Questioning Xenophobia in Japan: Racism, Decolonization, and Human Rights

This chapter delves into the examination of racist discourse in Japan and the process of problematizing it to elucidate the nuances of human rights and discrimination within Japanese society. Since the mid-2000s, explicit manifestations of racism have occurred on the streets of major Japanese cities. A series of counter-hate movements, initiated by both Japanese and Koreans, have heightened awareness regarding hate speech in society and successfully influenced the enactment of the Act on Promotion of Efforts to Eliminate Unjustifiable Discriminatory Speech and Behavior against Persons of Non-Japanese Nationality in 2013. Nevertheless, despite the ongoing discussions surrounding the so-called “Japanese-style xenophobia” that have spurred broad support for regulating racist discourse in Japan, this very concept can potentially obscure the intricate and multifaceted dynamics of racism and nationalism, resulting in the continued limitation of human rights for foreign residents.