Ableism: The Importance Of Welfare In The United States

Since the beginning of time, the golden rule has been this: treat others as one would want to be treated. In some countries, respect is highly revered and many implications of earning or receiving respect occur (bowing, shaking hands, etc.) But many people only apply their respect to others similar to their own likeness. Ableism, or discrimination against the disabled, is a very noticeable occurrence in today’s world, even in countries such as Japan where respect and honor are so important. It is often expected that the disabled are either taken care of by relatives and remain home or taught basic life skills and given a monthly or yearly sum of money (think of disability checks in the US but in yen), to get by on: but never given education

The same goes for Japan, and it was found in January of 2017 that 430,601 households that received welfare have disabled, sick, or injured family members either residing in or who are the head/owner of the household (Households on Welfare). Welfare in Japan depends on the local government of the prefecture, such as Tokyo or Hokkaido, while in the US it varies from state to state. The average minimum wage in Japan (similar welfare in terms of amount) is roughly seven hundred and eighty yen an hour, or six dollars and ninety four cents (Japan to Raise Minimum

On April 1st of 2016, Japan passed the “Law to Eliminate Discrimination against People with Disabilities,” in order to make the nation’s 7.8 million people with disabilities have easier lives. This law bans “unjust discrimination,” paired with private businesses and governments to create “reasonable accommodations.” Accommodations can be seen as illustrations to communicate, along with making areas more accessible. Organizations can be fined around two hundred thousand yen (one thousand, seven hundred and eighty-seven dollars) for unreported practices. While anyone can easily say that the law seems rather clear and helpful, some advocates state otherwise. Kiyoshi Harada, an official of the Japan Disability Forum, stated “The law does not clearly define what exactly constitutes discrimination” (New Law Bans Bias). Discrimination is a relative word to many people and varies in degrees. Calling someone “kurui” or “crazy” can be seen as discrimination, while refusing to provide something in Braille for a blind person can also be seen as discrimination. It is too relative and there would need to be a clearer definition of discrimination in the