[JoeAltmaier]

Don't get ahead of yourself there. Racial preferences are very common around the world. It becomes part of self-worth to value one's cohort above those that are seen as opressive. Such as the ubiquitous western culture in media.

Anyway, the melting pot of the USA has created a dialog about race that may be missing or very small elsewhere. Witness the apparent race-tone-deaf attitudes in Japanese mainstream, where being Japanese is so obviously superior to everyone else its baked into plots and dialog without apparently even noticing.

[huggingrear]

Japan is 98% ethnically homogenous, with the remaining 2% primarily consisting of Koreans and Chinese. I don't see why Japan would have any need for a discussion on 'race'.

[NoraCodes]

Japan is 98% ethnically homogeneous in part because of an immigration system that keeps foreigners from immigrating for work and in part because of lots of systemic racism - different from that in, say, the US, but still systemic - in Japanese society. It's not magic or an accident of history, it's due to social factors.

[Morgawr]

>because of an immigration system that keeps foreigners from immigrating for work

Okay so let me dispel this myth. I don't know when it started, how, and where, but Japan is not that hard to immigrate into if you have a job or are a student enrolled in a Japanese school. The biggest issue is probably the language and the fact that most jobs are in Japanese, but if you speak Japanese (or can find an English-speaking job) then it's not that hard to immigrate into Japan. Work visas are pretty easy to obtain. Permanent residency is relatively easy to obtain too, and even better, citizenship is even easier to obtain (although you have to renounce your former citizenship). With that in mind, the US are objectively harder to immigrate into compared to Japan, on paper at least.

Which brings me to...

>and in part because of lots of systemic racism

I think the main issue of Japan is just cultural and the language itself. A lot of what can come across as racism is just a misunderstanding of societal expectations and behavior. Language barriers are really hard to overcome and Japanese is one of the hardest language to learn if you come from an English speaking background (or most European languages, really). The fact that most people in Japan don't speak English well, and that they are a culture that is significantly different from a lot of the west doesn't help.

And yes, there is still quite a bit of sexism and racism (although I'd argue the latter is more from a position of "unknown" rather than actual hatred/disdain). Stuff is improving fortunately, but it takes time.

This said, I don't think racism and xenophobia as a whole, or the country's own immigration policies, are what are keeping Japan so non-diverse.

source: Live and work in Japan, speak Japanese. This is obviously just my opinion.

[dmix]

That’s not an accident.

Although I don’t think any country should be obligated to take in foreigners if their situation doesn’t warrant it (such as being a small island nation).

[JoeAltmaier]

So they just continue with laughable racist movies and media, and get a pass? Ok, whatever.

Or do you mean, it makes sense that they are the way they are? I agree.

[yrgulation]

I think what op meant to say is if there is little diversity then naturally there would be no debate. But indeed i agree they should at least stop making racist movies.

Boy do i hate race related debates. Why is race even relevant in this day and age? It’s all in our minds and it stems from primordial tribal thinking. Its like people from village A dislike people form village B because they will steal their women and hunt their game. Such basic instincts that we somehow havent moved beyond yet despite our tech progress.

[JoeAltmaier]

Agreed. It makes a little more sense when thought of as really a 'culture debate', but that's just kicking the can down the road.

[yrgulation]

Interesting but i dont agree with any justification for racism. Be it against americans, indians, or others. Race has no place in any debate. We are what we are and we are all equal in that regard.

[webmobdev]

Nobody is justifying racism, just explaining identity politics that unconsciously makes us biased towards someone who shares similar values with us. It's more obvious in the USA as it is a multi-cultural country made of immigrants, who generally tend to feel insecure and thus tend to turn to their own community to feel more secure. Unfortunately this insecurity is often exploited by right-wing politicians and used by them to create an us-vs-them mentality that leads to things like racism and discrimination.

[yrgulation]

“It becomes part of self-worth to value one's cohort above those that are seen as opressive.”

Meaning that its ok to be racist against the race that is perceived as oppressive. I dont subscribe to that and it proves my point. There is a sense of “racial preference” and the justification is that comment above. I think an eye for an eye will make us all blind and it needs to stop. We really need to move beyond this nonsense.

Edit: I agree with your edited comment:

“Unfortunately this insecurity is often exploited by right-wing politicians and used by them to create an us-vs-them mentality that leads to things like racism and discrimination.”

But i dont agree that people should self segregate as that is another form of racism. This vicious circle needs to end.

However your comment also seems to prove my point. There is a sense of racism but it would seem to be defensive racism. Ie we stay away from them because they have something against us.

Am i correct in my understanding? Genuine question as i genuinely want to understand the topic.

[JoeAltmaier]

Misrepresenting the point that was being made, to manufacture an objection.

It was a description of identity politics, made to clarify why attitudes are different in different places/peoples. Not some kind of policy suggestion.

[yrgulation]

I think i understand where the issue stems as there are a lot of defensive insinuations here. I am not misrepresenting. I am potentially misunderstanding. I can critique germany or america and there will be nowhere near this level of tension. I never looked down upon india or indians and i never considered india as a weak country. Thus i felt at liberty to critique. To me it appears tho that my comments are taken as insults instead of just the usual debates that country or culture X has wrong Y policy or view.

Educate me as i am listening. Clarify my misunderstandings so i can make better judgment next time.

[webmobdev]

> But i dont agree that people should self segregate as that is another form of racism. This vicious circle needs to end.

Very true. I believe we are talking about the same thing - you are absolutely right that if we aren't self-aware of our biases, we can fall victim to our own prejudice against others (especially if we are exposed to right-wing propaganda). Unfortunately this can be a difficult thing to realise unless we are secure and at peace with ourselves (which is why right-wing politics always tries to keep society in a tense state, as their politics only work when people can't think rationally). Another issue is that people generally have social anxiety when trying to mingle with other cultures, and so they often take the easy way out of avoiding meeting people and expanding their social circle due to their personal inhibitions (let's face it, even though we are supposed to be social creatures, we humans have a tough time socialising and building relationship with others!). This is ofcourse detrimental to ourselves and our society.