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Mar 14 2012 17 Comments

How Tokyo handles the homeless?

How many homeless there are in Tokyo is impossible to say, but there are a lot. Not as many as some cities, of course, but probably more than many people would imagine. Quite a few more in fact.

Those in the know also say the numbers are rising, although such suggestions are unnecessary, as even a cursory glance around many of the capital’s parks and open spaces confirm this to be the case. Where there was once solitary, makeshift accommodation, has now turned into what would best be described as encampments, and the sight of those on the streets appears to have become more damaged — not to mention desperate.

But just like many things in Tokyo, instead of being dealt with or even debated, it’s almost deftly ignored.

Tokyo homeless

Categorized: Current Affairs, Photography

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Hans ter Horst says

    3/14/2012 at 4:35 pm

    They really turn their backs on that homeless person. When I first visited Japan you could find these blue tents in the parks or playgrounds, or cardboard boxes under the underpasses, but are the homeless people forced to sleep on the pavement these days? Things have gotten grim!

    Reply
    • Lee says

      3/14/2012 at 6:12 pm

      Some, yes, although it’s still mostly boxes and ‘tents’ in parks and the like. But these days there are noticeably more of them.

      Reply
      • Ali Payton says

        3/15/2012 at 11:39 pm

        Is it safe to walk in the parks – do you consider that these people are a threat as I do see that you mention and increased ‘desperation’?

        Reply
        • Lee says

          3/15/2012 at 11:43 pm

          No, not in the slightest. Their plight is desperate, yes, but not their behaviour.

          Reply
  2. Antisthenes says

    3/14/2012 at 4:38 pm

    If we do not acknowledge the problem, it doesn’t exit; if we address it, we are forced to take responsibility for failure. “And so it goes…”

    Reply
    • Lee says

      3/14/2012 at 6:13 pm

      Yes, that’s sadly very true…

      Reply
  3. winnie says

    3/14/2012 at 8:57 pm

    This picture is making me sad. I saw quite a few time under the staircase of the overhead bridge too.
    Honestly speaking, I am lost on what I can do. Unable to help them too. I feel quite depressed or even useless.
    I am not being fake but just want to share my feelings about these situations.

    Reply
    • Lee says

      3/14/2012 at 11:10 pm

      I know exactly how you feel Winnie. Buying the Big Issue and the like obviously helps, but it doesn’t in any way begin to solve the problem.

      Reply
  4. Nora says

    3/14/2012 at 10:01 pm

    I also heard that if you’re homeless, you can just live in the cybercafes scattered around town, is this true?

    Reply
    • Lee says

      3/14/2012 at 11:24 pm

      You can stay in those places, but they still cost money. Internet cafes are often said to be popular places for the working poor — another group that gets very little coverage in Japan.

      Reply
      • Nora says

        3/17/2012 at 4:22 pm

        More reasons for each of us to count our blessings rather than whine about non significant things. By the way, I love all your pictures and one day I hope I’d get to go there and experience things myself! Cheers!

        Reply
        • Lee says

          3/17/2012 at 8:38 pm

          It does. Certainly puts things into perspective, that’s for sure.

          And thank you very much! I hope you manage to get here in the not too distant future. You’ll have a great time when you do.

          Reply
  5. D says

    3/15/2012 at 4:58 am

    I found it interesting that I saw more homeless people in a few weeks in Tokyo than in most of a year in Osaka.

    Reply
    • Lee says

      3/15/2012 at 1:47 pm

      That is interesting. Not spent much time in Osaka, but for some reason I assumed the problem would be just the same — possibly even worse.

      Reply
  6. jamie smith says

    3/15/2012 at 7:01 am

    Why he sleep there? I think is better to sleep under the trees or something can protect him from sunlight.

    Reply
    • Lee says

      3/15/2012 at 1:49 pm

      At this time of year in Tokyo, the sun offers some very welcome warmth. He’s presumably just making the most of it.

      Reply
  7. aAlex says

    3/16/2012 at 12:30 pm

    Yep, i did a photo article about homeless in Tokyo on my website : http://www.issekinicho.fr/blog-japon/photos/la-machine-a-broyer
    In french sorry ^_^

    Reply

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