“Now if any of you, sons of bitches,
got anything else to say, now it’s the fucking time!“– Kill Bill (2004)
On March 11, 2011, the bottom of the Japanese coast began to shake in a terrifying way. In a few moments a wave, 130 feet high, began to make its way to the area of Tohoku which would result in the death of over 16 thousand people. The entire world watched in shock the catastrophe while trying to assist the nation as quickly as possible. The first organization that was on scene, providing food, supplies, and other services, earned the respect of the locals by handling the issue way long before the government even. The people in charge of this rescue team are members of one of Japan’s most dangerous crime syndicates: the Yakuza.
As with other mafia’s throughout the world, the Yakuza has a hold on all illegal activity in the area. Their main activities seem to be prostitution and racketeering, and while many stay away from illegal drugs, there are others who are part of the drug or human trade. While similar groups may use extortion through the promise of “protection,” Yakuza intimidate shareholders during company meetings in order to acquire stocks.
This is what ultimately sets the Yakuza apart from other criminal organizations. This collective actually invests in big companies, including governmental ones, as well as realty. This group tends to move around and not stay in one place for too long. There’s evidence of their relations with other international crime syndicates as well as connections to weapons and drug trafficking.
According to the speech of an official of Japan’s Intelligence Agency, about 60% of Yakuza members are Burakumin, a historically marginalized group. Their story dates back to the eleventh century to an outcast community during the feudal era which was looked down on due to the perception surrounding those who had a working relationship with death, such as tanners, butchers, undertakers, and executioners. There’s another percentage of the organization believed to be related to different ethnic groups.Yakuza stand out because of their lifestyle. While some mob groups try to keep a low profile or not demonstrate any luxurious behavior, this felon society has acquired a sort of elite reputation as an extravagant and decadent group. This is because the population thinks of them as a quasi-legal organization due to their altruistic activities. There are even suggestions that there’s no criminal act in Japan that is not connected in some way to Yakuza, gaining them a sort of recognition as those who truly control the nation.
Photographer Anton Kusters felt compelled to find out what it would be like to be part of that exclusive group where, unless you’re young, is almost impossible to join. In his own words, “To understand what it means to have one foot in society while the other stays outside, that implies knowing that we’re good and bad guys at the same time.” So he began attempting to infiltrate in order to capture glimpses of that mysterious universe through his pictures.It took Kusters ten months to gain access into the organization, and he believes that it was his own experience as a person from two worlds that influenced the decision to allow him to take the pictures. His images are focused on the streets of Kabukicho, in downtown Tokyo.
Those the photographer encountered were not psychopaths, but regular individuals not unlike ourselves. They’re not the scandalous madmen presented by Quentin Tarantino in Kill Bill; instead he encountered people with their own jobs and concerns (though perhaps these are of a more complex nature). He explains that despite there not being any violence, there’s a slight pressure felt just by knowing that one is in a dangerous place, a setting where a slight mistake can have unthinkable consequences.
Kusters was fortunate enough to be invited to the funeral of a Yakuza member, which had never been captured before. The intimacy of the images leads us through the dark, mysterious streets of Tokyo alongside what appears to be businessmen. Well dressed and groomed, just like in a gangster movie, the Yakuza has an array of masks. Kusters was able to see one full of anguish, another with style, and yet we don’t see the darkness we hear so much of the one that is responsible for deaths and that indirectly controls the Japanese government.
The Yakuza, unlike any other mafia, maintains honor above all else. It’s an organization that considers itself a brotherhood. It’s governed by a set of values and hierarchy that creates the perfect machine.You can see more of the work of Anton Kusters here.Translated by María Suárez
