Dekasegi Story
In 1988, I read a news article about dekasegi and had an idea: "This might be a good subject for a novel." But I never imagined that I would end up becoming the author of this novel...
In 1990, I finished my first novel, and in the final scene, the protagonist Kimiko goes to Japan to work as a dekasegi worker. 11 years later, when I was asked to write a short story, I again chose the theme of dekasegi. Then, in 2008, I had my own dekasegi experience, and it left me with a lot of questions. "What is dekasegi?" "Where do dekasegi workers belong?"
I realized that the world of dekasegi is very complicated.
Through this series, I hope to think about these questions together.
Stories from this series
Episode 42: Bachan comes to Japan!
Dec. 16, 2022 • Laura Honda-Hasegawa
My name is Ryoma Leonardo and I'm 11 years old. "Ryuma" was chosen by my Brazilian papaai1, who became a fan of Sakamoto Ryoma after watching the historical drama. Papai thought that just a Japanese name would be fine, but my third generation Japanese mama2 is a big fan of Leonardo DiCaprio and really wanted to give me the name "Leonardo", so we ended up with this name. Interestingly, everyone calls me "Ryuma" instead of "Leonardo". I love this name …
Episode 41: Yugo and his mother are separated
Oct. 21, 2022 • Laura Honda-Hasegawa
When Hugo was four years old, his parents separated and his mother, Eneida, returned alone to her hometown of Porto Seguro. Yugo's father wasn't particularly surprised because he had expected the separation to happen in this way. "Eneida was just dreaming of the life in Sao Paulo that she saw on TV dramas." "What a foolish son to fall in love with Eneida at first sight." "I can't believe you went out to town without taking care of baby Yugo!" …
Episode 40: Four sisters heading for Japan
March 9, 2022 • Laura Honda-Hasegawa
The four Uchiyama sisters were always together. As children, they played house in their grandmother's garden, and as teenagers, they went to the movies, concerts, and trips together. However, as they grew up, they each chose different paths and drifted apart. The eldest daughter, Yuki, passed a job interview at a major bank and went on to build a promising career. The second daughter, Yuri, married a Canadian she met at work and moved to Vancouver. The third daughter, Mari, …
Episode 39 (Part 2) What Japan Gave Me
Jan. 17, 2022 • Laura Honda-Hasegawa
Read the first part >> Around 6pm that day, Sumie's mother returned home from work. "I'm back! Hey, what did you buy? Aren't the baby clothes cute?" she said, as she hurried off to put her grocery shopping in the kitchen. But there was no reply. When he went upstairs, he found Sumie unconscious in bed. The next day, Sumie woke up in her hospital room. When she saw her mother's face, she asked anxiously, "Where am I? What happened?" …
Episode 39 (Part 1) What Japan Gave Me
Sept. 20, 2021 • Laura Honda-Hasegawa
After his beloved wife died of illness, Marco's father left his only son with his parents and went to Sao Paulo to work. After three years, he finally found a stable job and a place to live, so he called his son Marco over. Marco is 11 years old and his dream is to live with his beloved Daddy 1 ! Every morning they would get up early, and Marco would go to school and his father would go to …
Episode 38: My Favorite Family
July 30, 2021 • Laura Honda-Hasegawa
My name is Mitsuno, I'm an 11 year old girl. My dad is Japanese Peruvian and my mom is Japanese Brazilian. I was born in Japan and my mom gave me the name "Mitsuno" from my beloved grandmother. When Mama was 21, she left her 2-year-old sister Monica in the care of her grandmother Mitsuno in Brazil and came to Japan with her sister's father Ricardo. However, Ricardo was unable to get used to life in Japan and returned to …
