We Are Human! – Watashitachi wa ningen da!

The film explores the essence of discrimination against foreigners, including state-originated hate against foreign schools, and the realities of technical intern trainees, refugees, and immigration authorities.

Discrimination against foreigners by Japan’s immigration system has continued repeatedly since the end of WWII. The death of Ms. Wishma at the Nagoya Immigration Bureau (March 2021) shocked Japanese society as it symbolically and clearly demonstrated the problem of immigration detention in Japan. However, such problems are not new and have their roots in the Japan’s history of colonial aggression, in which it dominated, discriminated against, and oppressed the people of Asia. This film depicts the holistic picture of discrimination against foreigners from diverse backgrounds, including Korean residents in Japan, technical interns, refugees, and immigration detainees, as a continuum with the postwar immigration system. The film reflects the reality of Japanese society today. What is required of us to change this reality? How should we perceive this reality?

credits:

Director: Ko Chanyu

Photography: Ko Chanyu, Osahito Koyama, Nobuya Matsubayashi

Editing: Masao Kurose

Music: Akasha

Sound: Ichiro Yoshida

Japanese with English subtitles

Graphik: JFB