jarkolicious

Japanese Racism and Xenophobia Alive and On Sale at National Convenience Store Chains

• japan

JapanProbe is running a story about a Japanese “mook” that was recently published by Eichi entitled “Gaijin Hanzai Ura File” or “Foreigner Crimes Secret File.” The mook, otherwise known as a combination of a magazine and book (hence the name “mook”), details suspected “crimes” by foreigners against Japanese citizens, mainly via pictures with overly exaggerated, racially motivated captions. The problem is that the depictions are not crimes at all, but images of average, every day people enjoying time together, all wrapped up in racist caricatures and captions.

This story is slowly breaking out all over the place. Fukumimi, Debito (P2, P3), Joi Ito, Guardian Unlimited, Japundit and Heisei Democracy are all covering this horrendous story of xenophobia.

Here is an example of one of the pages that can be found in this wonderfully educational piece of reading material:

Oi Nigger!! Get your fuckin’ hands off that Japanese lady’s ass!!

The image is an actual scan from a page in the mook, which clearly says “nigger” in katakana. This is just one of the many egregious insults hurled throughout the pages of the mook. Who gave the Japanese a license to use the “n-word” anyhow? I find that almost laughable.

While I value freedom of speech, one has to question the motivations of Eichi for publishing such a mook, along with the countless businesses that have decided to sell the item while prominently displaying it among other popular reading material. The mook has been found at convenience store chains, book store chains and a few other businesses that are spread all across Japan. This mook is being sold nationally across Japan.

As I said, I value freedom of speech therefore I do not believe that it is necessary to have this publication removed from the businesses that are selling it. Educating the Japanese is a far better manner in which to handle this. Comparing the number, and percentage, of “crimes” perpetrated by foreigners in comparison with those committed by Japanese citizens would be a good beginning towards demonstrating to the general public that foreigners are no worse than Japan’s very own citizens.

I get the feeling that the agenda of the authors of the book is not education but, instead, to portray pure, unadulterated xenophobia and nothing more. Either that, or the authors are completely incapable of picking up Japanese women on their own and are expressing mere jealously because of their inadequacies. Who knows their true intent, right?

The entirety of this mook is as far from politically correct that one can get. In a day and age where the Japanese government is attempting to lure foreign workers in to Japan, due to the heavily declining birth rate and work force, the publishing of “Gaijin Hanzai Ura File” could not have come at a more inopportune time. It is almost disgusting. Prominent display on the small convenience store magazine racks ensures that this trash publication will be seen by just about anyone. To each their own.

Japan is a society where the rationale behind moves that foreigners make is foremost on the minds of the Japanese citizens. Foreigners are watched like game shows; we are treated almost as if we are lab rats, with onlookers having that glowing curiosity twinkling in their eyes as we run amok amongst ourselves. Like being mesmerized by watching animals in a zoo. Much, not all, of Japanese society watches foreigners with the look that they are worried they might be attacked.

It would not surprise me one bit if the thoughts articulated in this mook are not too way off base from many Japanese citizens. Surely not all, nor even a majority, but a vast number of Japanese most definitely have private thoughts that run parallel with the sentiments expressed by the writers of “Gaijin Hanzai Ura File.”

So it comes as a major shock to most of us foreigners when we see such racism blatantly displayed, sitting prominently in the magazine rack, placed right next to the weekly tabloids and other nifty collections of imagery prose. We are reminded constantly that we are different, but now look what we have to remind everyone else that there are “differents” living among them. Not only that, but “differents” who are commiting such heinous crimes as holding hands with a Japanese female or kissing our loved one.

Hopefully the international pressure that the blogging community can place on Japan will someday force the country to change for the better. This is not to say that Japan is a bad place to live, but to demonstrate that there remains intolerance for foreigners by many Japanese citizens, which is a line of thinking that is in dire need of being wiped clean.

It should be interesting to see what the pressure of the blogging community will do in the instance of “Gaijin Hanzai Ura File.” Already, Debito was able to get Family Mart to pull the mook from their shelves within 7 days. Debito also has a letter written in Japanese and English, addressed to Family Mart management, for those who are interested in trying to help get the mook off their shelves sooner than later. I am not saying that I advocate the removal of such material, though if you feel the need to take such actions, Debito has made it that much easier for you.

Will the remaining vendors continue to sell this garbage or will they ignore the pleas of the many foreigners living in Japan, like many Japanese, and continue to sell such horrible racism in print?