of an inclusive society (Tan and Ang, 2008). A barrier-free society and empowerment of PWD are aspects that need to be presented in order to create space for PWD to thrive in their life. Then further explanation will be given regarding each characteristic of an inclusive society by Tan and Ang (2008).
A barrier-free society means that those who are able to work are not prevented from doing so by social or physical barriers. And those who are unable to work have a decent quality of life. In this context, PWD should be given the same opportunity as an able-bodied person in the workplace. Support needs to be given to PWD who are not able to work in order to continue to live well. Therefore, effort to obliterate such barriers-both physical and social barriers-should be done. Physical barriers usually stem from the lack of awareness of the needs of PWD and limited resources to help special needs to PWD. Meanwhile, social barriers pose the common misconception that disabled people are objects rather than citizens with equal rights, opportunities, ability to contribute and participate in society: just as other non-disabled persons. These barriers should be identified first with the intention to seek solutions to it (Tan and Ang, 2008).
Alongside the effort to create barrier-free society, empowering PWD to participate and contribute in all aspects of life should bring some light to the issue (Tan and Ang, 2008).
This approach focused on what disabled people can do, how to make them do better, and how they can engage in ‘by the people, for the people’ activities to overcome the barriers. By involving citizens who are part of the Deaf community, solutions for barriers that have been identified previously will be more targeted and provide tangible results. Representation is important for minority groups, because it has to do with how their voices are heard and taken
seriously. This brings us to the second part, which is representation in the policy-making process and in the media. Policies in this refer to government-led initiatives to implement codes, acts, and mandates to ensure equal rights of disabled persons.
With the goal of achieving said barrier-free society, Japan has ratified the United Nations Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities (UNCRPD) in 2014. Doing so, Japan is required to make sure that “disabled people have the same rights as everybody else”. The basic idea of this convention is, not only disabled people should be respected for who they truly are, they also need to be protected from all sorts of discrimination. Moreover, they should also gain equal access to opportunities and social life the way able-bodied people do (OHCHR, 2007). This ratified law can and should become a basic consideration in Japan policy making regarding PwD.
Furthermore, in the constitution of Japan, several actions should be carried out to
“promote independence and participation in society of physically disabled persons”.
According to the law, those actions include but are not limited to: issuing of physically disabled persons' handbooks, counseling services, rehabilitation training and services necessary for participation in society such as sign language interpreters. People with Disabilities Should also have provision of work opportunities, nursing care, and a place for living. From the law itself, we can see that the law is society-oriented, aiming at making Japan society more inclusive towards People with Disabilities, including those who identify themselves as Deaf (Japanese Constitution no. 283, 1949 about Law for the Welfare of Physically Disabled Persons). To explore more about the topic in this article, qualitative case study research method will be used hereinafter. Additionally, to support the academic data in this article, secondary data will be used from academic journals, official websites, official reports, and credible news pages.
RESULT AND DISCUSSION
A. Addressing the Elephant in the Room: Barriers faced by Deaf community in Japan
When discussing the challenges that must be faced by members of the deaf community, the main obstacle that is still the biggest concern is how to communicate.
Within the deaf community, deaf Japanese use Japanese sign language (JSL) or (Nihon Shuwa, 日本手話). JSL is a Japanese Sign Language that has several differences in writing and usage from Japanese in general. As with other sign languages, JSL has an accent that is tailored to its users. JSL is an important part of the life of the Japanese deaf community and has a crucial function in living their social life. However, there is a comparative disparity between the number of people with hearing disabilities, JSL users, and sign interpreters in Japan. Somewhere around 60.000 of the 300.000 deaf or hard hearing people in Japan use JSL. Many others use Taiou Shuwa or Chuukan Shuwa (Kakuta, 2010). Meanwhile, in 2023, there were only 3,932 registered sign language interpreters in Japan who can use Japanese sign language. They are officially certified by the Health, Labor, and Welfare Ministry of Japan (Iida, 2023). So statistically, JSL
language translators only amount to less than 1% compared to deaf people who use sign language.
In the world of work, the number of employments with deaf disabilities is still quite low. The number of employees with hearing and speech disabilities in 2016 is estimated to be 38,000 people aged 20 to 69, or 39.6% of the 97,000 people with hearing and speech disabilities in the same age group. There are 67.7% of the total employment (54.55 million people) in Japan's total population of the same age (80.52 million people), and the employment rate of people with hearing and speech disabilities is low (MUFG, 2019).This shows the obstacle in the selection process and unsupportive work environment for people with hearing disabilities in Japan. Equal and friendly employment opportunities for people with disabilities should be a problem that prioritizes the solution.
This is because a stable economy also guarantees the welfare of people's lives, especially persons with disabilities. Starting from small things such as providing a sign interpreter when requested during the job interview selection process, business owners have increased the potential to hire competent employees for their business. In addition, if sign interpreters start to be employed in work sectors, this will open up wider employment opportunities for sign interpreters. Therefore, policies that encourage business owners to create a disability-friendly work environment and promote inclusivity need to be encouraged by the government.
The position of the sign interpreter for people with hearing disabilities is still very important. Not only access to jobs, but also access to other sectors that are no less important: health. People with hearing disabilities in Japan are struggling to communicate their physical and mental conditions to doctors due to a lack of sign language interpreters regularly stationed at medical institutions (Mainichi Japan, 2019). As there is only a small number of medical workers who can communicate in sign language, Deaf people find it difficult to tell doctors about their conditions properly. They are also facing difficulties to receive detailed explanations from their doctors. Even when writing or asking their family members to act as an interpreter. The reluctance to consult a medical professional could lead to a patient's condition worsening, and medical professionals are asking for the permanent staffing of sign language interpreters at medical institutions. However, the government has done little to assist with that purpose (Mainichi Japan, 2019).
The problems previously described show that sign language education should begin to be given, not only for people with hearing disabilities but for everyone. Using hand signs is the most common method of communication for scuba divers. If there are more and more users of sign language in society, the higher level of inclusiveness for persons with hearing disabilities. Therefore, education regarding the use of sign language is important to be taught in educational institutions. But unfortunately, access to sign language education is not only difficult to obtain for people who can hear, but also for people with deaf disabilities. In this context, sign language education for people with deaf disabilities in Japan. Like many other countries, sign language is not taught in schools (Kakuta, 2010). Meanwhile, schools that teach sign language in Japan only amounted to around 106 schools-nationwide (Deaf Links, 2020). Because of the scarcity in terms of school for the Deaf in Japan, most Deaf took a “U-turn” and went to “normal” school
(Nakamura, 2000). Furthermore, the ban on the use of sign language in classrooms was abolished in 1993-more than 20 years ago. Since the start of the abolition until now, of course, we expect growth in education system in Japanese educational institutions.
Unfortunately, there are still several cases of a prohibition on the use of certain sign languages by teachers in schools (HTB Hokkaido News, 2023). Incidents like this are damaging because they certainly hamper the learning process of children at school.
As of May 2019, 26 prefectures out of 47 in Japan have enacted a sign language law to recognize and promote sign language (Oka, 2022). There are more than 30 types of laws that regulate discrimination against persons with hearing disabilities in Japan, including the Law for the Welfare of Physically Disabled Persons (DINF n.d.). Of course, with this large number of regulations, there is an expectation of a commitment to good policy implementation from the Japanese government. Over the past few years, it's not been without positive developments for the deaf and disabled community in Japan.
Several things happened in the past such as the appointment of the first deaf bus driver in Japan, as a result of lifting work discrimination tires. The anti-discrimination laws under the titles “Act for Eliminating Discrimination Against Persons with Disabilities” and
“Amended Act on Promotion for Disabled Persons' Employment” went into effect in 2016. This allowed deaf drivers to obtain Class 2 licenses for operating passenger vehicles such as taxis and buses (Deaf Niche, 2018).
The Deaflympics which will be held in 2025 is proof that positive developments are resulting from the efforts of the Japanese community. Even though there are still many things to prepare, a big event like this cannot be missed. Apart from that, technology has also been developed to help deaf people with disabilities to use television. AI Mimi, is an innovative pairing between human input and the power of Microsoft Azure Cognitive Service, creating a more accurate and faster solution through the hybrid format (Tanase, 2022). However, this technology has not yet been widely used. While waiting on technological developments, it seems that the journey that the Japanese people have to take to eliminate barriers-especially barriers to sign language-is still very long
B. No Inclusion Without Representation: The Problem of Disability Hiring Quota When it comes to People with Disabilities, the issue of representation has been of great importance, since they are often left demeaned, devalued, and excluded without it (Beresford & Campbell, 1994). With more representation in power, People with Disabilities can advocate their social necessities a lot easier. Furthermore, representation matters for the fact that there are too many audism-biased stereotypes addressed to Deaf people. In this case, representation helps to reduce this form of false stereotyping.
But sadly, in Japan, that’s not the case. Indeed, there are regulations regarding the statutory employment rate of people with disabilities. But the percentage is simply too small, only 2.3% as per the end of 2022. Although the government of Japan planned to raise the number up to 3% by the end of 2026, the track record of the compliance of said law is far from satisfactory. Only 48.3% of companies and governmental institutions
conformed to the policy of disability hiring quota (Mainichi Japan, 2023). It shows that there is a severe lack of representation from People with Disabilities in government.
Another objective of inclusive society is to empower those who have less power than others. In this case, we can argue that empowering Deaf people is a crucial step towards an inclusive society. For a person with disabilities to be able to be empowered, they need to get exposed to opportunities to empower themselves. Those opportunities only emerged when governments and companies actually left a spot for them to represent their identity – being disabled. The International Labour Organization suggests that each company and governmental board should open up room for inclusivity by prioritizing People with Disability for a certain position, or devote a few percent of their workforce only for people with disability, in the name of inclusivity (ILO, 2019). And as we said before, in the case of People with Disability employment quota, Japan is far from perfect.
On the other hand, media portrayals play a big role in shaping Deaf people stereotypes (Kiger, 1997). The media effect theory suggests that media has an indirect effect towards the public's cognitive, emotional, and psychological state. It will cause both short- and long- term effects on the public’s cognition, belief, and attitude – as a result of media consumption (Valkenburg et al., 2016). Fortunately, the Japanese media industry is well aware of this issue. One of the evidences of this claim is the anime “Koe no Katachi”, known in the English language as “A Silent Voice”. This anime tells a story about Shoko, a deaf transfer schoolgirl, and Shoya, a boy who bullies her in elementary school. In high school, however, Shoya decides that he wants to befriend Shoko thus understanding her struggle as a deaf. Though the impact of this specific anime towards the Japanese’s awareness about deafness is debatable still, we can’t simply deny the fact that this anime takes the form of deaf people’s representation in mainstream media. The existence of this anime itself is proof that it is possible to represent Deaf people in the media and still receive positive feedback
C. Japanese Federation of the Deaf as the Sign Language Movement Force
At some point in human life, someone will definitely experience the formation of an identity, which will make them feel included in a certain community. Identity has a function as a binder and forms a sense of belonging to a person in society (Raman 2014).
In this context, people with deaf disabilities have one characteristic that is capable of being the 'binder'. This is none other than sign language. However, as previously explained, sign language has not received sufficient recognition. From the side of the government, the general public, and the media, the three have yet to reach the level of inclusivity. Therefore, the changes needed by Japanese society to become more inclusive must come from the deaf and disabled people themselves: Because they know the needs of their group best.
In Japan, positive developments for a more inclusive society are encouraged by an organization for people with hearing disabilities, namely the Japan Federation of the Deaf (JFD). This organization was formed in 1948 and has contributed a lot to the welfare of deaf people in Japan, especially to the movement regarding the use of Japanese Sign
Language (JFD, 2012b). This body forms the system of sign language that is widely used in Japan. The Japanese Federation of the Deaf, with a value on sign language interpreting as a means of communication, has been leading the nationwide movement for the establishment of "Sign Language Interpreting System". As a result, the Sign Language Certification Examination accredited by the Minister of Health and Welfare was conducted in 1989 (JFD, 2012a). JFD also has a commitment to eliminate all types of discrimination against persons with hearing disabilities. Quoting their statement regarding their position as an organization that represents deaf people in Japan:
“The Japanese Federation of the Deaf does hereby declare that it shall take the lead in the realization of a "society where no one is left behind,"
where each individual's dignity and rights are protected and where deaf people can live with pride using sign language, and thus create a new era with our own hands. (JFD 2021)”.
From this statement, there is an affirmation of their commitment in promoting the existence of deaf people in Japanese society in general. Politically, this organization also seeks to exert influence on the Japanese government to shape policies governing the use of sign language. Through the movement initiated by JFD, there were several policies regarding sign language that were formed or ratified by the Japanese government. One form of the movement is by distributing pamphlets. The “Let's GO with Sign Language”
pamphlet was formed by JFD-in collaboration with regional deaf organizations under the Federation-forming an alliance to distribute the pamphlets in government locations and meetings. As a result, adoptions of written motions towards the government seeking the legal systematization of sign language communication, as well as motions towards establishing local sign language regulations, began to appear (JFD, 2020).
Not only at the domestic level, JFD also involved in an international cooperation network. Activities to monitor the implementation of Japan's ratification of the Convention of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities were also carried out by involving JFD (JFD, 2023). This shows that there is quite high influence from organizations to government agencies, both at the domestic and international levels. Institutions that are solid in terms of organizational bodies and sufficient political influence will certainly function very well in the development of the welfare of people with hearing disabilities in Japan. With the high spirit of the movement for change driven by the deaf community, we hope that one day sign language will be widely taught. With the widespread use of sign language, there will be a change in the mindset of people with hearing disabilities towards a more inclusive society.
CONCLUSION
Even though the Deaf identity in Japan has a strong root in its own segmented group, it is no easy task to integrate them into society. While King Jordan said “Deaf people can do anything hearing people can do except hear”, the reality is more complex than that. Japan faces a myriad of issues when it comes to making itself an inclusive
society for Deaf people. There are indeed barriers and obstacles that are hindering Japanese People with Disabilities, especially those of Deaf, to get equal opportunities in living their lives the way able-bodied people do. First and foremost, there is a problem with the communication process between the Deaf and hearing people. Although Japanese Sign Language (JSL) offers the knowledge needed, it is still considered difficult to access them, not only for the Deaf but also for hearing people, resulting in a state of scarcity of sign language interpreters in Japan. It makes connecting the Deaf and hearing people harder than it should have been. And it goes a long way. Difficulties in communicating means difficulties in arrays of other fields, such as health, work, and, most importantly, education.
In Japan, finding a school for the Deaf is difficult, let alone discovering a good one. This leads to another issue found in Japan's ecosystem of the Deaf. Because of the lack of access to Japanese Deaf schools, many consider “forcing” themselves into mainstream school, resulting in zero progress towards empowering themselves. Another jarring issue in Japan’s quest towards inclusive society is the low amount of representation People with Disabilities have in governmental institutions and private companies. Only a sliver percentage of them are obligated to come from People with Disabilities. Furthermore, there are more than half of the number of governmental institutions and private companies that don’t adhere to the law mentioned. This leaves People with Disabilities in Japan less opportunity to gain equality. Not to mention the disability-friendly environment that is relatively scarce in Japan, since not many business owners care about and actually create.
However, it is also unethical to deny that there have been efforts made both by the government of Japan and the Japanese Deaf community itself. But it's safe to say that those efforts have not reached the intended outcome, since there are still problems in realizing the inclusive society Japan wanted to be. As utopic as it can get, the dream of creating an inclusive society in Japan is a possibility. Just not in the foreseeable future, since there is still an abundance of problems the Japan’s government needs to address first. This research, then, can of course be advanced by examining more about the impact of Deaf representation in media and government towards inclusive society in Japan.
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