Open Borders, Open Society? - Immigration and Social Integration in Japan (Hardcover)

Is Japan prepared for an ethnically-diverse society? The volume examines the past and future trajectory of Japan's immigration and integration policies and related institutions, taking a cross-disciplinary approach in social sciences. The authors highlight critical issues and challenges that the nation is facing as a result of the government's inarticulate migrant-acceptance policy, e.g. in the fields of refugee policies, multicultural education and disaster protection. How can the situatio Is Japan prepared for an ethnically-diverse society? The volume examines the past and future trajectory of Japan's immigration and integration policies and related institutions, taking a cross-disciplinary approach in social sciences. The authors highlight critical issues and challenges that the nation is facing as a result of the government's n be improved? The book investigates the changes and initiatives needed to build a resilient policy regime for a liberal, pluralistic, and inclusive Japan. Japan, a long-time immigration laggard, is opening its gate to foreign workers, both skilled and less-skilled, to address its chronic labor shortage through legal and policy changes. Both government and society are awkwardly exploring "multicultural coexistence"-the harmony of Japanese nationals and others of foreign origin. Immigrant integration processes are raising manifold concerns, revealing challenges in terms of labor, welfare, education, culture, and human rights. Yet, the government has downplayed the nation's increasingly multicultural reality while support institutions remain ineffective. Japan's approach, heavily dependent on grassroots initiatives and goodwill, is clearly unsustainable. This co-authored volume examines the evolution of Japan's immigration and integration policies and their social outcomes from cross-disciplinary and multi-level perspectives. Researchers from the social sciences and humanities address crucial local and national issues that emerge from the matrix of "immigration and integration" such as refugee policies, deportation, multicultural education, disaster protection, and local activism.