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Lehman shock’s impact on the Japanese Brazilian community in Japan (Portuguese)

(Portuguese)

This, this crisis sure made a difference, right, because ... At the time of the crisis, the Brazilians began going back because at that time Brazil was doing better than Japan. I mean, maybe not like, better, but things were picking up, see what I mean? So folks were already thinking of returning to Brazil, ya know, to set up their own business. So ... It's ... Huh … All the shopkeepers were affected. Especially those who had invested a lotta money; those big shopkeepers, who had a big store, who depended on the Brazilian folks [as customers], ya know?

Ah ... But today – I mean, not today. After the earthquake, there was also that – there was the crisis, so folks were already going back to Brazil. And then came the earthquake, and everything came tumbling down … So they left, mostly families, ya know? Yeah, people got scared of the, what do you call it, ra ... Radiation, ain’t it? So folks, mostly families ... Well, they at least sent their children [back to Brazil] ... And the wife [sic], they left for Brazil, too, see? That sure made a whole lotta difference.

But even with this, this difference of ... of crisis, earthquake … But ya know, it’s still a country where we can get by. Still can. Because we’re not dependent only on foreigners; we also have the Japanese clientele these days, ya know, who has become so used to Brazilian food and all that, ya know? So that's how we’ve managed to get by, see?


bankruptsy dekasegi foreign workers Global Financial Crisis, 2008-2009 Japanese Brazilians Japanese Brazilians in Japan Lehman Brothers (firm) Lehman shock (slang) Nikkei in Japan

Date: October 19, 2016

Location: Gunma, Japan

Interviewer: Shigeru Kojima

Contributed by: Watase Media Arts Center, Japanese American National Museum

Interviewee Bio

Antonio Shinkiti Shikota was born on September 12, 1962, in the city of Campinas, São Paulo state, Brazil. His parents were born in Japan. Wanting to start his own business, he followed a friend’s advice and went to Japan. Initially, he worked as a factory worker and ended up liking it so he stayed in the country. Today, he lives in the city of Oizumi and he is the owner of an itinerant Brazilian products store in Japan. The itinerant store is a truck that offers a variety of Brazilian products directed mainly at the Nikkei public. Antonio is very fond of living in Japan and the city of Oizumi. (February 2018) 

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