Street Shot – 02

光と影 – light and shadow – 2022 Yokohama

Japan is suffering from high prices. It is not easy for those at the bottom to survive.
Although there are many high-income earners living in Naka-ku, Yokohama’s most prestigious district, there are also many street dwellers who cannot even afford a place to sleep, let alone a household on welfare.
Most of the street dwellers keep their bedding and other belongings in a corner of the street during the day, and in the evening they move to a highway or a corner of a building where they can shelter from the rain and dew, where they spend the night. Failure to move their household goods would result in their “property” being removed or discarded by the management.

On the other hand, those who believe that the corona is no longer at its peak go out into the streets to enjoy their temporary freedom after a long period of crippling living. On holidays and weekends, the downtown area is abnormally crowded with waves of people.

物価高にあえぐ日本。最底辺者たちが生きていくのは容易ではない。
横浜の一等地とも言える中区内には高額所得者も多く暮らしているが、生活保護世帯はおろか、寝泊まりする住居さえ持てない路上生活者も多く生きている。
路上生活者の大半は、日中、寝具などを道路の片隅などに留置し、夕刻になると雨露が凌げる高速道路やビルの片隅になどに移動して、夜を過ごす。家財の移動作業を怠ると、彼らの「財産」は管理者によって撤去や廃棄されてしまうからだ。

一方、コロナの最盛期を脱したと考える人々は、長い間の不自由だった暮らしから、一時の自由を謳歌しようと街に繰り出す。祭日や週末の繁華街は人々の波で異常な混雑を呈している。