Sumo in Japan: Does smoking a joint beat murder?
Former makuuchi division Russian wrestler, 20-year-old Toshinori Wakanoho (whose real name is Soslan Gagloev), under arrest for possessing marijuana, has told police that he first turned to drugs in his early teens, and that after he entered the sumo world he smoked dope every time he went home to Russia.
According to a statement Wakanoho made to police, he went to a nightclub in Tokyo’s Roppongi entertainment district by himself on June 20, where he was offered marijuana by a Russian man and a black man. He smoked the drug in the club’s restroom using a bong, or water pipe. Wakanoho then bought marijuana, two pipes and rolling papers from the black man for 20,000 yen. (さらに…)
Read Full Post | Make a Comment ( None so far )Do Japanese Women Make Better Wives?
That was the question posed by Jet Magazine in 1953. Many know that the most tenacious form of legal segregation in the United States (US), the banning of interracial marriage, was not fully lifted until the last anti-miscegenation laws were struck down in 1967 by the Supreme Court ruling in Loving v. Virginia. At that time, inter-racial marriage meant marriages between blacks and whites.
Changes in racial attitudes in the US over the last 30 years clearly played a major role in the mushrooming of inter-racial marriages, which were illegal in most states at the end of the 19th century. As recently as 1945, the legislature of California which, next to Hawaii, has become the country’s multi-racial state passed a law that banned marriage between whites and Negroes, mulattos, Mongolians (which included Chinese and Japanese), and Malays.
US Servicemen and Japanese Women
After World War II, however, the law began to change as U.S. servicemen married Japanese women, and as the civil rights movement began challenging anti-miscegenation laws in the courts. In 1967, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that all such laws were unconstitutional, although it took Alabama until 2000 to repeal its ban. (さらに…)
Read Full Post | Make a Comment ( None so far )E-Mobile Pulls Obama Inspired Advertisement
The Guardian and other newspapers have reported that the E-Mobile CM showing a monkey in a suit addressing an election rally was pulled. E-Mobile denies accusations of racism but has decided to pull the advertisement.
E-Mobile stressed it had used the macaque mascot in several other adverts and never intended to insult Obama but had decided to pull the “Change” ad in response to criticism in the blogosphere.
We at Black Tokyo applaud E-Mobile’s decision to remove the culturally insensitive advertisement. No matter what others think, this is not only a Japan issue nor is it an issue that is only important to Black Americans.
Some bloggers strongly disagreed with Black Tokyo’s decision to question E-Mobile’s advertisement. Sites such as Japan Probe believed that the average Japanese viewer could not make a connection between the E-Mobile CM and Senator Barack Obama’s campaign for Change. Instead, it was felt that the Japanese would draw a parallel to the Japanese television drama, Change, starring Kimura Takuya (Kimutaku).
According to UPI Asia Online, “83 percent [of the Japanese] were closely following the election coverage – slightly more than the 80 percent of Americans who took the same survey. Japan’s expat community on a popular blog mirrored the poll’s results: “Interesting how Americans could care less about who’s running for Japanese offices, but Japan is all over American candidates,” wrote one blogger. “America is the focus of attention quite frequently.”
E-Mobile’s chief executive, Sachio Semmoto, told Reuters: “We had no bad intentions, but this is a cross-cultural gap issue and we have to accept it. There are African-Americans in Japan, so we decided to take prompt action and shut down the ad.”
Read Full Post | Make a Comment ( 1 so far )The Black Tokyo Report 1
Wow! I have received many emails regarding my posts on E-Mobile’s commercial (CM) that parodies Senator Barack Obama’s campaign for Change. Many wrote to inform me that the CM is only a parody of a Japanese television drama. I try to keep an open mind but E-Mobile does not get a pass on this one!
As presented in my posts and comments, Blacks have had to combat negative images and stereotypes in Japan (and elsewhere). One can easily turn on the television in Japan to watch a variety of programs that still show the CONTINENT of Africa as some backwards land or Blacks in America and elsewhere as the problem to whatever plagues a country. With that said, there are also some positive portrayals of Blacks on Japanese television. I am just doing my part to make sure that there are more.
Other replies that I received asked: Why don’t you focus on more positive things? My reply: Who say’s that I don’t! Let’s just say that I am doing my part to present a positive image of Blacks and of America. When I proudly wore the US Marine Corps uniform, I presented myself, my service, my nation, and just as important my “image” as a Black male in the most positive manner. Why? That’s how I was raised and “conditioned.” Part of my conditioning comes from understanding the power of an image and power of positive action.
For example, when there is news in Japan on Blacks or negative press relating to the US Forces Japan, I try to get the “rest of the story” from my various sources in and around Japan not only to provide a fair and balance report but to get the ura (behind-the-scenes, on the street, or underground) Japan version. If you have followed the Black Tokyo Discussion Board for the past nine years, you know that I report on both the good and bad and I tend to not sugarcoat things!
Read Full Post | Make a Comment ( None so far )What Obama Drama? Stop Monkeying Around!
Well it seems like the foreign press picked up on my Obama is a Monkey in Japan? story. Addressing the E-Mobile CM is important to me because America, considered the richest and most powerful nation in the free world, is on the path of putting a Black male in the White House. Some folks are eager to point out that Obama is not really “Black” but biracial or multicultural. Some tried to give him the Tiger Woods moniker of self-identity. Some have felt that the one-drop rule can go by the wayside, while others equate the “other” side as being the “reason” for Obama’s successes. One minute Obama is Black, another he is not Black enough.
Now, if you throw a monkey into the mix, whether it was due to racist intent or just plain stupidity on the part of a manufacturer, advertiser, or E-Mobile, then it sort of keeps the kokujin (Black person) marginalized at the highest level. The funny (not really) part is that I have received emails telling me that Obama will have a tougher time dealing with the Republican party in his quest for the White House and that the E-Mobile CM is not a cause for me to get my Afro out of shape. I protested when a Japanese singing group wore blackface (to show their soul) and I got in the mix when the “new” release of Little Black Sambo hit Japan. Color me crazy I guess!
I have talked and blogged myself crazy on issues regarding Blacks in Japan. Blacks share many notable experiences and achievements in Japan but there is still work to be done in improving our image in Japanese society. The Black experience and the use of the Black Other in Japan as a tool, scapegoat, or invisible entity in Japanese media, political circles, businesses, and in other circles is something that must be examined and corrected.
Read Full Post | Make a Comment ( 3 so far )When is it not racism and just plain ol’ ignorance?
You know, People do not realize how colonized their minds are by stereotypes! This morning during breakfast I had time to read the numerous comments on my post, “Obama’s a Monkey in Japan?” Some of the comments were outright nasty and hateful; others were worthy of a reply. After breakfast, I decided to drive to the Apple Store in order to pick up a new Mac Book and other goodies to help me in my mission to finish my book. During my drive, I could not stop thinking about the replies I received. Even after my first attempt to further address the issue of using a monkey to parody Senator Obama, it seemed that I must continue to inform, educate, present, or piss off (please choose the appropriate word or add your own) those that read the Black Tokyo Blog.
My journey to Japan began with James Clavell’s movie Shogun. The reality of Japan hit me square in the head in 1981 when I touched down in the Land of the Rising Sun. Hopefully, I can help readers understand why “I” and others that have been a part of the BT Community for the past nine (9), yes nine, years discuss things in or about Japan from an Afro perspective. Our reality is not the same as “Gaijin-san.” Does this mean Japan is not welcoming for we Afro-types? Not by a long shot, I enjoy living here. We know where we stand (I couldn’t rightfully use kneel) as “non-Japanese” in a slow but evolving society that seeks international recognition on a broader scale.
Read Full Post | Make a Comment ( None so far )Africa: Is Black back for Japan, China, and the USA?
First, there is the negative aspect of it being a civilization that has become a nest for terrorism and AIDS. Second, Africa has become an important continent in terms of its economic aspects. The continent has moved remarkably into the international spotlight because of its natural resources. With rapid economic growth in such emerging countries as China and India, the demand for natural resources across the world has been rising.
Chinese President Hu Jintao has already traveled to 14 African countries and Premier Wen Jiabao has visited eight African countries over the past few years. Japan has embassies in 27 African countries, but China has 47 embassies. China aims to secure oil and mineral resources in Africa. China hosted the China-Africa Cooperation Forum in Beijing in 2006. In the meeting, China declared it would establish a development fund by investing $5 billion in it. Of China’s overseas aid to other countries of the world, more than 40% has been directed toward Africa. Africa has become a strategic target for China.
The problem about China’s moves is that the country spreads money around freely and without being fettered by any rules set by the OECD’s Development Assistance Committee (DAC), which are applied to the industrialized countries. All China wants is to do is secure resources. China doesn’t care to whom they grant money: human rights violators or dictators.
Meanwhile, Japan is an honest aid provider, but regrettably, the amount of aid provided by Japan is very small. Japan’s economic cooperation budget has been trimmed every year in the course of budget examination. As a result, the current budget is a 40% decrease from a decade ago because during that timeframe, the aid budget has been cut across the board in line with the principles for economic and fiscal management and structural reform concerning budget compilation. The budget for economic cooperation is now merely 1.5% of the general budget. It is possible to handle that budget as an exceptional case from budget cuts if a political decision is made to do so. ODA is a kind of world tax for Japan to survive in the world.
China has decided to donate a huge building to be used as the headquarters of the African Union (AU). This donation has gained publicity not only in Ethiopia, where the AU headquarters is located, but also all over Africa. All Japan can do about that is just watch.
Japan is to host the 4th round of the Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD) in Yokohama City. The session is to kick off on May 28. It is expected to be joined by representatives from 53 African countries. Of them, more than 40 countries will send their top leaders. This will be an unprecedented gathering of so many top leaders from Africa, but Japan has yet to gain momentum as a host country. One reason seems to lie in the fact that under the current public relations budget of the Japanese government, it is not allowed to create anything but a limited number of brochures and posters on the upcoming TICAD.
Drastic changes in relations between countries and economic competition are gaining impetus across the world. Africa’s population exceeds 900 million persons. It was unlikely in the past that destitute areas with an overcrowded population would grow economically, but now an overcrowded region is growing. Africa’s economic growth rates are higher than those of the Group of Eight industrialized countries. Africa’s economy is about to take off. Japan has succeeded in having more than 40 top leaders from Africa join the TICAD meeting. This is great. I praise the Japanese government’s efforts in this regard. Africa relies on Japan. Africa has began to walk on its own. This is to be noted. — END ARTICLE
“Poverty, hunger, infectious disease, conflict — words that readily come to mind when Japanese consider Africa.”
What it means to be a Black American
Well now that Black History MONTH is finally over and I no longer see a zillion fast food commercials and the same old commercialization of Blacks deemed safe to represent the Black race, my man Smokey Robinson breaks down the meaning of being a BLACK American. Enjoy!
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Black Tokyo Japan 
Is Gaijin a Racist Word or are N*ggers Over Reacting?
Posted on 9月 4, 2008. Filed under: Commentary, Culture & Society | タグ: african, African American, black, debito, Foreigner, Gaijin, gaikokujin, kokujin, racism, racist, zurui |
There has been much debate on the terms “gaijin” (foreign/outside person) and “nigger” lately in Japan among the foreign community. In a series of articles published in the Japan Times, professor, activist, and coauthor of the “Handbook for Newcomers, Migrants, and Immigrants, Arudou Debito comes out swinging. Here is his latest article: THE CASE FOR “GAIJIN” AS A RACIST WORD: THE SEQUEL – LET’S COME CLEAN ON “GAIJIN” [Published September 2, 2008 as “The ‘gaijin’ debate: Arudou responds”]
Last month’s column (JBC August 5) was on the word “gaijin”. I made the case that it is a racist word, one that reinforces an “us-and-them” rubric towards foreigners and their children in Japan. It generated a lot of debate. Good. Thanks for your time. Now let’s devote 700 more words to some issues raised.
Regarding the arguments about intent, i.e. “People use the word gaijin, but don’t mean it in a derogatory way”. The root issue here is, “Who decides whether a word is bad?” Is it the speaker using the word, or the person being addressed by it?
Ditto for the word gaijin. People like me who have lived here for many years, even assimilated to the point of taking citizenship, don’t want to be called “gaijin” anymore. We can be forgiven for taking umbrage, for not wanting to be pushed back into the pigeonhole. Don’t tell us who we are–we’ll decide for ourselves who we are, especially in our own country, thanks. So stoppit.
Now for the more controversial claim: my linking “gaijin” with “n*gg*r”. Although I was not equating their histories, I was drawing attention to their common effect–stripping societies of diversity.
You can read the rest of the article and numerous comments here.
Here is the response that I (Zurui) sent: (さらに…)