Historical records suggest that every society perceived hierarchy as a structure that should be imposed among its members.  Social classifications are universal and have significantly shaped interactions among human nature as spelled out in one’s role; as a leader and a follower; a teacher and a student or in a class; as rich and famous or poor and vulnerable.  It is evident that men have invented various ways to classify people- by possession and wealth; by ability and educational achievement; by responsibilities and occupation; or even by affiliations and ancestral linkages.

The term "social class" originally referred to groups of people holding similar roles that imply economic levels and capacities. Such roles correspond to different levels of status, prestige, and access to political power, which further refer to all aspects of a person's rank in the social hierarchy where he/she belongs.

The social class is not an objective description of a person himself; rather it is relative to class identity. In this sense, social class is not merely a personal attribute, but also a contextual variable that characterizes a group of people. In a general perspective, it is a shared culture of a particular class which is influenced by people's attitudes and lifestyle.  Furthermore, social class projects the kind of life a person have in the past; a determining factor of one person’s struggle to manipulate the current situation and the future role he/she wished to portray.

A minority or subordinate group is a sociological group that does not constitute a dominant plurality of the total population of a given society. A sociological minority is not necessarily a numerical minority — it may include any group that is disadvantaged with respect to a dominant group in terms of social status, education, employment, wealth political power, and ancestral lineage.

The Burakumin (referred to as Buraku people) is used to particularized descendants of the outcaste population based on various political, economic and social regulations of Japan’s  feudal days.  These people were assigned to dispense duties like slaughtering animals; executing criminals; others as tanners; and still others worked as beggars or street performers.  Under Shinto or Buddhist religious beliefs, these occupations were recognized as “ritually polluting”.  This core of beliefs remained to be the pillars of derogative characterization of the Burakumin in the past.

Although Burakumin may be view as a group that is situated in the lowest stratum of Japanese society, however; there is a distinct socio-economic differentiation within Burakumin communities. The higher level of their stratification mainly consists of better-educated, financially more secure, lower-middle-class small-business owners and administrators who now work outside buraku. Many Burakumin from this class were recipients of the support given by the government through Dowa measures and the Buraku Liberation movement.

A typical Burakumin of the lower level, however, would be under-educated, marginally employed, and often on a government relief program because of insufficient or unstable income. Migrant workers, day laborers, and some factory hands belong to this group.  Prevailing issues that were identified by a study conducted on January 2007, on social and gender equality included the following: increasing number of single mothers, access to child drop-in facilities, image of Dowa community is tremendously bad, less human interaction in the community level, Buraku parent’s education levels are typically low because they have been poor, working areas are limited and the constantly available jobs for them are characterized as kitanai, kiken, katai (dirty, dangerous and hard); Buraku women’s jobs are non-permanent, long working hours with lower wages; little access to information; and parent’s generations have less experience and no access to other work environment therefore no guidance for the kids in terms of educational pursuits; among others.

With this situation, the upper-class Burakumin are constantly at odds with the lower-class Burakumin, since they do not necessarily share the strong sense of alienation common among the lower-class Burakumin. Assimilation into mainstream Japanese society is a historically popular theme among them, and some even view lower-class Burakumin as a "burden" to their effort to eliminate discrimination through self-improvement.  In this respect it is noted that there is a great gap between these 2 level within the Buraku community.

In today’s transformation of Buraku communities we have seen the struggle of people towards social equity and gender equality which empower every Buraku to realize their full human potentials in order to evade him/her from all forms of social pressures.  However, the fight for social equity is even greater in the lower level since the opportunities for a better life seemed difficult as compared to those in the higher level.   Moreover, Buraku women are seen to be more vulnerable that with Buraku men.

Social equity as defined refers to a set of standards which apply to our personal and social relationships with o1ther individuals and/or groups. These standards consist of a bundle of rights and duties which apply to members of certain "classes" in society. These classes are defined by country and law, and categories of classes include: race, color, nationality, religious affiliations, gender, age, and physical disability. 

Generic definition of gender equality refers to a set of actions, attitudes, and assumptions that provide opportunities and create expectations about individuals which includes crucial dimension of democracy, social justice, and sustainability.  All individuals are expected to have received equitable treatment and achieve equitable outcomes in school and beyond.

A case of a middle-class Buraku woman is presented to depict the kind of life she lived and the opportunities which transformed her way of life and aspirations to free her from the realms of various historical events in the past, which could be a determining factor of the kind of role she will play for the liberation of Buraku from centuries of discrimination.

The interview was conducted at the Buraku Liberation and Human Rights Research Institute in Osaka, on January 19 and February 18 & 24, 2008 with the participant who is referred to as Ms. X in this study. 

Ms. X is single and she is in her 40s.  Having completed junior college, she hoped to land a job in a travel industry; however, due to absence of social infrastructure she was not able to join any company, but with the policy on priority employment system for Buraku people, she found herself doing general affairs in a government office.  Past events in her life gave her enough power to wade against many circumstances and until she was able to access to some learning opportunities where she eventually found a way to be more effective in life.  Currently, she is pursuing studies on human rights. 

The following are the views of Ms. X on the questions given.

Can you relate an example of Buraku women’s struggle to realize social equality? 

I have a brother.   My mother passed away and my father is old and not so healthy; therefore, needs to be taken care of.  My brother left the house because he married.  In the Japanese old concepts, women are expected to take care of their family.   I am a case using this familial concept.  I am expected to take care of my father because I am a woman.  Because of that, I don’t have enough time to prepare for improving my career at my work place or go to adult school at night.

Would you like to expand further on gender equality in lifelong learning?

Yes, I always have to take care of my father since 7 or 8 years ago.  I can’t go too far for upward career because of this family responsibility.   Since, I started studying about gender equality by myself, I understand the concept of the equal treatment between men and women, nevertheless, I often find myself to be working for my farther under the pressure from social expectation.

How do you cope with the current situation? Looking ahead 5 –10 years from now, how do you achieve your own goal of pursuing lifelong learning?

I once dream of studying English, hopefully going abroad to find a job.  But then, I was grounded because of so many pressures in life, common to many Japanese women of today.  The English school where I used to study; went out of business, my job kept me very busy and my mother died.  I could not concentrate with my English studies anymore after her mother’s death.   It is only this April 2006 that I have started taking a human right course at the Buraku Liberation and Human Rights Research Institute.  I have been hiding my Buraku origin in the past, but since then I really think about my identity and now wish to get engaged in human right activity as my life’s work.   I don’t know exactly what I can do for a job related with Buraku problems as of this moment because I have just started.   I would like to exert more efforts in studying issues on Buraku problems, leprosy, and gender equality.

Please relate you educational qualification and current work. How about your gender equality at your current environment?

I completed junior college.   When I first started working 20 years ago, I was the only woman at my office, one out of 39 men.  I was asked to prepare 39 people’s tea 3 times a day and was given only general affairs; this is the experience which I hated the most.  I asserted that I also wanted to do the same job as my male colleagues, and then my boss gradually started to give me this type of work.  Now, I belong to human rights department of Sakai City.  In general, male colleagues are aware of gender equality but they still tend to discriminate women.  For example, my boss does not order men staff to clean trash box, make hardcopies and bring car keys for him.   They are always women’s job.   Although it is perceived that men know about gender equality but no action, they are not sensitive enough.  For me, young men are more sensitive and I feel they are more responsive to the need that women should be given equal opportunities at the workplace. 

What is it that the government has not done yet to improve Buraku community?

In 1969, the government specially issued a limited law to support Buraku community.   Due to the result of exercise, texts are provided free of charge, childcare environment improved (from 4 years old to 2 years to 0.).  Although some implementation is done, I still feel discrimination towards Buraku people still exist up to now.   That feeling is not easily erased from people’s mind even with all the government programs and laws on social equity.

In which way can you say that a person is a Burakumin?

You can identify them from the address.  Buraku people live in the specific areas.  In case you move out from Buraku address, you can be identified by your family registration and resident register, and sometimes by detectives. 

Have you ever felt Buraku discrimination before?

Yes, I feel discriminated so many times.   The most unforgettable one is my uncle’s marriage discrimination.  He was married to a non Buraku woman.  The woman’s family and relatives all were against their marriage.  They didn’t attend their wedding and never kept in touch with her since then.  Another is the case of my brother, who had a non Buraku girl friend, because; of family’s pressure, in the end he got married to a different person with a Buraku origin. This marriage discrimination in the family has given me social pressures, therefore inhibiting myself getting involved with men who are not of Buraku origin.

Have you ever received a special scholarship for Buraku students?

I did.  I was encouraged to teach old literacy; challenged people at night or on weekends in exchange for the scholarship. It was a rewarding exercise.

Did you have problems at schools during your younger years?

I went to Buraku community elementary and junior school.   I applied to a high school, which was not in the Buraku community.  At that time, I was not intending to hide my origin but not address it to others as well.   So I was not really thinking about Buraku problems gradually at that time.   At the junior college when I was job hunting, I suddenly faced discrimination against Buraku community.   Although I had good grades at school, I wasn’t accepted by any travel industries.  My mother told me that I am subjected to job discrimination and she encouraged applying for the city of Sakai.  I used the priority employment system for Buraku people to apply for the city of Sakai.   I feel bad about experiencing this discrimination but because of the experiences, I now know that I want to work for human right activities.  I realize that people with and without experiencing discrimination think differently.   I am the only Buraku origin in my section at work. 

 Have you experienced gender discrimination in the past two years?

Yes, I do.  I just moved to the present section this year, before I was at the property tax department.  Dealing with tax for houses, this used to be men’s job.   Women were given only general affairs.  Men were treated, as professionals on main track and women were not.  I tried to help them, and learned their job, and took some jobs.  Although I was doing their job fine, sometimes one would say to me, “you are slowing me down, woman.”

Do you have any comments to the government about this gender equality problem at workplace? 

The city of Sakai is trying to reach the universal standard that UNESCO sets to introduce certain percentage of comprehensive workers at the office.  At my office, there are 7 of them and I am the only woman out of 7.  I am always a minority and therefore needs to make an extra effort to do something new or present my own ideas. 

The city is encouraging to increase the rate of women’s manager class workers.  But not so many women are willing to apply because of child-raising problems.  If they take the job, they can’t really take care of their children and not enough support is given, either.  A lot of people still think women should take care of their children and that is another social pressure that women face in terms of family responsibilities.    

 Are there community centers that women can learn something new in Buraku community? 

Not especially for women because we now claim for gender equity but there is community center in the community and both men and women take these courses. 

 If you were not from Buraku origin, do you think your life would change some way? 

Yes, I do greatly.  I still am very afraid to think about my own marriage because of marriage discrimination.  It always hurt a lot of people surrounding a couple.

My father’s educational qualification is junior high school graduate.  My mother is probably high school.  They don’t know much about higher education.  They only know about the Buraku community, about education and career outside of Buraku community.   I was not able to talk about my future with my parents.  A lot of parents still think that boys should have higher education to get a good job but not the same for girls.   And younger people also inherited this idea.  I feel now we face a “negative spiral”.  Our environment is better compared to the older days with newly introduced systems but there are still students dropping out of schools. Their aim in life, especially girls, is not so high.  Many girls wished to marry someone who would care for her.  Family culture has not changed much despite of the government efforts.  Girls, whose life’s goal is to be a domesticated wife, tend to marry at very young age and have babies will usually, fail in their marriage.  They are forced to make a living through welfare benefits and have a very difficult time to get a job because of luck of working experience.  It’s another negative spiral here, where women are losing hope for a brighter future.

Is there childcare support for working mothers?  Please state cases in your locality.

In Japan many people consider nursing a child is mother’s role and in many cases mothers are hesitant to leave their children for outside service for their leisure or some business.  The city of Sakai offers a paternity leave.  I have another good example of gender discrimination.   When schools issue a list of PTA board members, it is always men’s names are printed as members.  However, most of the activities are managed by women members.  My mother used to participate with Buraku liberation activity at night after work, and my father took care of me.   I may now consider that my parents were both socially equal.  My father was able to do all the house work.

What other social issues do you like to discuss?

Human interaction is lacking in this country. Parents are busy for work.  Children are under the pressure of studies. A couple does not have much time to talk.  Children overuse internet or cell phones.  When people marry at very younger age, have a baby, end up to divorce and receive support from the government, in many cases those kids are taken care of by gangsters or punks.  Many kids learn to use drugs in such Buraku environment. Another case is when father is too busy; mother is the one to take care of the kids. While kids are at school, the mother has no one to talk to, and results in addiction with Internet. Their kids in return also lose someone to talk to when mother is engrossed with the internet.  Also it is reported that children’s daily life cycle is now critical. Many children go to school without a breakfast, and they go to sleep late at night. They keep stress inside and one day they come out to bully others. 

Is bullying different in the past and present?

Yes.  When one is bullying others, someone was stopping him/her in the past.  Now no one stop the bullying because he/she is afraid of being targeted as well.  When bullying happened in the past, their teacher was making them talk to each other, but I hear now they don’t do this anymore.  

Are you aware of problems in the learning place?          

Dowa community has lower ratio of having NEET [young people Not in Education, Employment or Training.  One of the reasons is that because Dowa community has its special industry, therefore, it is easier for NEET to find a job. Outside of Dowa community, because human interaction is less, such opportunity is rare.  However, the research for Buraku problems has not yet conducted fully, so we don’t know what advantage and disadvantage Buraku community has.  The research for Buraku problems is not easy because it is always very sensitive topic and difficult to find Buraku people surveyed. Very few people would like to open their lives for public scrutiny and we are very sensitive when it comes to giving out our personal data.

It is noted in this case that Buraku women of the present times are having multi-dimensional character in their struggle for personal fulfillment.  Drawing the significance on how a middle aged woman live her life today amidst restless struggles and advocacy for fairness and justice is laying down the policies, programs, activities that could have been effective to uplift her status in society.  The roles she will play and will intend to partake are influence by her own personal fulfillment.  A woman can’t give what she doesn’t have.  She needs self-satisfaction before she could realize how she is able to significantly influence change in her community.

In the context of the Philippine Society; Muslims, about 5 percent of the total population, were the most significant minority in the Philippines. Although there is no distinct differentiation from other Filipinos, they are viewed to remain outside of the mainstream of society because of their religion and way of life. Various sectors believed that the longstanding economic struggle spring up because of governmental neglect and popular resentment because of prejudice against them contributed have contributed to the roots of Muslim insurgency of the present time.

The Philippine government in 1957 created a Commission for National Integration and later replaced by the Office of Muslim Affairs and Cultural Communities to focus on this social divide.  Further, in 1990 the Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao gave the Muslims control over some aspects of government but not security and foreign affair.  Much transformation occurred and has paved the way to increase migration outside the region, which then created educational demands and revitalized the roles of Muslim women. As years go by, greater assimilation in the main stream of Philippine society happened, even caused intermarriage with non-Muslims. Nevertheless, Muslims and Christians generally remained distinct societies that share thrusts, programs and reforms of the government.

A study conducted by Birte Brecht in 2005 on Muslim Women’s Leadership in the Southern Philippines a Discourse and Cultural Transformation was focused on the role of Filipino Muslim women as reformists in a minority society which could give another perspective on the roles being played by a minority.

The field of research is the area of Mindanao in the south of the Philippines. Concentrating especially on the Maranao in Lanao del Norte and Lanao del Sur.  The Maranao are allowed to follow a different set of laws than their Christian neighbors. This law had been established in 1977 and is called the Code of Muslim Personal Law of the Philippines. It deals with inheritance and family rights of Muslim people according to the Koran and is implemented through Sharia courts in Mindanao.  Maranao women were finally allowed to go to school and to receive general education, which made it possible for them to find a job and to take over public leading positions.  In getting into the lives of Maranao women, the researcher was able to conduct an interview with a young Maranao woman who studied at the University of the Philippines in Manila (Rohairah A. Lao) and quoted her:

“We have now many intelligent and promising Muslim women who have outperformed their male counterparts in certain fields – licensed lawyers, doctors [...], teachers, engineers and even politicians – whose intelligence and highly specialized skills in their chosen field are of a great help to the development of Muslim communities all over the world. But how could these well-educated and highly knowledgeable Muslimahs impart their knowledge and help develop their communities if doing such is forbidden by their very own religion Islam? I for one am having a hard time finding my way between reality and the teachings of my religion. “

The findings of the study revealed that Maranao women also have the possibility to occupy economical and political leadership positions in a community. However, the conflict that a woman in leadership can have one side perfecting a good Muslim; which means that the primarily concern, is her maternal role to the children and not considering her collaboration and engagements with men who are strangers to her as she continuously enhance her leadership qualities. The research findings further cited that in Islam the definition of woman leadership is diverse, depending on who defines the subject and what kind of leadership is concerned, provided however; that the first position in a public office should always belong to the man, a woman will only take it if the man is not able to take it.

In areas concerning the women's rights, there is always a difference in the man and woman’s perspectives in dealing with problems.  Very often the views differ according to the person’s frames of reference. However, both social and political outlooks are mainly bounded by the structures common to all Muslims. Nevertheless, the effects of the political leadership of women can be summarized with women serving as role models in their family and society, at the same time fulfilling all these responsibilities in the light of a Muslim’s reverence to their God.

In much diversity, what remained distinct in both cases presented is that: women of the present generation are being recognized as a significant player for development whether she is a buraku or a Muslim woman.  Given equal opportunity, they are able to spur positive change in many communities.  The social class where they belong is able to provide them the much needed support to handle a multi-dimensional role that they wished to undertake. However, the deficiencies of the social class, religious affiliations and the ancestral lineage will also become a hindrance on their performance of the responsibilities assigned to them. 

References:

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Neary, I. (1989) Political Protest and Social Control in Prewar Japan—The Suiheisha and the Origins of Buraku Liberation. Manchester, U.K.: Manchester University Press.

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Kitaguchi S. (1999) An Introduction to the Buraku Issue. Richmond, UK: Japan Library.

Upham, F. K. (1987) Law and Social Change in Postwar Japan. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.

Morgan, C.V. (2001). My Encounter with the Buraku People. Buraku Liberation Newsletter, No. 117; Osaka, Japan.

Lao, Rohairah A. (2003): A Muslimah and her Religion in the Modern World. In: http://www.bangsamoro.com/mvoice/mv_120103_a.php [01.07.05]

Pangandaman-Gania, Zenaida D. (1990): Factors Related to the Making of Contemporary Muslim Women Leaders in the Philippines. Dissertation. Quezon City: Philippine University Press.

Riemer, Carlton L. (1987): Maranao Maratabat and the Concepts of Pride, Honor, and Selfesteem. In: Dansalan Quarterly, VIII/4, 125-180.

Saber, Mamitua (1960): The Maratabat of the Maranao. In: The Muslim Filipinos. S. 230-234.

Tawano, Hadja Mo'fida Binolawan M. (1979): The Day I was Crowned. In: Mindanao Art and Culture. A non-periodical series publication. The Maranao Women. Number two.