Second-Generation Immigrants in Japan During COVID-19:

Work, Family, and Discrimination

Abstract

COVID-19 has exerted an enormous impact on immigrants on a global scale. The focus of this study is on second-generation immigrants in Japan and the aim is to elucidate their experience in Japan with COVID-19 from three aspects, namely, work, family, and discrimination. Data were mainly collected through follow-up interviews with 54 second-generation immigrants who previously under- went a survey before COVID-19.（The ethnicity of the 54 respondents is Vietnamese, Cambodian, Chinese, Peruvian, Brazilian, and Filipino.）Semi-structured interviews lasting 1.5–2.5 hours were conducted. Data were analyzed not only to identify the difficulties and conflicts experienced during COVID-19 but also to determine the coping strategies for overcoming these challenges. Additionally, the role of ethnic identity in these strategies was explored.

　

The findings of this paper are as follows. First, a few serious difficulties or conflicts, such as infection scares or economic crises, were identified among the second-generation immigrants employed in regular jobs. This was due to the positive promotion of teleworking and telecommuting. In contrast, it was confirmed that the effects of COVID-19 include income loss, psychological burden, and infection anxiety among second-generation immigrants engaged in irregular employment and essential work positions. In these cases, the second-generation immigrants were not allowed to work from home even with their increasing fear of infection and were forced to continue a work style that they were unwilling to perform during COVID-19.

　

Second, COVID-19 also affected first-generation immigrants, corresponding to the parent generation. Especially, first-generation immigrants with limited Japanese language skills were forced to overcome various disadvantages in terms of economy, health, and information. Moreover, they strongly expected their children（i.e., second-generation immigrants）to take care of them. For this reason, a few of the respondents were torn between their own lives and the expectations of their families and experienced extreme difficulties and conflicts in balancing the two during COVID-19.

　

Third, second-generation immigrants experienced discrimination inside and outside their professional lives, such as being regarded as sources of infection; COVID-19 thus revealed the increased vulnerability of second-generation immigrants. In particular, many second-generation Chinese immigrants expressed concern that they may be discriminated against during COVID-19 due to the Wuhan virus discourse circulating in Japan. Second-generation Chinese immigrants therefore made a rule to not speak in Chinese on the streets to avoid detection of their Chinese roots.

　

Although they experienced several difficulties and conflicts during COVID-19, the second-generation immigrants identified their ethnicity as a strength for coping. In particular, by mobilizing language, information, and domestic and transnational network resources, they exercised coping strategies to overcome these challenges. This indicates that further research on the experiences of second- generation immigrants in Japan, as well as a multifaceted analysis of mobilized resources, is necessary.