ABSTRACT
The triple disaster that occurred on 11 March 2011 in the Fukushima region is seen as an “event” in this chapter, because it brought the very notions of human life, reproduction and the future of their ordinary meanings to the forefront. This article examines what it meant for the young generation, the age group most vulnerable to the insidious effects of exposure to radioactivity. The main attention is paid to the SEALDs youth movement, which expressed the fear of young people seeing their world organized in such a way that nuclear energy is deemed essential to its development. Members engaged in this movement showed an interest in politics that surprised many, and they provided a new framework for organizing a political community. Young people engaged in SEALDs, as any other young person in Japan today, have to negotiate a set of risks that were largely unknown to their parents. It seems that focus on these risks directs attention away from questions that would go further and challenge the current socioeconomic framework and capitalist system of Japan.
