Visible Minorities: Karen Hill Anton’s Willful Ignorance of History
A prominent spokesperson within Japan’s foreign community won’t admit racism happens in Japan unless it rises to the level of racism in America.
Tag Archives: Japan Times
Visible Minorities: Takaichi’s PM Election Changes My Projections
The recent election of Sanae Takaichi as leader of the LDP probably means Japan’s first woman PM. But this is a huge step back for Japan’s democracy and diversity.
Visible Minorities: International Tourism Has Been Good for Japan
Short-sighted criticisms about Japan being “overtouristed” may spoil things. Don’t let the debate backfire into racialized policymaking.
Visible Minorities: MAGA’s Roots in Japan
How Japan treats its non-citizen residents and diverse communities is a bellwether for how future neofascist demagogues in other countries will treat their minority voices and views.
Visible Minorities: “Overtourism” As Racism
Some Japanese need to stop blaming the tourists for doing what they asked them to do—come here and enjoy themselves.
Visible Minorities: Memory-Holing the “Japanese Only” Signs
Exclusionary businesses have a long history in Japan, and people seem to be forgetting it. Here’s a reminder from somebody who has studied them more than anybody.
Visible Minorities: Remilitarization is a Bad Idea
Pushing Japan to remilitarize was never, and still is not, a good idea. This is not just because an arms race in Asia is the last thing the region needs. But also because Japan, consistently unable to face up to its own history, is simply not the country to represent the world’s liberal democracies in Asia, especially as a military power.
Karen Hill Anton: Hope, Strength, Grace
Breast Pocket Mountain by Karen Hill Anton tells a story of self-discovery in rural Japan, which fills the reader with hope. Karen, a New Yorker, ends up raising a bicultural family, becomes a writer for the Japan Times, a teacher of modern dance, and a Shodo calligraphy practitioner of merit.
Visible Minorities: Never Forget Japan’s Racist Covid Policies
This month Japan finally lifted its Covid restrictions and reopened its borders to tourists. Well, whoop-de-doo.
Visible Minorities: Abe’s Assassination and the Revenge of History
The assassination of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has occasioned a lot of valuable, eye-opening discussions in the media, but few if any have focused upon how Abe’s death could be seen as a form of karmic payback–what happens when you ignore the lessons of history in the pursuit of raw political power.
