Do I Hate Being Half-Japanese Living in Japan?

Just wanted to get a little personal and serious about a topic like this...
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[@maxmoefoePokemon]

Great video, Anime man

[@NerfsDJ]

Go fetch your gold, goblin

[@Hhhhh11388]

anime man ...

[@matrix-mega]

Shouldn't you be making more pokemon videos GET BACK TO WORK!!!!

[@itsyoboiasu1441]

maxmoefoePokemon what u doin ere’ boiii😂😂

[@sultanlootah726]

i'm still crying where is the goblin gold game bitch

[@JohnHill]

Thank you for this video. I'm a half Korean half America who has struggled deeply with my lack of identity, and this has convinced me to make a video about it 👊

[@Joshua-gv4fb]

its so random to see you here, I watch all of your videos and I was heading to the park right now!

[@_syzygy_]

@Itachi Uchiha i get where youre coming from, but your comment is actually pretty dumb. Have you not realized people from the US lack a name for their own country?. Someone from colombia, venezuela, brazil, would be colombian, venezuelan, brazilian... people from the US? Would be "american", yes, its a ridiculous name to call yourself, but what can they do, the word they actually need doesnt exist for some reason.

[@djdivile]

ay I thought I knew you watched Joey, you had Trash Taste in one of your videos lol

[@campas7182]

Might be easy for an outsider to say it, but I don't think you should think of that as a "lack" of identity. If anything, you have "excess" of identity, you're part of two very distinct cultures and have the opportunity to see things from both points of view. People are too quick to label others based on appearance and race, and that's the only thing "wrong" with being mixed. The only thing "wrong" with your identity is other people being dumbasses about it, the problem isn't you, it's them.

[@leexcite2903]

Oh yeah why were Koreans hating on Filipinos btw

[@gcs8]

You are not stuck in the middle of the bridge, you are the bridge.

[@emonerd2567]

giga-brain comment

[@darthvader3969]

pewds is stuck on the bridge.

[@dankthegank1742]

Hell yeah bro this comment deserves all the likes, for real.

[@nakakaka2069]

@@darthvader3969 hol' up-

[@exstee]

FACTS.

[@TheRealGuywithoutaMustache]

That was a heartfelt and beautiful video, glad to know you've come to terms with that struggle within.

[@pardonmyexistence3970]

You again. Jk jk Glad to see you here tho

[@ShoheiKutsuki]

Yay saw you again!

[@ducklingchief8289]

Lets see how much likes this comment get

[@Fate_37]

Found You! But I'm glad you're here.

[@Waywardpine]

How many people are you subscribed too ?

[@GaijinGoombah]

Props to you dude. This video is real, honest, and from the heart. Some of your best stuff comes from these places.

[@hunter5993]

Why are there no replies lmao

[@idc128]

@@hunter5993 every1 has become antisocial

[@counterslice9683]

wholesome to the max tier

[@adammcelroy3143]

Thanks for addressing this. Especially with the events occurring nowadays, I hope that this will help a lot of people.

[@chrishawking1406]

@Águila701 nothing personal do but that question sounds quite rhetorical cuz of the very fact that they are a big time KZbinr that's is there a reason as to why cuz when you or someone else is a big enough KZbinr when you're popular enough there gonna to gather a lot of attention that basically comes with a lot of likes usually

[@robsxdclan2]

There's this scene from the movie "Selena" about a Mexican-American singer where her dad talks about being stuck between two cultures and identities. "We have to be more Mexican than the Mexicans and more American than the Americans, both at the same time! It's exhausting!" I feel that's a really good description of where many people around the world are at right now as cross cultural people. You have to be twice as perfect to be accepted.

[@yadajoku]

Really sucks she died. I know I shouldn't say this about a real person's death but it really was like a novela.

[@robsxdclan2]

@Aerith Growing up, I heard a lot about her because I'm from Corpus Christi as well, and there was a lot of admiration for her because she was able to cross cultural boundaries and show Mexican-American culture to other parts of the country, as well as American culture to Mexico.

[@robsxdclan2]

@Aerith 100% Agreed. It's much more fun that way too!

[@rainraisins2262]

Su muerte fue una tragedia

[@thepurpleones]

Really sucks that she had died, what a beautiful and talented woman.

[@hoshreload1556]

I'm 50% Japanese, 25% Italian, 25% Austrian. I was born, raised, and still live in the US. I can understand everyday Japanese fluently (thanks to my mom), but I can't speak it. My dad is white and doesn't know any japanese so we naturally stick with english in the house(my mom and I sometimes agree to only speak in japanese to each other, but then it ends up not happening within the next hour xD). I was fortunate enough to be able to go visit my Mom's side of the family in Japan every summer for about a month at a time. I love it there. But when it came to speaking with relatives, things get a little interesting. I'd either stay silent and let my mom do all the talking or if it was a younger cousin, I'd try to use body language to act out my response. I really respect and admire how you took the time to really master the language. I wish I could stick to it but I end up doing something else and forgetting about it. Fun Fact, I've technically lived in japan for a year and a half if you add up all the trips xD at this point my grandparents house feels like home. OMG but the trains xddd I feel like a complete outsider everytime I hop on a train. I feel super self conscious about not being japanese when I'm there and I just assume everyone is looking down on me. I know it's all inside of my head but god do I wish I stopped thinking like that. Anyways, love you joey, keep up the great work!!

[@mahldeetoh]

Similar story here, Filipino, Japanese, Mexican and I used to be very self conscious about not being Asian enough. Honestly bro, there’s no need to stress about it. It’s just a waste of time and energy.

[@Mal-oo2si]

Lots of love and jelly tots to the hafus 🍭

[@50nl58]

i can understand spanish but i cant speak it

[@ryanstarlight8018]

Omg I relate so much to the part where you said you went to Japan every Summer for one month. I did the same thing except that I also went to a primary school during that time.

[@MrDragon3221]

Thanks for sharing! I do have a question though. This may sound weird, but how do you handle the non-Japanese side of your family? I mean i do believe that the US is culturally closer to Austria and Italy than to Japan, but as an Austrian myself it seems to me that there is still quite a bit of cultural difference.

[@MrAnperm]

You're not "hafu", you're "bothu". There's a level of open-mindedness you get from growing up in a mixed household. Because you are used to looking at the cultures of your parents from different perspectives. I'm half PNG / half Anglo Australian.

[@Boasill]

I'm full JPEG

[@V.U.4six]

Boasill 😂

[@user-cg7cv9iu7x]

He's more like "nonefu"

[@justsomeguywithashield9678]

Im a PDF

[@Anonymous551656]

@MrAnperm I agree that having dual ethnic experiences can be extremely healthy. It builds understandings that make our societies stronger. It seems that we have a long way to go building that perspective into the more Anglo-centric parts of the Australian community.

[@vortexofweird]

I'm half chinese and half irish. I am not fluent in mandarin but I have pretty good conversational speaking skills. Whenever I go to China, I always get a little disappointed that no one wants to talk to me in Chinese. It's weird because they see me as not Chinese enough due to my language not being fluent but refuse to talk to me in Chinese (which would help me improve my language skills.) I've considered just studying on my own like you did but I guess I've lived for so long in the US that I feel less and less connected to China the older I get. I think there's this pressure on hafus to be "well-versed" in both of the cultures they are connected to, otherwise there is a sense of guilt. I think this is like the bridge you described in the video.

[@WitchPilled]

Yeah, I feel you. I'm half korean/irish and the 1st generation of my family born in the U.S. I've never met the korean side of my family and have always been terrified of reaching out because I can't speak the language.

[@Nari_Trovi]

oh wow, those are incredibly different worlds in a sense. I'm curious what you look like 🤔.

[@gabrielbarnagaud6287]

yeah, half french half chinese, learning mandarin is super hard and i'm still struggling... But I feel that the biggest problem is that there is no Chinese medium that i like and would help me learn... Why are chinese shows, music and anime (except a handful of ok ones) so... bad? Idk if it's my taste, but I just can't get invested in these cheesy propaganda romcoms and copied pop songs. Pls if any of you have recommendation of music or show that don't make me want to drink bleach?(And yeah I feel you for other people in China not wanting to speak chinese to me, like ok my chinese isn't perfect but it's definitely better than your english...)

[@minib4800]

Well I'm pure Chinese but I was born and grew up in the UK so I have times when I think that I don't fit in because I'm not white so it does affect my actions and thoughts sometimes so I guess I can half relate somehow

[@Catherine-cn]

I’m half Chinese and half Scottish, and I’ve basically given up in learning mandarin now.

[@Marmar13581]

Not a “hafu,” but I was adopted from China into a white, Jewish family. I grew up studying and speaking Hebrew, yet nobody ever spoke to me in Hebrew and, on the other hand, every Chinese stranger would come up to me and try to speak Chinese to me. Then be super disappointed that I’m not “continuing my culture” by not being able to speak chinese. It didn’t help that I went to Jewish schools growing up and I was the only non-white person so nobody wanted to be my friend because I literally “looked different.” Going to Israel, I could understand everyone talking shit about me (not that I need to know Hebrew to understand people pointing at me and shouting “Chinese!” In Hebrew...). To this day, I still don’t feel like I belong anywhere and feel like a fraud in any community. But it does give me a unique perspective on many things which I am thankful for. Thanks for the vid! It makes me feel a little less lonely and gives me more confidence in my identity haha

[@supergirlysofia3054]

Thank you so much for sharing your experience!💖 I'm sure it helped someone to know they are not alone✨

[@elinaihnatsiuk]

I'm so sorry for your experience in jewish communities! For me, jewish *summer* camps were the only place where I felt welcomed and a part of something. I wish you had had the same experience. And the other person might be onto something - there are a lot of Russian, Ukrainian and Belarusian Jews in Israel and we all speak Russian though many are learning Hebrew.

[@thekoopaninja]

@@elinaihnatsiuk jewish camps?

[@firefly618]

@@thekoopaninja she probably meant summer camps

[@DangoWango]

@@thekoopaninja Probably not the kind of camp you're thinking of. Probably

[@KENZOkm]

Mate, respect for that, it also took me a while to embrace my identity! Being a Brazilian Japanese, I was born and grew up in Brazil, and I also questioned myself a lot. As Brazil has one of the biggest Japanese populations outside Japan, a lot of folks from my generation also felt the same way, growing up on the other side of the world but still being connected to those Japanese roots, especially when you're like 98% Japanese (I got my DNA tested haha). At some point, I decided that I had the best of both worlds and I took the best from both cultures, Brazilian and Japanese! Like my father used to say 'you're a citizen of the world' 🙌 Keep it up Joey!

[@Tai_SYNF]

I am Brazilian Japanese too! Only born in the US.

[@jj_joshua1473]

“Citizen of the world” Your dad is a wise man. No other words

[@pranav_jh]

@Cavava Cava Please get off your corner store drugs

[@DieAlteistwiederda]

I have a friend who has a Brazilian dad and a Japanese mom but he grew up here in Germany, stuff gets confusing fast when you try to connect to all parts of yourself and your roots.

[@nenadpopov3601]

I met a guy few years ago who is also Brazilian Japanese, Marco Minoru Nakamoto, and I forgot what he told me, how and why are there so many Japanese ppl in Brazil??

[@user-pb4ok2uy4r]

I am a ハーフ. My father is Japanese. My mother is Kurdish (it is a kind of West Asian/Middle Eastern but the part she is from looks more “white”) . I am Australian born too. In Japan I was always just considered a foreigner. I never cared though. I was mostly with my mum whenever out and I understand that I don’t look Japanese at all. It doesn’t bother me. I have never met my dad’s family. But I grew up in a very Japanese way, and my mum really loves Japan and everything about it. I _speak_ Japanese (I can’t really write but I can sometimes read). The problem is that people don’t believe me. In Australia I don’t even try to tell people I am half Japanese anymore. They would always just say, “Nah, you look Greek or Turkish. Don’t lie.” or when I say that I am Kurdish they say “like Turkish?”. I feel like both sides of me are irrelevant and people don’t care. One side is “not believable” and the other nobody even knows exists. Instead, they make me from where they want me to be from, they include me as part of their ethnicity usually (like other Middle Eastern) but I am literally not. Or if they believe me they say “Nobody else will believe you though, because you look so..” and whatever. Also because I follow a certain religion other people think I can’t be Japanese, or that my father must be the non-Japanese one. Don’t even get me started on my mother’s side. They are so racist. Thank goodness my mother is no longer in contact with them. It doesn’t really matter that much to me anymore but it’s frustrating when everyone is no nosy and asks about ethnicity. Answering with “I’m Aussie.” doesn’t make anyone satisfied. So now each time I just come up with a new ethnicity and just lie ;( This was a long comment hahaha.

[@Anonymous551656]

Anyone who doesn't accept "Aussie" as a legit answer is being pretty damned racist. If you grew up here then you're as Aussie as any Anglo-Australian. Sorry that our more ethno-egotistical fellow Australians don't seem to see that for some reason. You're Aussie. I'm satisfied.

[@mosca3289]

Well, you sound pretty cool 👍🏻

[@avinaser9520]

Damn, didn't know there was even an half-Kurdish/Japanese person out there. I would just say be proud of both of your identities and don't be afraid to express it either. Slav be heval ❤ From a kurdish dude in kurdistan

[@sarroumarbeu6810]

Ah the classic mingling of Kurdish= Turkish... they're ethnically DIFFÉRENT ...ugh I'm so sorry you came across uneducated ppl ;-;

[@scheimaa172]

That sounds frustrating, but it's pretty cool to be half Kurdish and half Japanese. I moved to Germany two years ago and met some Kurdish People in my German language course, they are so interesting because most of them can speak not only Kurdish but also another language depending on where they're from, so I could talk with some of them in Arabic as if they were Arabs. I myself am half German half Egyptian but people often think that I am Turkish and start talking Turkish to me. In Egypt, I am not sure why since I don't look European, people often think that I am not Egyptian. Someone guessed that I am from Pakistan, which was a first, and most are surprised when I say that I am Egyptian because they think they're all dark-skinned.

[@briannakata]

Garnt’s latest video: “WE GET TO WATCH A GUY JACKOFF TO COMPLETION” Joey’s: Thoughtful commentary on xenophobia and how it relates to him personally. I love both of you. Thanks for that video Joey it was really nice. I’m a Japanese, Italian, Irish that lives in Hawaii, in Hawaii I’m called “Hapa” same meaning as hafu. I’ve never properly fit in anywhere. I’ve lived in multiple states in the U.S. I’ve made many friends of many different ethnicities. I’ve lived with white side family, and I’ve lived with my Japanese family. Even at both homes I noticeably stood out, and not necessarily in a good way. I’m not going to explain my whole life story for everyone to read but thank you for sharing a part of yours. I'm really glad you shared this perspective, this relates to me to an extent, and it was a nice watch. Thanks again

[@PsychoSatsujin]

Well, this type of video was a surprise....but a welcomed one.

[@hunter5993]

Yes

[@someone-ja]

ʎǝs

[@fairycutie1811]

As a half-Indian, half-English girl, I’ve had my fair share of identity crisis about which side I belonged to more, mostly due to things other people have said to me or the way they’ve acted around me. I’ve faced racism from South Asians who told me I was “only” half and therefore not one of them, and I was basically white because of my lighter skin - and they apparently weren’t being racist because “reverse racism doesn’t exist”. When I was among white people, I was always the “Asian” in the group too, and faced racism in a predominately white school because I didn’t look like them and didn’t fit their ideas of conventionalism. Even family members would tell me things like this, and it was like they grouped me as the opposite race to them. I struggled with wondering what box I fit into, but I soon realised that I was both and that wasn’t something anything could take from me. Thank you so much for this video! It means a lot knowing that you and other hafus have faced the same struggles I have

[@PokeProfSunny]

Carmie Star hi I’m so sorry you went through that experience. I’m South Asian myself but my mom is a white(?) South Asian. So its kinda weird other South Asians would discriminate you based on your skin tone cuz there’s plenty of South Asians who have lighter skin tones & even white skin tones. At the same time I faced the worst discrimination and racism going to a mostly white school in small town texas (think trump supporters before trump). I found the most acceptance amongst the few poc kids there (mostly latino & asian) I think what you experienced was the effects internalized racial trauma those other kids may have experienced. Its not right to exclude you from the South Asian community because of your skin tone. But at the same time having lighter skin will always give you more privilege and better treatment than darker skin (my light skinned mom gets treated better than my dad a lot) not just in western society but especially in Indian society because of the rampant colorism (think about how so many Bollywood movies mostly have light skinned actors). I think those kids were just taking their frustrations with racism out on you and that was unfair to you and I’m sorry they did that. I hope you keep trying to engage with the South Asian community because I’m positive there are many others out there who will accept you. South Asia & India itself are really diverse so its not the same as in Japan or East Asia where if you don’t know the language it can be very isolating because there are so many languages that many in India can’t even communicate to other Indians and use English anyway I also find a lot of acceptance in the halfie communities - particularly half asian communities - despite not being an actual halfu myself so I hope you can make more halfu friends yourself!

[@anubhav9766]

Hey Carmie Star, who is Indian in your family, you Mother or your Father

[@fairycutie1811]

PokeProfSunny I completely agree with you!! I don’t usually face open racism from other south Asians now except for the occasional occurrence. This was something that mostly happened in primary school (but obviously still deeply affected me as this was a pivotal stage in my growth). I definitely think that some of the other parents looked down on my mother for marrying a white man, and told their children these things which they redirected at me. Nowadays, the racism I face is mostly from white people who find issue with my ethnic features, though I definitely acknowledge my privilege in being light-skinned. Most south Asians and other people of colour are so welcoming to me and accept me as one of them. It’s definitely been comforting finding out other halfies share my experiences 🥰 though of course it can be disheartening to get the negative comments thrown at me

[@watashiwamosura]

As a fellow half Indian/half English, I relate to so much of what you said! I actually feel really disconnected from my Indian heritage because I was never considered Asian enough among social circles and now I live very far away from my Indian family. I'd love to re-immerse myself in the culture like when I was little, but I have no idea where to start.

[@gamothelegend7712]

What country u live in

[@UnownNotUnknown]

I'm half-Japanese and half-Chinese, born and raised in Hong Kong When I was still a student studying in a local HK school I was discriminated and bullied and shit like wot. One of the teachers even made fun of my dad because he's fully Japanese, and of course, my Japanese surname (Nakanishi). And when I travelled to Japan, people there were like…They were glaring at me- and my family. I was so scared that I could never speak Japanese in front of any local people ever again except my dad, and some of my close relatives living there. //And so I started to hate myself and soon diagnosed with Dysthymia.

[@surajsharma1992]

Sad to hear that, i was kinda in a similar situation but thanks for i had some good friends and as i grew up i learnt that its useless being scared and you are what you are and its not your fault at all, and i won't take any shit from anyone, you don't like the way i am, well you can fuck off, i am what i am and you got to deal with it, you just have to fight your way through it and not be weak, that's all i can tell from my experience.

[@collegelifeexpertz6605]

You def don’t deserve that! It wasn’t your fault how you were born ! Being a halfie of two similar countries myself (Honduras & Mexico), you should be proud in that you are UNIQUE & have two cultures as part of your LINEAGE ! Think how far back your bloodline goes ... Having lineage to ancient China and to ancient Japan ... NOW THATS AMAZING!! 😉

[@Razi98]

Sorry to hear that I hope things get easy for you

[@Yosshi95]

Fcking racism. I’m sorry that you had to go through that when you were little. But it made you stronger I’m sure !

[@anngeorge467]

i'm sorry if this comes across as insensitive or even borderline racist but i'm genuinely just curious don't hate me here goes... its interesting to me that that people would react that way. i mean why would anyone judge purely on the basis of outward looks.... wouldn't it be kinda hard to judge nationality simply by looking at someone? also i'm sorry you had to go through that. love from India💗

[@Will-jg2zs]

"Are you a Hafu?" *No, this is Patrick*

[@cloudedcrow8822]

Is mayonnaise an instrument?

[@AbsoleteSun]

*Damn, Dont get me Horny*

[@taizu55]

Why did I read in Patrick's voice?

[@russmayos3694]

ツUlquiorra lmao

[@DemonicANG3L1]

I find it funny that in one ethnic group in the Philippines during my visit, has hafu as a word, a contraction of "hay apu" which is typically said by elders when a younger member of the tribe messes up or does something stupid, in this context, "hay apu" translated to English means, "good lord", or their own version of "for christ`s sake" or "for fuck`s sake". It can also be used to denote that someone`s tired of somebody else`s shit.

[@iasnessy6701]

As someone who is half Black and half Thai, it comforting to know there are other mixed people who struggle with the same issues when it comes to their identity. I've never felt like I was "Black enough" or "Asian enough" for either side of the family. Like your supposedly part of these cultures yet so far removed at the same time. It hurts when the people your culturally connected to reject you for not being full. One of my aunt's on my Thai side supposedly never wants to come to visit the family in America because of my existence. But hey, I'm me! Thanks for sharing your side on the matter Joe!💕

[@witchsorrowful1918]

Don't get stuck in this. When in doubt, read Carl Sagan, and watch that picture where the Earth is but one pixel wide. We are all on this Earth, together. There is no human on another planet. There is no other home. If people are being an ass, remind them how we are all connected. Our human experiences may all be different, but we must never forget that our experiences are, in fact, human. Cheers.

[@watamesshepherdjesuschrist6792]

Despite those things occured to you. You have the Nword pass/

[@moetrashu]

Hey, I sorta understand this. Given mine isn’t due to being mixed and due to another reason. I’m glad you’ve come to accept it. I hope you live a good and fulfilling life man

[@galaxy_kitten95]

Jacker Don But, much like other terms, that word still has a negative connotation behind it. I’m fully black and I can’t *stand* that word.

[@gherkingaming3988]

its funny how people ask me for the n-word pass

[@Goodlife17KE]

Man being half Swiss half African American, I feel this. Any “halfies” can get this. It’s not easy for us and we always walk between both. It’s especially hard when you “don’t look the part.” Which is something I really struggled with in feeling Swiss (as I’m not white). It’s probably gonna be a life long journey for us. But I do think people with our dual country privilege build bridges and help in fostering new definitions of what it means to belong to a certain country/culture. Thanks for sharing 💃🏽

[@snowydearest]

100% European - my parents lived in Japan for around 7 years, myself for only 3. I grew up with elements of the culture and developed a deep admiration and respect for it. Because I have no other links to Japan other than having been born there, I’ve always felt a yearning to connect with the culture while simultaneously feeling as though I had no right to. Our experiences haven’t been the same - but I feel inspired to study Japanese more seriously now, and that my dreams of learning the language aren’t futile. Thank you.

[@Dylan-mn8fv]

as a mixed person raised billingually... the way see this topic is: wherever I go I'm a foreigner. even there where I was born and raised. to be honest, identity wise I can't seem to put myself anywhere (when talking about nationality). I'm happy to see that it's working out for you... this topic is very interesting to me, because i deal with it all the time.

[@isaacj.7989]

Exactly if your half then you dont belong anywhere I feel like this also applies to other situations like I'm half mexican and from the U.S and some poeple dont like the other side at all and only focus in the 'other' half so I feel mixed poeple get the short end of the stick

[@mysticwolfjg6567]

Yeah I tend to feel that way too, I'm half/half and even living in both countries for about the same amount of time, people from one country treat me like I'm from the other and vice versa like I cannot present myself of having both identities at the same time.

[@briannawebb8767]

That's very true. As a mixed girl, It's like neither side accepts you. Even my own family on my mother's side treats me like a lost white girl showed up to the family gathering. Still love being mixed though. It has it's benefits as well.

[@Dylan-mn8fv]

it seems that many people feel the same way. in a pursuit to reach a more specific group of people to relate to, imma tell a little more about myself. I was born and raised in germany (my father is german) with a german and american passport. My mom is filipino (moved to america) though, so my looks are stronger on the asian side. especially growing up here in germany, a random person here would think I'm an asian foreigner. at home i speak english (being half american). many of my friends would consider me very american. not only because of the language spoken in my home but also my inability to express myself on the spot in front of someone. when i go to america to meet my cousins, it's me "the german family". when i go meet my friends here in germany it's me "that american friend". on the streets in germany or even america I'm an "asian dude". i even went to my older relatives in manila and there obviously i didn't stick out as asian but "the white guy". where do i belong in all of this? accepting that being mixed is cool just doesn't give a place to be myself. when the whole world is telling you are from somewhere else but that somewhere else is telling you the same... it just doesn't feel right. at least seeing this many people in the comments explaining similar experiences gives some sense of belonging. thank you joey! i hope communities could be formed out of this. exchanging these experiences with each other really helps coping with "this" much easier.

[@ximenaflores2013]

I had the same "problem" and what ended up happening with me was that I just found comfort in another culture in this case the japanese culture and language, I've been learning the language ever since I was in middle school and I try my best to immerse myself in it as much as possible, I'm even thinking of moving to Japan when I finish high school.

[@aanon1342]

I'm mixed white and asian and never felt out of place based on my race because I always lived in a cosmopolitan area where everyone around me was just as different from me as they were from each other. My schools looked like UN meetings and nobody was ever bullied for their heritage as far as I knew of. If everyone is different then no one is and I was always thankful for it.

[@soseikiharagatatsu7859]

Here in my country it's like"freedom"

[@Lithiel]

I'm a mix of races- though japanese isn't one of them, I live in a japanese settled village where I volunteer at a temple helping the seniors. I'm learning japanese for them and a lot of my friends because I want to be able to communicate better. I find it makes the very elderly more comfortable with me when they know I can understand them. Plus the language itself sounds so beautiful, so I rather enjoy speaking it when I do. As a mix I do pass as a 'Hafu'(japanese) a lot, to which I correct them. My features come from my mom's first nation and carib roots, mixed with my dad's scott and irish. It's interesting because depending on what group of people I interact with I get treated different. Sometimes with fear, confusion, suspicion, disgust, disappointment, - so far, japanese people tend to be fascinated and curious of me. They've always been very respectful and kind to me, more than any other demographic I've interacted with, yes including my own familial ethnic related groups. I've been bullied a lot growing up, and often get treated rather negatively on a daily basis even now in the big city by a lot of people. If I had a dime for how many times I get refused service, get told to 'go back to syria?' or someone comes right up into my face and asks " What are you? half chinese?? Filipino?" It's a bit ironic that I've felt more accepted in a completely different cultural social group than the ones I'm related so. I've always tried to connect with the facets of my family but yah- I often get judged by what's 'missing' in my appearance, and not what I DO have. But for the japanese community that I live in now, I'm no longer ' not white enough' - 'black enough' or 'red enough'- I'm just me, and apparently for them- that's enough. They understand I didn't get a choice of who my parents were. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE my parents, my immediate family is awesome, and I DON'T regret being what and who I am. I'm proud of my heritage, even if SOME those extended family members of said heritage don't think im pure enough for them. It just says a lot when I leave the big city, for my smaller village town, and feel such relief when I'm surrounded by people who are not racially related to me in the slightest.XD I don't feel negatively judged anymore by how I look. I cannot speak for everyone and how it is for them, this is just my social situation right now. The point is, I've found a place where I am accepted and can relax in my own skin. So talking to them in their own language is just a give in for me. I am encouraged to keep learning and have plenty of people to practice with. I look forward to having longer and more complex conversations with everyone. So there you go, that's my"mixed race" story. Thanks for this video Joey^^/

[@anngeorge467]

i'm loving these comments! it really helps me as a -for lack of a better word- "pure" person understand how much people struggle with their identity. much live from India💗

[@arizibra921]

When people tell me to go back to my country I normally just respond, you pay for my transport and I will that normally shuts them up lol.

[@Kaimalie2013]

I honestly loved watching this. I’m from Hawaii and I’m 25% Japanese, 25% Hawaiian, 50% European. My husband is Japanese and Filipino. We both went to Japan in December 2018 and stayed for a month. He looks Japanese and was often treated better then me by other Japanese people. But I was so happy when someone asked me if I was a hafu when I was getting a kimono fitting. I told them yes 😂 although I’m only 25%. I love my Japanese culture, family, language and the anime is just the bonus😉

[@delgadotoothless1659]

25% is still valid. Japanese culture is still your own and you belong there as much as the next full blooded Japanese person. Enjoy your country and culture to the fullest! It’s beautiful😁

[@sstocker207762]

I feel the exact same way. I'm half japanese and half american. Every time I walk into a store in japan I see a look on a employers face that makes me feel I'm not welcome. And then when I start speaking fluent japanese I also see a look of relief that washes over them. I also love both parts of my heritage. I don't want to hide either one of them. And I want to show and teach my future kids about both sides of myself without having to worry about people judging them for it.

[@witchsorrowful1918]

They probably become uncomfortable if you don't "look" japanese to them - mostly because they don't know/are not confident about their English skills. Believe me, that's 99% of those stares. It's not racism - just people uncomfortable that they won't be able to understand. I would say it's just fear and shame of not knowing a language over overt distaste and disgust at a foreign person. Otherwise, no matter how fluently you speak Japanese, they will not like you. Or, they would just get up from a seat beside you if sit if you have black skin, for example. That's racism.

[@arnavkmr3895]

@@witchsorrowful1918 If that's really the case, then I'm relieved a lot. I have been spending a good chunk of my time learning Japanese. I always had second thoughts that if I would be accepted in Japan or they would still see me as a foreigner. If what u are saying is correct, then I'm really grateful to u. ありがとうございます

[@Arciwiz]

:0

[@KelbPanthera]

Bruh. That look is them thinking "oh good. Time to brush off that English I learned in highschool and haven't used in the years since. This is gonna suck. I hope he doesn't get offended at how bad English is." At least that's what it is most of the time.

[@sstocker207762]

Sure, I get that it's not necessarily always them not wanting to deal with a foreigner, but it still does get discouraging when it happens every time.

[@CHEFPKR]

This is pretty inspiring. Thanks Joey.

[@arachid5747]

Did anyone ask

[@sunimod1895]

Hi chef

[@vanillacream2797]

oh shi hi chefpk

[@uzi_spaz379]

@@arachid5747 Lmao toxic responses you gotta love it

[@AdarableKitten]

AWESOME YOUR IN THE COMMENTS!! HI CHEFPK

[@bringmethedawns]

As a born Albanian raised in Italy even though I am technically “full blood” I can relate to this so much. I always found myself too “Italian” to fit with my relatives and the culture in Albania and yet I was treated as “other” as an “immigrant” in Italy because I wasn’t born there, and that bridge imagery it’s exactly how I felt for most of my life. I don’t wanna choose either culture because I feel part of both of them and I respect both of them, thank you for making this video Joey.

[@user-io5qz7lj4q]

Me too lmao,, also most of my family is Muslim so I also felt like I had to “fit in” the culture of Italy by being a christian, even tho I never had any strong relations to religion

[@user-io5qz7lj4q]

@Kingu i mean if people wanna be xenophobic and judge a whole country from a few bad apples I won’t stop them, they’re the ones being ignorant and I don’t give a shit about what people think tbh. We weren’t taking about what others think about us, but what we felt like growing up with immigrant parents.

[@pithagorian4394]

I feel I fit into another category of this similar experience which most people from a colony would relate to (I'm from canada). Even though the majority of people here are the same race as me the land historically actually belongs to the native tribes, but I also no longer have a connection to Europe so I also can't really be European. So even though there's no problem being white in Canada I still feel a lack of belonging sometimes

[@AnimeLord512]

I'm half Japanese (mother), half Bangladeshi(father), born and raised in Singapore. Speak fluent Singlish, and love Singapore. I have both Japanese and Singaporean citizenship, but plan to move to Japan permanently after NS. Needless to say, I watch an unhealthy amount of anime and read a lot of manga, which my mother is proud of.

[@mrwestcottx3487]

Half- 🇯🇵 by your mom's side and Half-🇧🇩 by your dad's side and your birthplace is Singapore 🇸🇬 , and can speak Singlish,Japanese by anime and manga and English too and going to stay permanently in Japan. To me that sounds like an adventure you have. As I'm posing this in 2023. This comment is over a year old.

[@user-ip3vb3uj3f]

I'm Japanese living in Australia for 2 years. Before I lived in Australia, I was scared if I would experience racial discrimination as foreigners would experience in Japan. However, most of people in Australia are easy going and when they realise I'm Japanese they tell me how they like Japan. I really appreciate that. As Joey said, there are many biases and discrimination in Japan as well as admirations and favor. Mostly because of language barrier, most of Japanese don't know what foreigners are really like. I've also been dating an Australian girlfriend for about 2 years now. We sometimes talk about when we have a kid which country is better to live in for the kid. I hope Japan will become a more comfortable country for foreigners and halfs to live in in the next generation and to do so, I realised ,thanks to Joey, raising voice is essential to change their thoughts in Japan.

[@gherkingaming3988]

its funny how i never use weebu language when a Japanese person walks by

[@Anonymous551656]

I'm glad that you're in one of the parts of Australia that actually is easy-going. I love this country, but my oath do we have some pockets of racist drongos in some places. I think all countries would benefit greatly from multi-ethnic couples and children who know and enjoy each of their cultural backgrounds. Best of luck to you my dude, and hope things work out for you!

[@appleslover]

@@Anonymous551656 places like where(to avoid them when visiting)?

[@ivooderso]

I was born in Germany, grew up with Croatian parents, but I feel like a foreigner in both countries. My name and last name arent very "german-sounding". I may not have it as bad as others, because I look like the whitest guy ever, but I've had enough instances in which I was reduced to being a foreigner, even tho I speak fluent german and write as good if not even better than your average German... The thing is, I'm not fluent in Croatian, whenever I visit my family I have a hard time communicating. I may understand every word they're saying, but I'm never able to fully say what I want to. In Germany I'm "the Croatian dude" and in Croatia "the German dude". It makes me feel torn in my identity, because I love my family, but man I just want to be seen as any other dude sometimes. Thank you for coming to my Ted Talk~~~

[@mertkoc8024]

I 100% feel your pain. But you can always choose your own identity and sourround yourself with people who accept it. There is no other choice in Germany at this moment lol. Maybe in a couple of years we can just chill and be the "normal" dudes.

[@sontscha1038]

@Jojo reference thats not how Germany is today. Back then that was the "arier" concept (they said they were the supreme race) but today most germans don't think about it that much. Some especially the older generations don't like immigrants much but they don't see them as less worthy than they are. Btw my parents are Ukrainian but I was born and raised in Germany. What you see in WW2 is an entirely different Germany and I'm so glad that it changed.

[@munira.albalushi]

I feel your struggle! I'm half Indian and half Arab und mir geht es genauso! On another note, i've studied in Germany for several years and visited Croatia multiple times and was shocked by how croatians could speak perfect german! I truly thought everyone there could speak german effortlessly! so to hear you say this I'm sure it must have been rough :(

[@MaxmilianDao]

I feel the same way

[@madmoo1111]

To be fair Croatian is hard bruh lol

[@lyannel.2763]

I'm actually Canadian, half Chinese half Filipino, Grew up with both sides hanging with my cousins mostly. it definitely felt like two different worlds, Fortunately, I never felt exclusion, it was a good environment with relatives who always wanted the best for me. In terms of languages, I talked to my grandma in Cantonese. and sometimes my mom would teach me Tagalog. However, I did stop talking in Cantonese and Tagalog eventually, since I was born Canadian speaking English most of my life. On another note, I felt that my Chinese side had more respect, diligence and morality. While my Filipino side were more honest and welcoming. Thankfully both sides were welcoming to who I was regardless.

[@delgadotoothless1659]

Your family sounds amazing. It’s not always easy with the family, but your family sounds very welcoming😁

[@superminer1993]

As someone who is bilingual I can tell you guys that people don't just learn another language for dumb reasons. Its actually feels really good to speak to a stranger in a different country and relate about certain topics and when you can do that it's an amazing experience. Honestly I love speaking to spanish speakers and I'd live to learn another language like Japanese for more experiences like that.

[@konnekonneru]

I'm half Japanese and half Dutch raised in the Netherlands. I was raised bilingual so I can speak both languages fluently. I was raised in the Netherlands so I thought that I was quite Dutch, but if you look at me from someone elses perspective, I look completely Japanese (or at least Asian). I noticed that people in the Netherlands stare quite a bit because I stand out with my looks, while I could completely blend in in Japan whenever I went there to visit my family. As I don't like standing out, I decided to make my appearance even closer to a Japanese person (also because I like the Japanese style and looks more). But that doesn't mean I gave up on my Dutch side or anything. I'm actually really glad that I can experience both cultures and take the good things from both of them. Still I find that I fit better in the Japanese culture so I'm hoping to live there in the future.

[@kkr0ne]

Imagine having a dilemma between living in the Netherlands and Japan. Actually the 2 best countries to live in atm

[@Niikuro_shuffles]

As an asian raised in the Netherlands, I can kinda relate to your story. By the way, it's quite rare to see half japanese people in the country of kaas. よろしく!

[@Maegor205]

ik dacht dat nederlandse mensen niet echt naar je staren want er zijn hier veel buitenlandse mensen.

[@driesverhaag8955]

Ik ben persoonlijk best jaloers, ik ben eentalig opgevoed en heb zelf later andere talen geleerd en Japans is de volgende. Jij hebt ook het recht nu om stroopwafel sushi te maken, pak die kans

[@Lolleman255]

G E K O L O N I S E E R D

[@yurikuki]

Damn Joey's voice is so calming in this video.

[@sungshineev8732]

He has no anime titties to shout for ✊🏻😔

[@arachid5747]

Did anyone ask

[@DarthBleh]

Aye my dude I absolutely get the obsession with speaking a language fluently and trying to speak with a particular "accent" to pass or at least de emphasize your otherness. Born in Italy to Colombian parents, I partly grew up in the US and being light skinned (my dad is basically a white dude) and middle class I was terrified with being read as Latino, poor, illegal immigrant due to all the negative representations I saw of Mexicans in American media growing up. So I obsessed over getting rid of a stereotypical Latino accent, and I only lived in the US for a couple years - it was an obsession that I carried with me well into my mid 20s but now I don't really care about it. I loved the video, although it's important to take into account other elements - you're also half European which also carries different connotations for the Japanese, sometimes even positive (although in many cases from what I've seen it goes mostly from meh to ohhh cool) vs someone who is half black African, etc, seeing hafu representation in the media for example. I don't think you can just wish racist attitudes away and leaving all these historical, unequal power relations etc things up to the person affected in a "up to you how you feel about it" but I think you raise some very cool points in the video, and it's also inspiring in other ways, as of course people also have agency to decide how to identify, etc. Thanks my man

[@liliensmiley]

I get what you mean with caught in between and being afraid to choose one and then to loose the other. I'm German and Ethiopian, living in Germany and sometimes it is hard for me because I love both sides, but I am not fully excepted in both communities. I'm really grateful that you chose to talk about this topic, because it helps people like me to be more at ease and to feel understood. Thanks for doing that. P.S.: I love your Videos. They always make me laugh.

[@asemnagata1515]

I'm half Japanese and half Arabic. My mother (the Japanese half) passed away when I was young, and as a result, almost all my connections to the Japanese culture, language, etc... were severed since my childhood. Every time I introduce myself as Japanese to people but explain that I basically have no knowledge of the country, I get looks of surprise and as a result, made me feel like an impostor. This has resulted in me not truly knowing where I belong; I've lived and spoken in Arabic for almost all my life, yet my looks clearly indicate that I'm not fully Arabic, and the same thing goes for Japan, but culturally. I'm starting to learn about Japan now though, to try and honor the memory of my mother, with most of my most precious memories of her being when she used to encourage me and my siblings to learn Japanese. It's a hard road to get to know who I truly am, but it is one that I have come to understand is an integral part of my personal growth and self-acceptance. Also, I really wanna read manga raws.

[@dafaqu694]

Keep working dude, I know japanese is hard and all but, 頑張れ

[@lillyie]

impostor someone has played too much among us

[@theconcernedcomrade]

نتعلم ياباني معاك :) انا من سوريا

[@mono8476]

i love that last bit 😆💜

[@everydayfun9531]

Damm you have both cultures nice to know its good to keep both ur arabic and japanese culture bro i wish i could learn to speak japanese but its so hard.

[@thexenosaiyan]

Indian but born American here. I really love this video because you've summarized a lot of my thoughts as well. You talked about a problem that a lot of people have very clearly in your own personal way. I especially loved the Bridge metaphor because I've felt similar before, and I really like how you explained that you chose both (all four?) sides of your heritage. I admit that I haven't embraced being an Indian as much as I have American, even though I can speak and understand both languages, I'm illiterate in the Indian language. This has inspired me a bit to try and finally sit down and learn how to write in Tamil. Thank you

[@SpartanTrigger]

I kinda have the same experience as my parents are immigrants from Greece to the USA , so growing up my first language was Greek and I saw myself as Greek first then American Even now I still kind myself doing that at times as my family in Greece sees me as American more so than anything

[@aravindkm2012]

I'm Indian from Tamilnadu and can't write tamil.

[@SpartanTrigger]

Chocolate Thunder we kinda have that same thing in the USA for most groups Even different white ethnic groups Where the older generation of people from your ethnic home country don’t see you as fully “their group “ due to cultural differences and sometimes the language barrier

[@stargazingsupineslop7323]

Yea I always feel bad when talking to my relatives while knowing very little Telugu

[@suhridguha2560]

Even in India there are people who wanted to be white I guess... people have always told me to learn English and how it would be good for me. Now that I am older I have started to learn my language at a greater depth than I ever learnt before cause when I was a child I thought knowing English is sufficient. My English vocabulary is actually wider than my native language. I am trilingual but it used to be very difficult for me to read bangla(my native tongue). But now after 3-4 years to trying I feel more connected to my roots and I think that is very important.

[@onlyonGraceXM]

This is such a beautiful and emotional video and I thank you for sharing~ I'm also mixed-Chinese and Irish, born in the US-and I found parts of this really relatable, especially the bridge. I remember as a child, I was in Chinese dance class, but then I would see Irish river dancing and be interested in that as well, but question if I could truly be a part of it. It bled into my Chinese classes as well when my friends left and I started to feel out of place by myself surrounded by full-Chinese people, constantly feeling like there was just /something/ I was missing that they needed to give me so I could belong. After harrowing teenage years full of various crises and then gradually and painfully overcoming them, I realized that instead of forcing myself down one path or the other, I could make my own-prioritizing the love and acceptance that I needed to give myself instead of figuring out if, when, and how I could get it from others. Anyway, before I get too long and sappy, thank you again for sharing your story and I hope you are and continuing to grow and be happy

[@lotusspades6812]

Oi! I relate soooo much to this. I was born in New Zealand to one French/Maori parent and one Japanese parent. My parents got separated and I had to go live in japan in the country outside of Tokyo and it was hard! I definitely had the negative thoughts of Hafu for so long and even went as far as to deny my Japanese side for so long. As an adult now I am finally accepting ALL of who i am and it's nice just being able to love and accept all of myself. Now I am a proud Hafu and just doing what makes me happy! Which is getting into voice acting/Music. Thank you again for this video you have a new subscriber in me!

[@bwibbleman1984]

As a pure Hungarian who lives in Australia I never faced any discrimination but I want to say thank you for showing such a personal and vulnerable chapter of your life that others can learn from and relate to. Keep doing what you are doing. We all love it!

[@gherkingaming3988]

i remember someone i knew was Hungarian

[@tinilily]

I'm half hungarian half german. I guess unless you have visual cues that show you're half something or something else than where you live you just pass as a local unless you open your mouth.

[@mittao86]

Last time i check, hungarian is considered as white and Australia have white european. So why will you face discrimination?

[@tinilily]

​@@mittao86 Because descrimination goes farther than skin colour. In Germany it's foreigners in general that are discriminated against. It's called "Ausländerfeindlich" ("Ausländer" - foreigner). My first boyfriend turned out to be fairly foreigner hating/disliking (out of ignorance and improved with my talking sense into him). His friends were really surprised (and happy) to find out he started dating a "foreign" girl. Of course you get spotted easier as a foreigner when you look different, it doesn't mean that it's limited to only those though.

[@CTGrell]

Some Hungarians are here. Good. I hoped so 😂

[@nanotcg2557]

Joey: the bridge between the Japanese world and the Australian world......the true.....Avatar!!!

[@theweedeater1842]

so a upside down weeb

[@roastyrockets4626]

Don’t forget filthy frank

[@saemitatsuya8419]

I’m a Canadian/Japanese split and I spent most of life in Canada and recently (2 and a half years ago) to attend a Japanese high school. Anime made learning Japanese a lot easier but it definitely was not the core reason for learning it either. I definitely felt like I wanted to be able to interact with a culture imbedded within one half of my family. As for being called a “half” I embrace it. As said in the vid, it definitely feels like you’re standing in the middle of a bridge. For me I was able to embrace the view from the bridge and enjoy it. I also find it kinda funny how I feel more Japanese in Canada and more Canadian in Japan. When my friends call me a half it is always out of admiration and I’m blessed to have a great group of friends who, albeit understand the difference in upbringing, can see beyond it and like me for who I am. Finally the learning of Japanese. I was lucky that my father (Japanese) was adamant on only speaking Japanese to me and so I was able to (partially) communicate. Unfortunately I never really got myself to be able to read and write. That was until the sudden decision to go to a Japanese school. I crammed all the elementary school level kanji and my head in 3 months and I took entrance exams and managed to pass one. After that it was just a matter of time as my brain just absorbed the surrounding language as I got used to the Japanese high school life. I am a firm believer that exposing yourself to a language by listening to it is the easiest way to learn a language and strongly encourage anime subs for learning Japanese. I hope you found my little story interesting and if you have questions feel free to reply!

[@Claudia-lt6gb]

Being 50% Turkish and 50% English and spending half of my childhood in Australia, I seriously relate to the bridge thing, its really difficult when Australia is so far from the rest of my family, and then living in the UK as I am now and have been for a long time, I still feel connected and drawn to Australia. I don't think that feeling will ever go away, I am drawn to a lot of Australian youtubers because I feel like I relate more to them than British ones sometimes, but I think nomatter where I am I will feel torn 🤷🏻‍♀️ . It's nice to hear someone talking about this though I feel like it's an underrepresented topic

[@akiki__art2685]

I was born half japanese half English my father was Japanese and my mother was English. I myself was born in Japan but I was raised in Manchester when I was around eight years old my parents died and I was adopted by a very nice Puerto Rican lady who took me in as her own and we moved to America. While growing up my classmates would not be the best kids out there and would always make fun of my name which is Akira and I also have a middle name which is Kristian and they would always tell Tell me to pick one or the other that I couldn’t be both and I grew up like that and eventually they found out that I was being raised Hispanic which made it even worse however as time went by and I went to middle school where I finally reconnected myself with my Japanese side by finding a group of people who were reading manga at the lunch table I had the guts to ask them what they were reading and they were very kind and introduced me into anime At first it took me awhile to get into it because I was trying to be as American as I could so that I could blend in, Eventually they made me feel like I was normal for being half Japanese have English and I eventually to started watching anime and reading manga. That made me feel like part of something today I’m 21 years old and I’m currently working on my animation so t once I’m done with school so that I can follow my current dream which is to become animator and maybe one day Have my own manga

[@ankaplanka]

They made fun of you because of your name? I find Akira to be one of the coolest Japanese names ever! I'm glad you have found yourself though ^^

[@kanamiakagi7427]

Making fun of name it's not good because your name is cool. Akira are awesome name in Japan. And also do your own good for your future my dude. 😁

[@lemonboy186]

Well good luck on that dream!

[@voltgaming2213]

Akiki__art yea that’s great, idiots make fun of names , ignore them ,hope your manga is successful

[@akiki__art2685]

Thank you all so much. It feels nice getting positive feedback after I opened up about this.

[@virgomobius5177]

As one who is Japanese and Mexican, I've had quite a few of the same feelings and I've also felt kind of divided between those two cultures and top it off living in America where neither culture has a particular emphasis. Unfortunately where I live isn't the best to practice Japanese and never got the chance to practice at home with my dad as he immigrated at a very early age. Knowing that another person had the same thoughts floating around gives me a little solace. It was nice to have this niche situation sort of thing be able to be relatable to one I've been following for a while. Keep up the good work my dude.

[@soseikiharagatatsu7859]

That's rough buddy

[@Gomitasd]

c mamut

[@haleyvallarta-sheridan9054]

Hey I really relate to your story, I’m not half Japanese, but actually half Filipino and half Irish. I totally resonate with your struggles with feeling obligated to learn a language throughly to be “enough”. I too don’t look like the typical person associated with my Asian ethnicity, but you really helped me gain some perspective in being associated with your culture in spirit. Really well made and insightful video :)

[@cryinginnihongo]

I’m a ハーフ and it’s a pretty common thing to have random people go “wowww you’re half?? That’s so cool” and have other people go like “eh, you’re a hafu? Ok whatever” so i really relate to this 10/10. You feel foreign in both countries by how people treat you and you just don’t know what to do.

[@toastchan]

100% agree 😭

[@DoraTheRoasta]

Sad

[@emmatamago]

私も！The identity crisis is real lol, it really is difficult never knowing where you truly belong in the world :((

[@koray3774]

i can really relate to your last sentence. I'm not half anything, both my parents are turkish but I was born in germany. My parents never really made an effort to teach me turkish and whenever we'd go to turkey (almost every year) i just feel so lost because i can't speak or really understand my own language. I look really turkish so people in germany automatically think/know i'm a foreigner, but when i'm in turkey i'm pretty much a foreigner as well, not being able to speak the language or knowing much about my own culture. feels like no matter where i am there isn't really a country where i really belong to.

[@lrnzdc7199]

I just don't get it why Humans waste time hating people while they can use that time to make their lives better. Please Explain

[@SinCosILoveIt]

i dont know man. i really dont.

[@noone3367]

I don't think it is hate. People have pride of their culture which is totally fine.

[@ujrkingdom]

It's a sociological function. When people become isolated from each other for an extended amount of time and develop into separate groups, almost instinctively we create an "us vs them" scenario and this extends not just into ethnicity or race, but also religion, nationality, culture etc. I would say its a fairly recent development that we're becoming more aware of our inherent racism and prejudice on a global scale. Given enough time with this level of global interaction and this too will end. Pop in an alien invasion somewhere and you can speed it up faster.

[@noone3367]

@@ujrkingdom What do you mean by "our inherent racism"

[@ujrkingdom]

@@noone3367 I think because of the way societies function, almost every single person on this planet, barring a few individuals, would at a base level view themselves as being an almost different "breed" of human from others and especially so in a social scale. In other words, a person on bare instinct would view other cultures/other peoples as being so alien to them as if to think they're not "normal" people. We of course have our differences. We're not all the same. But when we look in communal contexts, I think the reason why we act in this "us vs them" framework comes from this lack of understanding of how we view our fellow human. You can see some level of this "inherent racism" in every civilization and society that's popped up on this planet in the last ten thousand years. And in most contexts its been used to refer to the "other" as a savage. It's only very recently, in the last hundred years, that we've started moving away from this but not fully. And this to me seems like an inherent trait whenever societies pop up; it's not at all intrinsic to an individual but a symptom of a societal norm that's existed since the dawn of civilization. Most people nowadays move past it, but I'm not convinced they ever fully get rid of it and won't be able to unless their world-view or society is radically restructured to account for all peoples instead of just a sub-section. I think the latter would be more likely.

[@Jeejington]

Next thing Joey is going to tell us he found out his grandfather on his mother's side surname was Kujo. Joey Kujo. Jojo.

[@ShuOgawa]

Joey’s Japanese last name is “Kamijou”

[@Roshsell]

You were one of the initial sparks for me that got me to start learning Japanese and get interested in Japanese culture. I think you're doing a great job at inspiring people!

[@robynney.8776]

This is relatable in so many ways. I'm half and born in Japan, but raised in US. My Japanese parent stayed in Japan after my parents split. I tried to keep up my language, but having little to no immersion was just too difficult, so I never really got to learn the language fully. But I'm determined to keep chipping away at it so I can one day reach out to my Japanese relatives and reconnect.

[@rajicasas]

I wonder if Filthyfrank and you ever had a chance to talk about this. He's half Japanese / half Australian

[@lllris9336]

I would love to watch that ngl.

[@agush_co]

What happened to him btw?

[@spoopep]

@@agush_co lmao he started doing music "seriously" You may know him as Joji ?

[@twisterrrrr]

@@iAnnaOMG he's doing justin bieber numbers, he's more than pretty successful 😳 can't believe he was a youtuber first lol

[@analkalita5050]

@@twisterrrrr he got one of the most interesting character development for an artist

[@valentinagarrett4821]

mixed kids can get overshadowed by both cultures as being "not enough," and it's always refreshing and relatable to see someone talk about this experience. much love from a half-filipino/dutch+german American

[@ErikPT]

America is different as we are all mixed be it White European blood or pure pure ethnic tribal culture mixed with other old tribes and then there’s us Latinos. Yep, the old Latino generation identified as American nowadays, my generation is just that Latino it’s a gap between first generation Latino Americans and fourth generation Latino Americans.

[@srikrishnabhat6793]

I liked this serious video which showed the perspective of a person from a mixed descent. Just wanted to say though, I hope you are alright mentally (you know, not depressed and all) because, to me, this video did feel like it popped up from nowhere :).

[@DannysMyNanny]

I'm a hafu as well (german, French, and irish. But I've never really been in touch with my European roots) living in America. I've always felt more in touch with my Japanese heritage, mainly most of my mom's side of the family is from Honolulu. So much of the Japanese, and other Asians cultures, are present there. When I was middle school and high school, I definitely felt this conflict. Of whether I was Japanese enough or American enough. But its all about how you want to fell and what your heritage means to you personally. I embrace my Japanese heritage, but I'm a full blown American. To me its very special. I have the privilege of experiencing both cultures. To me, that is my identity. I feel both equally Japanese as I do American. To link back to Joey's point about feeling like you're on a bridge, i feel like I've created a landmass that links the two side together. A happy medium where I don't have to worry about how Japanese or American someone perceives me as. I'm comfortable being who I am. Thanks for coming to my TedTalk.

[@ai_land]

私もハーフです、I'm a New Zealand born Japanese-Kuwaiti, so I too had often had difficulty with my identity. I can speak english, japanese and arabic (not as fluent in arabic tho), but i always felt this way when visiting family in Japan, it's kinda hard to feel completely at home because no matter what you do, the people of your background won't ever really see you as one of them. でも、最近は、people are more accepting and used to it i guess!? loved the video joeyy it was really relateable and nice to hear someone go through similar things!!

[@CollMomo1]

talk about a mix !

[@Linck192]

wow that's really cool, I wonder how it feels to be familiar and close to three so different languages and cultures

[@ai_land]

@@Linck192 its cool because i get to experience so many different cultures to be apart of, but then again i can’t really pick so its hard to fit into one as well

[@ai_land]

@Sanjay Gupta actually, since i’m also half Kuwaiti, and my dad is muslim, that made me practise islam as well,,, so it was really heartbreaking for me to know that a community of something muslims found safe, was no longer as safe as we thought?? and my family actually knew some people who sadly passed away in that shooting, so it hit close to home :(

[@Voicelet]

I'm envious of hafu people growing up in bilingual environment though. Learning new language when you're not in the vicinity of a native is a struggle. I'm three-quarter Chinese but I know jack-squat about the language because I'm the third generation down the line and everybody speaks the local language, even my parents don't know Chinese.

[@acrsclspdrcls1365]

Same here, I am quarter-Chinese through my father's side, yet I don't know any Chinese. He and his mother don't know any either too.

[@maybelx9547]

Agree. I’m second gen Chinese, my family speak a Chinese dialect. Being “Chinese” but not Chinese, always had identity crisis, but now I’m just too tired to think about it. Now when someone ask me if I’m Chinese/from China I just said no, and told them where I am from. Because that’s the truth. And it’s easier..

[@user-kr3hd1sn5p]

There are bad points too. I'm half Bulgarian Japanese living in France (i'm 15) and I can speak 3 languages, but none of them perfectly. I know more complicated French words because of school, I can express my feelings/personnality in Japanese way better, and I know more dialectal Bulgarian. I sometimes don't know how to act. I'm thankfull to my friends that can understand how I feel and not calling me just weird.

[@saraperlstein]

I know the feeling. I'm 100% Danish and grew up surrounded by Danish only, so I've always been envious of bilinguals. I speak 6 languages now though, including Japanese, so it's not like you're doomed to monolingualism just from growing up monolingual :D

[@eunyounguzun2597]

Im fully turkish, but live in the Netherlands (a country that uses alot of english (not that everyone is fluent in english here) and I speak also 3 launguages (dutch, english and turkish). Though I understand and speak in all three languages, I also make a lot of grammer mistakes (in all 3 languages) and forget words (sometimes i combine all 3 languages to be able to communicate 😅😅😅 ahaha).

[@_adonisk]

The Weeb Man: Do I Hate Being Half-Japanese Living in Japan? GiggUK: The Best Waifu of 2020

[@Nova67827]

Hotel trivago?

[@ssyxji659]

XD

[@nad.cosplays6675]

I'm 50% Chinese, 50% Bulgarian, born and raised in Canada. I speak English and French and despite my best efforts I can't speak Mandarin nor Bulgarian. We speak English at home since it's the common language. I can't speak to my relatives aside from a few sentences I have memorized. Your metaphor about the bridge really spoke to me. Sometimes I feel like I'm standing at a crossroads between China, Bulgaria, and Canada. I really admire your perseverance to take the difficult path and integrate yourself into Japanese culture. I wish I could do the same a lot of the time. I'm going to keep trying to learn Mandarin and Bulgarian and speak to my relatives, and your story really motivates me when I feel down on my luck. Thank you for sharing it. Sometimes I feel like I don't really belong in any culture, so it's nice to hear that other people are like me. It's strange not being "Chinese enough" nor "Bulgarian enough" nor "Canadian enough" to fit into any category. I've struggled with my lack of identity a lot. It's strange and lonely. But hearing your story makes it feel like being mixed is an identity of its own. Thank you for sharing, Joey. And thank you for reading.

[@Katt245]

I'm not mixed, but while my parents are both from one country, I was born in an entierly different country and brought up there. So I kind of know how much that bridge can be consuming at some point. It's not totally the same thing but I do totally get the feeling.

[@Japester702]

Same

[@localskoomadealer6593]

i’m boring lol. My family’s been living in canada for hundreds of years

[@knekko8396]

I’ m in the same situation and I think the most troublesome aspect of it is being considered a tourist by the inhabitants. Like I am 100% chinese but I always lived in France and its kinda hard when someone starts talking to you in english because he thinks I am chinese.

[@tentaclepornman8909]

theres something ive noticed about half asian half white kids (i live in singapore, many kids are halfies here) - most half koreans look very korean (with bigger eyes or paler skin) - most half japanese look more white - most half chinese looks more white - most half thai look very thai (but a lot paler and slightly different nose shapes) - most half malaysians look very white i am half korean half white i can confirm that i look a lot more korean than white, some people confuse me as a full blooded korean person who was born with very big eyes.

[@sandraharris8978]

now you have me thinking about me two half-Korean friends... and you're right. Though, when my male half-Korean friend grows a beard and cuts his hair into the military-style... WE GET THE RUSSIAN HITMAN. Very scary.

[@nickryan6787]

Cool 👁👄👁👍 (from malaysia)

[@MyCherryLondon]

I'm half thai, half french, born and raised in France. I have met many half-thais and most of them look 90% european...so I have to disagree with this one I guess it depends on where they were raised

[@fenrirr22]

@@MyCherryLondon Look at Gigguk, he is half Thai ( at least I think he is not full) and resembles like a Thai person but with some European features.

[@Joey-xy9qw]

yo fellow singaporean! i have a half white half malaysian friend and oh boy he looks completely white😂

[@Billion_1]

Half Japanese? Half Australian? Are you secretly filthy frank?

[@vogel2499]

Filthy frank isn't half Japanese/australian, at least not anymore. He was resurrected and became a God to defeat chin-chin before he was killed again.

[@Billion_1]

@@vogel2499 that's not the end of our boi filthy frank, the mantle of filth was passed on. I think you know what I'm talking about.

[@sailor7388]

The yin and yang of KZbin, anime man and filthy frank

[@aaronbarragan8339]

After saying orewa ochinchin ga dasiuki nandayo for so long, I just found out what it means :(

[@Friday1970]

As a father to two "hafu" Japanese girls, when that time comes when they decide who and what they are, I hope the video will help me to understand what they will go through. Thanks for this video.

[@kohenm]

My blood is fully Japanese, but I was born in Australia. Although I speak Japanese at home I speak English everywhere else and I think I would consider myself both Australian and Japanese, even though I'm not really in blood. It's probably why I understand what you were saying about the bridge and choosing one would mean dropping one. I'm glad Australia is a multi cultural country where the face(blood) doesn't really matter and it's more of the accent that people are caring about. In Japan I'm considered a full Japanese and I am able to live up to the standard, and in Australia I'm considered a Australian, and I can live up to it too, although there's no clear standard in what allows you to become a person of a country. I like the situation and the way I am now and I would like to keep being a full Japanese, full Australian. What I'm afraid of though is if I happen to move somewhere else I feel like I would be losing my Australian side since there's nothing identifying me as an Australian, except for my accent which would eventually fade away if I live away from Australia. Thanks for the great video.

[@ImSarius]

As an Australian as well (though having no real ethnic divide in my family or identity), something I've always thought of Australia was that "Anyone can be Australian". Maybe it was my father saying something to that effect during my childhood, or maybe it was just a particularly multicultural upbringing (the area I live in has a high percentage of various Asian populations + my high school had lots of Greek/Italian families in the community). But I always felt as though, no matter if you were born here, if your family had lived here for generations or for only one, immigrated here, lived here for a few years of your life, as long as you like the place, you're Australian. Maybe it's a bit of a surface level look at it, but when I think about it, it comes down to what you could consider the stereotypical "Australian identity" being rather skin deep. I'm a classic looking Australian bloke: white, 6'3, brown hair, strong jaw. But when you take that same profile and slap a British accent on it, I'm British. Give me a Scandinavian accent, I'm Scandinavian. I'm any of something like 5 wildly different ethnicities based on my just changing up my accent. My ethnicity is that unspecific. What actually makes me Australian? Because it certainly isn't my ethnicity. If I go live in America to follow my career in future, would it wash away the fact that I'm Australian and supplant that with American? I could certainly look the part. I don't think so. Being Australian has nothing to do with what you look like, sound like, or what you are ethnically. Really, we're just a conglomeration of people that have been hanging out on a big rock in the middle of the ocean for a couple hundred years (and a hell of a lot longer than that in the case of the Indigenous population). So if you left Australia to pursue bigger and better things, Australia won't leave you. You'll still have been shaped by the experiences you had here, the people you grew up around, the culture we have and the perspective on life you gained because you grew up here. It's a valued part of your personal history that will effect the way that you experience the rest of the world whether you know it or not. And then, after you come back and visit from wherever life took you, after however many years away, you'll speak to family and old friends and your accent will be back in full Australian bogan in no time. That's my look on it anyway :)

[@kohenm]

@@ImSarius yeah I guess it's not my accent it's about the memories and the experience living in Australia. Thanks for the detailed explanation. It gave me real confidence.

[@s.s.a8741]

My ethnicity is fully Kurdish but I have lived in Australia between the ages of 1 - 11 and 17 - now (19) for the rest I have lived in Kurdistan. I also consider myself both Australian and Kurdish, since it was ingrained in my head in primary school (harmony day, etc..) that anyone who is a citizen of Australia is an Australian. Personally I dont really relate to the bridge metaphor as I can see myself blending into both the Kurdish crowd and Australian crowd. I am so proud of Australia and the values I think all Australian's share.

[@TopShelfization]

aussies will obviously notice the accent on a surface level but more importantly, that way of life that expats get homesick for, are what's actually important imo. People who love Australia, i think know that way of life, that attitude, that i'm talking about but it's hard for me to put into words.

[@phoenix94258]

Here's my hafu experience.... I'm a hafu raised in a trilingual environment(I'm fluent in Japanese, Dutch and Portuguese). I've been to a Japanese school(in the Netherlands), Dutch school and an international school. As much as I love Japan and its culture, I do think a lot of Japanese people are racist and that that can really be painful especially at a young age. When I went to a Japanese primary school, I got bullied for some time just because I was a hafu. No other reason. Kids would make so much fun of my foreign surname, and even say things like I don't smell Japanese. I also had to constantly prove my self to be just as good or even better than the others with school grades in order to be taken seriously. I've never experienced these things in the other non-Japanese schools. The one thing that got me through those moments, and eventually got me really good friends was manga and anime. I honestly think I would have ended up hating Japan without manga and anime..... This shit had mostly happened when I was 8-10 years old but it had really given me and identity crisis, because I didn't think I'd ever be respected by Japanese people. (It felt like having 3 languages on the 1st place of the podium, but one of them refuses to step on it because they think I'm not qualified enough to even put them on a podium?) Later when I was in my late teens I realized that people online, who didn't see my face had absolutely no clue that I wasn't Japanese. Thus through social media I also finally felt like I also am just as Japanese as fully Japanese people. Now I've totally got'n over it, and as I said in the beginning I really love Japan and it's culture. And I'm very grateful to have had the opportunity to even go to a Japanese school. It was really interesting to hear your story Joey, could really relate to some things. Thanks for sharing! Also I wanted to add that I found you and other hafu's on KZbin super inspiring and you helped me a lot building confidence. You've been an amazing role model and a great inspiration to me in a time where (I felt like) there wasn't many representation of hafu's in mainstream media. Thank you.

[@Meeeeey99]

Gostei muito de conhecer a sua história, grata por compartilhar :3 Sou brasileira e vou estudar japonês no Japão em breve, acho muito importante conhecer e pesquisar sobre as partes mais difíceis da cultura japonesa, para não idealizar o Japão, e assim, tirá-lo do pedestal que nós, otakus, comumente o colocamos. Conhecer as perspectivas japonesas sobre os hafu contribuiu para esse processo. Enfim, poderia ter escrito tudo isso em inglês mas você disse que também é fluente em português entao preferi conversar usando essa nossa língua ❤️

[@weefyeet6177]

Dude, you're wrong I think you're quadrilingual! You can speak epic English! That's mind blowing that you can speak four languages and I'm sitting here with like 2.1-2.2 lingual.

[@LittleSparklingStars]

I’m so sorry that happened to you.

[@zahra9890]

woww dat is zo cool, dat je 3 talig bent opgevoed. ik vind het heel erg voor je wat je hebt meegemaakt, maar vergeet niet hoe epic het is om tot zo veel nationaliteiten te behoren en zo veel talen te kunnen. dat kunnen al die pesters niet zeggen

[@phoenix94258]

​@mstrblik True. Kids are brutal. But I should clarify that I went to a private Japanese primary school, and I went to a dutch public primary school. I also joined multiple dutch after school sports clubs. However I've never experienced as much picking on as I had in the Japanese school. Also I often wouldn't be invited to parties because my mom wasn't super fluid in Japanese, and she also had a lot of trouble with discrimination because of that. So I guess the kids learn to act the way they do from the parents. After years of interacting with them they kinda got used to me and my mom so things got waaaaay better when I was 12ish. But again, this is just my experience.

[@hammyhamilton3310]

half german/hungarian half japaneses all you are missing Italian and you could make your own axis anime

[@Mrjlp]

Ja!!!

[@appleslover]

AUSTRIAN TOO

[@Ebonforge]

Both of my boys are half. Born in Japan. It’s nice to see someone else’s perspective on how they have balanced the division between two cultures. I work with my boys often on their Japanese, trying to find ways to keep both sides of their heritage alive. They’ve got it pretty easy on the language side of things as “jiji and baba” both speak English pretty well. But I want them to grow up with as many options as possible to choose their own destiny. Thanks for sharing!

[@kiritoken1180]

I can feel his seriousness from the tone of his voice..

[@shinkio7]

Is half-japanese/australian Me: damn can't relate but I feel you.

[@alphazion4354]

Wow I really loved the video! I'm also a hafu (blackanese) and I think we all go through a bit if an identity crisis. I feel like I've been on the bridge your talking about. I feel like I will never be accepted sometimes. It's sometimes hard to find your place. But I really enjoyed hearing your perspective. I don't think there's one way to look at things but I this video made me feel a bit better. I feel like yeah I can do both because I am both. I should really be more proud of myself and I think others should to. Being a hafu is pretty cool you get to see different cultures and it gives you a wider perspective in my opinion.

[@Maneon]

Hey man half Filipino Aussie. You're doing a banger of a job, love it!

[@hezekiahkit4970]

I’m half German, half Shepherd. I’ll walk myself out.

[@sreenivas6071]

Please do

[@KdVSerpentinit]

Guter Hund! Sitz! :D

[@butter6442]

So you only take care of your flock half the time?

[@moeel-sheikh5885]

SONOVABITCH

[@DannyMexen9]

Not without your collar you won't

[@luciopingitore5102]

I think a lot of people make a big deal about being “halfu” im a half Italian half Spanish dude born in Argentina, I’m pretty much a salad of nationalities. When I was little the other kids used to bully me because my surname was different or because my family was from other places. Regardless of how other people view us, we have to be proud of being raised under different cultures and just don’t make a big deal out of it, you are who you are bro. Great vid joey massive fan of your content, keep it up!

[@unrulyrhyme7139]

Ayy dito espero que estes libre de bullying hermano.... Tienes preferencias o te encanta Argentina?

[@Criszgz22]

Pero en Argentina la mayoría son descendientes de Españoles e Italianos...no entiendo el bullying; pero supongo que desgraciadamente, si los niños quieren ser desagradables con alguien, encontrarán una excusa. Lo lamento.

[@luciopingitore5102]

@@unrulyrhyme7139 ya tengo 18 casi, nadie me jode por esas cosas ya xd. Argentina es donde nací, pero viendo la situación actual del país, me gusta cada vez menos...

[@ShadowWolfNInja1]

I feel this!

[@japanrain7436]

Yo siento lo mismo, tal vez es un poco utopico querer irse a japon, pero cualquier lugar que no sea Argentina suena como el paraiso... Con perdon a mi pais natal, Argentina :'(

[@crazy4oj]

I am Hafu, and I find your story inspiring. When I was younger, I was less aware of my Japanese decent and what it meant to me. Unfortunately, I did not find out until late high school that I was interested in learning the language, where in comparison, it is much easier to internalize multiple languages at a young age. I have attempted teaching myself but the structure and planning to do so has been difficult. I hope that soon I will have the motivation and time to deliberately learn the language that embodies half of my heritage. To relate my feelings to your analogy, I am strolling along the bridge where I can clearly see land behind me with an seemingly infinite bridge ahead of me. I feel like I've missed the express train across.

[@johndwhite1972]

I came to your channel after watching Abroad in Japan. This was really so well done. Mad respect.

[@fatalshot0093]

I'm half American (Caucasian), half Filipino. Culturally-speaking, I grew up 100% American. My Filipino mother never taught me Tagalog and I've only been to the Philippines when I was 4. Even if I behave like the average American, people who see me for the first time tend to think I'm from *insert any Latin American/Spanish-speaking country*. There was one time when I was 16 I asked for a job application at a fast food restaurant, they gave me a copy in Spanish. Fortunately today, I do speak enough Spanish to confuse native speakers and have them think that I'm not from the US.

[@edgelord6215]

fatalshot009 dude I’m also half white (specifically half English) and I’m half Filipino, my mum didn’t teach me Tagalog or Cebuano but I grew up culturally 50% English 50% Filipino. I can easily change from both cultures.

[@r9zes]

i honestly feel this on a spiritual level, even though i’m 100% chinese and born in china, i moved to america when i was 4 years old and i never put any time into learning my native tongue and my culture. i still see myself as chinese because that is my ethnicity but people around me always see me more as an american than a chinese and it’s really difficult trying to discover who i am. thank you for making this video

[@ruedelta]

As far as I can tell, the only barrier to entry is really the language part. Everything else is what you make of it. China's a big place and Chinese people even bigger, be confident in your own self-assessment. Don't let anyone take that away from you.

[@r9zes]

Rufei thank you 🥺🎫

[@cyanicmidnight484]

I’m half filipino and japanese. My dad is japanese and my mom is filipino. Ever since I was a kid, I had an identity crisis… I detested that I was half. I got bullied a lot too when I was young, to the point I questioned why was I still born. I’m just abnormal. I felt that I will never belong in any of the side. I have always dreamt of just leaving this world since I was young. It’s just too painful. Till now I still cant accept myself… but your video gave me a bit more hope. Thank you!

[@astonia131]

I love the bridge analogy. I seriously feel that. As a half-Irish/half English person (Irish dad/English mum), I used to take for granted that my parents would take me back to both places to see my family regularly. It was just normal. Then, after 9 years away, I went back to Ireland for the first time as an adult and spent a solid month there (would've stayed longer if I could've found work in my field). I felt for a while like I had to prove my Irishness to the world as I didn't have the accent (I sound like Chris Broad) and I've never lived there, even if I'm a full on passport carrying Éireannach. But after learning the history, learning at least a tiny bit of the Irish language, and partaking in my local Irish community, its made me feel a lot more connected and comfortable with my identity. And though I might never live and work there, it'll always be a place I'll come back to forever. I don't feel stuck on the bridge. I have the privilege call either end of the bridge home. And thats pretty cool. :)

[@grimhope6966]

This was really nice. I wish we could get more things like this. Cause' my God, this was a nice change of pace.

[@kimuracchi]

I've always wondered what your thoughts are being a hafu ever since I found out that you are one. I've mostly heard negative stories about them (when living in Japan) so that curiosity deepened ever since I got to hear you talk more about your life in the Trash Taste Podcast. Sufficing to say, this was a great video Joey! Really loved your writing on this one! I don't mind hearing more personal stories from you when you feel like making videos like this one :D

[@jakelieberman2455]

Honestly amazing way to put it. Fellow hafu here and very relatable. Live in Miami, Florida and been one of the only people with a Japanese background to live in the city all my life so had no friends to speak Japanese to besides my mother's friends :(. Been quite a struggle with my identity and has been really hard to motivate myself to learn Japanese fully (not just conversational but also reading and writing), but still learning anyway! Love the way you put it and all the best.

[@skelecvnt]

there's a lot in this video I can't relate to but also a lot that I can being mixed. I'm from across the ditch, I'm half māori half nz euro. honestly navigating the journey of finding your identity as a mixed person is so hard. I feel like we're a relatively new... phenomenon? lol. by that I mean it's only really in the past fifty years or so that mixed numbers have been significantly rising it seems. there's no template set out for us on how to live honoring all sides of ourselves, we have to tread the uncharted path and find our own way. im very involved in the māori community here in aotearoa and where I live in particular there's so many mixed māori, lots of mixed kids who are lonely and needing guidance. regardless of what cultures you come from I feel like there's a shared experience and understanding between all mixed people which is why I really appreciate that you've shared your journey here, people need to know that they're not alone in this ✊️

[@pocketlizarddd4549]

I love this video. I really enjoy hearing other mixed ppl (no matter what races) speak about how they feel about their cultures. Ive always struggled with being mixed, and still am so i really love hearing other people's point of views..

[@nyeeesz]

Hungarian weeb here... Nice knowing that the Hent1 Man is a quarter hungarian! Love you fam

[@oliverlevai5092]

i feel you broo same here

[@zerg230]

Yep!

[@djanitatiana]

Beautiful discussion & philosophy Grant, the super power of hafu unlocked. As an anglo bg aussie, very envious of the extraordinary richness of cultural heritage you have coming to you from both ancestries.

[@usa_py0n]

Half Chinese, quarter Malaysian and quarter Indonesian, born and raised in Indonesia. I'll be frank, you were my inspiration into learning mandarin more fluently. Few years back, I absolutely detested studying it in school (Indonesian schools have three mandatory language classes, Indonesian, English and a person's "mother tongue". In my case, Chinese/mandarin.) After finding out about your heritage and later on your fluency in the language, I felt... encouraged, pushed, and driven to studying mandarin better. I'm still learning it at a rather slow pace and I won't be fluent in it anytime soon, but I'll continue doing my best! 我非常感谢你, [Anime Man]！

[@m.c.r4997]

Semangatt!! Kamu pasti bisa

[@Okay-pk5el]

I am not half but i was born from 2 Chinese parents in England. I am now hoping to start learning Chinese, Japanese and Korean. Thank you so much for this video. Having people being able to relate too, is very supportive.

[@callmeplez813]

learn Chinese, than Japanese, finally Korean

[@Okay-pk5el]

@@callmeplez813 I already know how to speak Chinese so I'm only starting to learn to write/read. But I'll take ur advice on learning Japanese then Korean.

[@kujaa1831]

Actually it's better to learn Japanese first and then the other 2 simply because Japanese is more like a combination of Chinese and Korean. A lot of kanji characters derive from Chinese characters and the grammar in Japanese is very similar to grammar in Korean.

[@windslayerr11]

Take it easy, learn one at a time, don't burn yourself out.

[@callmeplez813]

@@Okay-pk5el Japanese is easier when you know Chinese because you can read and write the Kanji. You can probably learn all of hiragana and katakana in under 4 month with doulingo. IDK much about korean tho but I hear that it's alphabet is ez but pronouncing it is hard af.

[@TheKanaRenee]

This was very interesting. My 2 month old son is half white American and half Filipino and I have wondered more than once if he would struggle with his identity, speaking Tagalog with his father and his father's family and speaking English with me, visiting his family in the Philippines (while also having to travel to visit his family in the US since we live in the south and his relatives live in the midwest), etc. Even down to filling out paperwork which asks your ethnicity and race-- how will he know what to select? I feel a bit more aware having listened to your own story and hopefully it will help me be supportive to my son when he reaches an age where he begins questioning these things himself. Being inclusive to allow him to make these choices himself will be important and something his father and I will strive for!

[@PokeProfSunny]

As a South Asian who grew up in a small town in the South and mostly around white people, the biggest advice I’d give you for your son is to move somewhere with more diversity and closer to filipino culture/family and there were also inevitably be more half asian kids there too. Growing up where I did I only meet one half asian kid and a handful of asians but when I went to college on the west coast it seemed like every other person I was friends with was half something There are many half kids like him out there so he won’t be as alone in that struggle as you might think at first

[@kingwolfboss6144]

@Águila701 Do still go to school because you sound like someone I know

[@_Adie]

I'm half-Polish half-Tanzanian, born and raised in Poland. For those who don't know - Poland is extremely homogenous in virtually any aspect. Ethnicity, religion, language, culture. It's a goddamn Slav country, and Tanzania is in Africa. From my earliest memories I knew I was different. The problem is: no matter how hard I convice myself, I'll never feel fully Polish. I just don't look Polish, you know what I mean? Polish is my native language, I know the history, the culture of Poland. There's no any other way of putting it, I AM Polish... right? I remember when in high school we were talking about WWII and the Warsaw Uprising. The teacher asked "What would you do in this situation?" I had no answer in my head other than "idk, not exist?" And I know that was completely besides the point of the question, but it was really hard for me to think about anything else. On the other hand, I may look Tanzanian, but I don't know anything about the place. Never been there. Never met that side of the family. Unfortunately, my father never decided to teach us the language or the culture. So this sense of belonging is kind of lost on me. I know I'm home, but... I don't think much about this these days, though. Cultural identity is such a weird thing, man. I know it wouldn't fix anything really, but at least being born in a country like USA, or any other that's not extremely homogenous, would maybe make it a bit easier.

[@anngeorge467]

i'm sorry man. you'll figure it out for yourself soon. much love💗

[@bornana269]

Oh I understand... I live in Poland too, and while I’m a white person I know how close minded people here are... dasz radę

[@dylananderson3004]

Damn that's rough man defo less homogenous countries it's way easier but I can't speak much as I'm fully 1 ethnicity

[@eideanbotha8655]

I am from South Africa and half English and half Afrikaans. Although the cultures are similar, the languages are not. I learned to understand Afrikaans from a young age because we saw that side of the family more, but I only learned to speak it from when I was about 10 or so. It's strange, I am 23 now and fluent in Afrikaans, but some members of my family don't speak Afrikaans with me - I feel excluded when that happens. When you spoke about being on a bridge between two worlds, that really spoke to me. I feel like that two and I have no idea how to connect the two worlds. It has taken some time, but my family are slowly starting to speak more Afrikaans with me, and it has taken a lot of work. Imagine speaking to your Gran in her language and she always replies in English even though she is uncomfortable with it and knows you understand her in her native tongue. It has taken years of many such discussions just to get to reply in Afrikaans, but I am so relieved with the progress I am making. It feels like they are finally starting to accept the Afrikaans side of me and understanding that I am more than an English person. Thank you for the video, it was refreshing to hear someone else speak about a topic that I feel is going to become more relevant now with how easy it is to meet people from other countries and cultures. Keep well to all reading this. Gelukkige groete aan almal.

[@YoshimieYutaka]

I've never felt a sense of nationality. When people asked, I say something along the lines of my parents are from there but I was born here.

[@magnoliascarlett8347]

This is so true, the video also applies to people born and raised in a country when their parents and family are from another, especially if they speak both languages fluently... And then you're just stuck between your everyday life, friends, work and your family, your past, your origins.

[@fionatauriel8267]

Hi Joey! Thank you for making this video. It encapsulates how I’ve felt about my life growing up as half American and half Hungarian. I live in America, but every summer I travel to my Hungarian family. Going there was always the highlight of my life. I fell in love with the culture and the country. The language is pretty hard, but like you, I learned it because, even as a child, I knew that I wanted to be able to interact with my loved ones and actually feel Hungarian. I love both of my halves, but I feel as though I’m exactly that, two halves and not whole, as I can never be in both places at once. Hearing your story and seeing the other comments helps me to realize that there are so many people that have this same feeling. Here’s to all of us finding our place in this world!

[@aikozairishmiura2036]

I`m a hafu too!! I`m half Japanese and half Filipino and my biggest problem now is picking where to live `cause apparently Japan only allows dual citizenship before the age of 22. I`ve lived in Japan for about 2 years before so I can communicate but it really is hard to learn how to read and write. I am planning to choose Japan for my citizenship before I become 22 (btw I`m 17 this year) so I will try my best to learn the language and culture more deeply! Thank you for this video! I think a lot of us hafu really needed this kind of vid. Oh! I also wanna share this story. When I was, I think in 4th grade in a Japanese school, the teacher told us to introduce ourselves and at that time I was not that good at the language yet and I didn`t really know much about the norms back then so I introduced myself as an otaku, but then my teacher gave me a strange look so I thought she didn`t understand what I said so I tried explaining that I was an anime lover and I eventually just gave up `cause I thought that they didn`t understand me. That was the first time I felt the stigma of being an otaku, but that didn`t necessarily stop me from liking anime nor hating Japan in itself! I still love Japan and being an otaku from this day and I will never be ashamed of it! I hope you all also don`t let those kinds of things stop you from loving something you really love! Also, if any of you have any tips on how to study Japanese efficiently I would really appreciate it! Thanks!

[@skytracing4055]

The editing is freaking good. Nice video. Feels like something from the heart.

[@Kimokuras]

great video, man. i can relate to this a lot. i'm a half japanese / filipino, who grew up and was raised in austria- my languages are all over the place (tagalog, japanese AND german) the lack of identity i had for both my countries and it's culture would grow every year until i was 14. now while i don't struggle with understanding tagalog (with a few exceptions, words are difficult especially if i have never heard of it.), i don't speak it and i'm not sure if i ever will. my family tends to make fun of my pronouncing, so i mostly speak it when no one can hesr me. i can read it, understand it but i cannot speak it, simply because my austrian / german accent is embarrassing. that being said: i study every day. however my dad, the japanese one, had left me with no contact or anything. so my japanese connections were completely cut. fortunately my brother, who lives japan, would finally meet me in person and sooner or later he helped me pick up japanese more and more. i was never connected to my japanese side until i met him. he eventually would get me to japan and show me around. the culture is so vastly different yet a little familiar, as i'm asian. a lot of the cultural things i have from the philippines. (take off shoes inside the house, thanking for the meal. not all of it, but some.) so i was familiar with a lot of japanese etiquettes. however, i look more filipino than japanese! so a lot of japanese people wonder whether i am half. some may even avoid me for my looks, however the surprise on their face always entertains me and i still study japanese to this day! it's been 4 years and i'm getting better with each passing day. hopefully by one day, i'll be fluent enough to not ask my brother how to read kanjis, haha.

[@MadCapybaraRX]

Awesome speak Joey. I would like to share my personal views here. I'm a Brazilian-born sansei dude who lived most of my life in my homeland. My family until my generation is mostly of Japanese blood and upbringing, so I'm always in contact with Japanese culture and behaviors in some way. I lived a few years in Japan along with my dekasegi parents, so I have faint memories of the times I lived there, which I hold very dear to me till these days - fun times indeed. I came back to Brazil as a 4-year old kid who spoke only Japanese, and re-learned Brazilian Portuguese in a two-year period. I lost my kid-level fluency in Japanese, but I kept some understanding of listening and learned to read Japanese because I like manga and anime. Because of my very Japanese family, so is my upbringing, which makes my way of thinking more Japanese than Brazilian. I'm not warmth or talkative as Brazilians are usually known for. I can be more noisy, upfront and expose my personal opinions more often than the average Japanese. I understand the differences, quirks and awkwardness of both cultures. I feel everything about my identity sits in the middle in regards of being more Brazilian or Japanese - I'm kind of proud of such "balanced stats". But in a RPG, balanced stats almost never bring expressive advantages, and I think that also applies to identity and belonging. What still stings me even being already in my 30's is the feeling of awkwardness and non-belonging to the place I lived most of my life. There's also prejudice against Asian people in Brazil - which only worsens the displacement feeling. I might adapt to living in Japan if at some point in my life I decide to leave Brazil, but I'm almost fully certain the native Japanese people would never accept me as a full Japanese there because of my not-full Japanese upbringing. I am not fond of certain Japanese habits and behaviors, like their difficult to be upfront, the rigid paternalist hierarchy, and the warped visions of the well-being of the collective before the individual. Oh, and don't even get me started on the work culture there. So, even not being a haafu, I kind of understand the "being in the middle of a bridge" feeling you talked about in the video. I do have a similar feeling of not belonging to both people, although in a more upbringing/cultural level. I feel it doesn't matter if I stay in Brazil or leave and start a new life in Japan, I will never get rid of the sensation of displacement: I will never be a pure Brazilian or Japanese. I kind of accepted that and am more chill nowadays, because I believe that makes me and many other people like me unique in a certain way. Also, almost my entire family lives in Brazil, so I don't have many reasons to leave Brazil and start living in Japan.

[@BakaTaco]

Hey, I just wanted to say that I really love your story and I appreciate you talking from the heart.

[@LuizaPena]

Ei Cris! Muito legal ler sobre a sua história. Faz a gente pensar sobre essa "indentidade mista" que temos no Brazil, mas que muitas vezes não é a das mais inclusivas né? Eu venho percebendo esse racismo asiático recentemente, e tentado não usar termos como "japa" ou "xing-ling". Sempre temos algo a aprender então é bom ver os depoimentos das pessoas sobre isso.

[@vc993]

I’m a New York born Japanese Peruvian. I speak very little Japanese and my Spanish is decent enough. When I was a child I had the privilege of visiting my family in Kanagawa. While in the train two older Japanese men started talking and pointing at me and my family and I heard one of them say “gaijin”. It wasn’t till I got back to NY that a teacher explained what that meant. Growing up I was never Peruvian enough because of my basic Spanish and I wasn’t even considered Japanese. Thank you for making this video. I know it’s an uncomfortable subject to talk about. You inspire me to learn Japanese. Keep up the great work! Mahal kita 💕

[@TheHihatiha]

What a lovely video. My family is from Greenland but I was raised in Denmark. Even tho it is technically “the same country”, there is a HUGE cultural difference. Growing up I wasn’t sure where I belonged. In Denmark, I was bullied for being from Greenland. But amongst the Inuit people, I wasn’t a pure greenlandic girl, because I couldn’t speak the language. But I love both cultures and I am very proud to be both danish and an Inuit. 🇩🇰🇬🇱