A couple of thoughts:
Yes, I’ve heard before, even from people living in Japan, that they are quite xenophobic.
Now, why is this not condemned from the west ? (I know Chinese people and they do remember WW2)
As everything several reasons:
Japan has a great propaganda machine to make their culture look cool AF: anime/manga, the mythology around temples, samurais, ninjas…
The good parts of their culture, specially in contrast to the west: the extreme politeness, how clean and organized they are, civility/safety, super good and maintained public services such transport…
The “pretend WW2 didn’t happen”. They were absolute monsters on WW2, way beyond the nazis, but the combination of doing a 180 towards the west and the atomic bombs made it so the west was comfortable with looking the other way while Japan conveniently forgets his war crimes (for anyone unaware search for Nanjing, be warned is a hard read, but is important not to forget)
The “pacifist xenophobia”. When you go to japan their way of practicing xenophobia is quite passive, like, let’s be clear, you are loud and disgusting for them, but they will never tell you that, and you are probably never going to be in danger. At least as a tourist this is 100% like this, they might even just feel introverted rather than xenophobic. From what I’ve heard from people living there, it gets more clear when you live, but didn’t get any “I’m in danger” feeling from them, so I guess that low key discrimination is like that.
Now, not saying any of that makes it good, but I can understand why there is a different level of pushback than to the USA for example, where if you are brown and meet an angry cop or redneck (or both), you might end up dead.
I know for the fucking internet there is no such thing as grey, is either black or white, but I think the world is more nuanced than that.
BTW, for their work culture alone I would never live there, and while I like an anime or two, I’m not an otaku by any means. I did enjoy my vacation on Japan several years ago, but not more than the one on China or other Asian countries.
I thinks it’s source comes more from the behavior of western tourists than anything else.
I have worked with a Japanese company for almost 2 years and never ever again. The racism, incompetence and ass covering is astounding. The way they treat women is also appalling but no one talks about this.
I’ll never understand why western people love Japan, but vilify China. My experience in working in China is a total opposite of Japan.
You found that the Chinese weren’t racist or sexist? I agree with you about Japan, but China was hardly enlightened. They were mostly just louder and more obnoxious, where the Japanese were overly formal and quiet.
Both cultures also had a lot of superstitions, like words or phrases you shouldn’t say, or lucky or unlucky numbers.
One word: “propaganda.”
1.6 billions worth of propaganda
Not racist. You can learn whatever language you want. In fact you don’t even need to learn Japanese. You can just use a translator app. This only is discrimination against those too lazy to do either.
In Japan many stores don’t let in foreigners / tourists. This is an instance of it.
Lol right, well go in there and see if that works.
Its also discrimination against those who can read all 3 languages but have poor eyesight so they can only actually read the larger text English.
this sign cant stop me…
俺：俺は読めますので、入りま〜すぅぅ
店長：No! No! No! サイヌ！サイヌ！ノーべーカンシー！
俺：えっ？ちゃんと読んだんですけど。。。
店長：🙅🙅🙅
俺：Fuck your store dick head.
Important to note that English is the global lingua franca.
So tourists from Mexico, Nicaragua, Sweden, Adygea, Italy, Rojava, Tajikistan, Djibouti, and Mozambique etc also use English language while visiting most foreign places.
This is NOT an “American tourists litter too much” thing.
Are you American and embarrassed about it?
Your entire post screams so
No, not American. I just read a lot of newspaper about how another tourist got drunk and pissed at the local holy site and such.
I feel sympatethic to anti-tourism, but this sign is xenophobic rather than anti-tourist so wanted to mention that.
Also holy shit #7 from the tesseract list replied to me, I am saving this. So cool :3
American tourists speak Chinese?
I do, right into a toilet ( term for throwing up while drunk)
Since when was “speaking Chinese” a euphemism for drunken hurling?
It’s a term my father in law uses
Sounds like your father-in-law is racist.
No, or would you say the term ‘Pardon my French’ is racist?
Probably yes, why would it not be? Or are you suggesting that the French language is only made up of slurs one should excuse himself for speaking it?
Everything can be spun to be racist now a days
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Racist, but also ageist.
Isn’t it xenophobia more than racism?
Japan has a very homogeneous population, so xenophobia and racism are quasi indistinguishable.
Both are bad though.
Just on a different level
Expecting internet people to know this word is too much
Japan, where racism doesn’t usually get the same criticism it does elsewhere for whatever reason…
Japan cast cat girl, it was super effective. All knowledge of atrocities was erased from western nations.
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Japan is too far away and too aligned with the west to receive criticism for racism
I’m not sure being aligned with the west means much while people are extremely critical in and outside western countries about racism.
They’re hateful, but they’re cute.
Just like the cats.
This. Also the massive online love affair with Japan and anime sure does a lot to distract people from the less savoy aspects of Japan.
They get an easier pass because their products are top-notch. Toyota basically invented Six Sigma/a globally used process for manufacturer defect elimination. A Japanese automaker invented QR codes. They have Nintendo, anime, etc. They changed and continue to impact the world in highly recognizable ways, not by merely cheap products (China), cheap labor (India), etc.
lol Nintendo
Tldr if your good enough at engineering you can be as racist as you want to be unless you’re white.
They get an easier pass because the US needed a vassal state in the Pacific.
Tell the Chinese that. They haven’t gotten the message yet
That is because they have soft power.
I think it’s more so that what looks like them being polite to most is meant as something extremely rude. Also not to mention the love affair most have with Japan online.
and yet japan is still viewed as an utopia by reddit weebs, despite japan being really racist
I went there recently. The organization and efficiency are truly astounding. I felt like the best parts of Japan and the best parts of the US fused together could make a utopia. But it’s never gonna happen because those best parts are direct results of the cultural mindset that leads to each one’s dark ends as well. They’re both sides of their respective coins, unfortunately…
The US has ‘best parts’? Really can’t imagine anything good about them lol
I felt like the best parts of Japan and the best parts of the US fused together could make a utopia
Big Hero 6 moment
I love their trains, the food is good, it’s a beautiful country.
But also, holy shit, Japan has just never reckoned with its imperial past in the slightest.
If you ever see those tourism promotion photos of mt. Fuji with a pagoda in the foreground, that pagoda was built in the 50s, around the end of the US occupation, to commemorate soldiers who fought in essentially every war that imperial Japan got itself into. It’s very clear political statement.
And I learned this, upon climbing that damn mountain, and reading the plaque in front of the pagoda, only to learn that it was a monument to imperialism the whole time
Police aren’t likely to kill you over there. Just harass you if you’re clubbing with their women.
But they can force confession out of you. Japan has one of the most conviction rates in the world…
That’s true for everyone though. Their police are equal opportunity bastards.
edit: oh and the clubbing thing is in regards to an old law banning dancing after midnight that was being selectively enforced against gaijin clubbing with Japanese women. Japan or Tokyo’s tourism board had to step in and tell the cops to stop before the law was officially overturned. https://www.cnn.com/2015/06/21/asia/japan-midnight-dancing-ban
It’s worse than that though. Their court system is entirely rigged against defendants. Conviction rates elsewhere do not match those of Japan.
yup the first A in ACAB is ALL
actually no exceptions, because the exceptions all stopped being police very quickly
Not despite.
My wife is southeast Asian. Going to Japan, I felt a lot of like… weird energy at times where they just kind of looked at me. I never felt unsafe, just judged. I told my wife this, who said she felt the complete opposite. People were normal to her. She blended in.
She was born and raised in the States, and we traveled to a bunch of States (fuck Missouri) where she really felt unsafe like if she didn’t leave town, they would make us. And Ive shared before how we got a “Go back to your own country” from other people, and even one showing off his gun.
Do I feel like Japanese racism is uncalled for? Absolutely. Again, I never felt unsafe. So it’s really interesting to see this perspective in the comments like this is the worst disgusting attitude in the world because someone snubbed them vs feeling like you’re not wanted/you should leave for your own safety.
I lived in Japan for 2 years. I had several expat friends with stories of going to the hospital, being told they were full, their Japanese wife showing up, and suddenly they have space. Other stories of legal disputes between a Japanese person and a foreign immigrant will always go to the Japanese person. Japanese culture is very non-confrontational, but don’t think their brand of racism is safer. If we’re comparing racism and deciding one is less bad than the other, we’ve already partially accepted that it has a place in society.
As someone in a similar situation, there are differences in the racism are stark.
They treat you differently but far more often than not, it is just curiosity or looking for entertainment from a zoo animal. They are not hostile or aggressive.
The “zoo animal” thing seems about right. Sometimes they look at you like they think you’re about to start flinging shit around. Sometimes they’re curious about how the zoo animal is going to do something simple like handle chopsticks. Often they don’t make eye contact or keep their space because they don’t want to have to interact with the zoo animal.
OTOH, part of their being polite is that if the gaijin actually asks them for help, they’re obligated to try to help.
Overall, I liked it. As an introvert, I don’t like countries where people approach the foreigner and try to practice their English on them. There are also too many countries where you’re frequently approached by someone who wants to scam you, or wants you to give them money.
They are not hostile or aggressive.
… until you try to open a bank account with them ad a foreigner. Tourists are fine and tolerated but become an expat and you’ll have a much steeper time.
I used a bus in Japan to go to Mount Fuji. Seats were assigned like on a plane and I was sitting next to some Japanese guy. I did my best to respect their customs and remained silent and kept to myself for the two hour ride. The inside of the bus was as silent as a church for the entire drive even though it was full.
On the way back at the end of the day, the bus had dropped a few passengers somewhere and stopped at a station for a toilet break. When we boarded again the driver went to see the passenger beside me and moved him to another seat on the bus to sit in a seat that had been freed up next to another Japanese person. It looks like the passenger went to see the driver to request the seat change during the break.
I’ve spent the rest of the ride wondering what I had done wrong. It’s really a fucked up feeling and it must be horrible to be experiencing this sort of passive aggressive racism on a daily basis in your own home.
It’s really nothing you did. The people there just randomly decide to stand up in crowded trains if you are a foreigner and sit beside them. Or this time I was just walking down the street and the lady who was walking towards me just randomly crosses the street and walks past.
It probably wasn’t anything wrong you had done wrong. From what I’ve been hearing from some family who do business in asia. As they explain it, Japan has had an economic whiplash from the 80s and a lot of those cultural and economic policies that gave them initial success were not sustainable long term. And since Japan is a VERY proud culture, they’ve found it easier to blame outsiders than their own miscalculations.
they’ve found it easier to blame outsiders than their own miscalculations.
Enough said, round the world
Yep, xenophobia went up globally following the financial crisis of '08.
Sure America was the big trigger, but no country did anything to guard themselves from the risk ongoing at the time - And in Europe mena immigrants was the bogeyman written about in the media…
The inside of the bus was as silent as a church for the entire drive even though it was full.
Is that not the case where you’re from? Genuinely almost never heard anyone having a conversation on an intercity bus
It’s pretty common for long haul routes to feature chatter, the chatter goes up exponentially if something goes south. As we’d then have a shared experience of sitting in queue on the highway together
In my country, almost any group travelling together is going to speak on a long-haul bus or train, many of them most of the time. And lots of people make phone calls. There have to be designated quiet coaches (or open rail cars since coaches are falling out of fashion). They are experimenting with making them first-class only, very asinine given the ticket price difference and the near-zero cost of 🔇 stickers as opposed to the cost of a railcar
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The amount if racism in Asian countries is very worrying
The people defending this as ‘not racism’… way to miss the point. If this was some BBQ joint in Texas with a sign that says closed in Spanish but open in English you wouldn’t be posting these comments
Its called Xenophobia.
Xenophobia and racism are distinct forms of prejudice: xenophobia is the fear or hatred of foreigners, while racism is the belief in racial superiority and systemic oppression based on race. Though they overlap, they target people for different reasons.
The odds of a Texas BBQ joint not having any Spanish speaking employees is exceedingly small.
And yet they are cheering for ICE to arrest them all. No matter the status or paperwork. If they’re arrested then they are guilty. That’s how it works down here.
There are for sure racist fascists and bootlickers here, but don’t paint us all with that brush.
https://www.kxan.com/news/texas/protests-against-ice-scheduled-across-texas-this-weekend/
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/02/15/us/student-protests-walkouts-ice-texas.html
https://www.texastribune.org/2026/07/14/texas-ice-shooting-houston-city-council-protest/
lol what? Have you ever been to Texas?I misread the comment 🙃
Have you‽ I was born in Texas. Lived here the last 24 years, and 32 of the last 34. Even asian restaurants here have kitchens full of Spanish speaking people.
Yes, i lived on the border of TX and NM for fifteen years and i can tell you with certainty that i misread your comment. lol
🍻
Having lived in Texas for 40 years, I can confidently tell you you’re full of shit
No i just can’t read
I misread their comment and thought they were saying the opposite lol
It’s been years now, but are you saying that BBQ joints don’t have Spanish speaking employees? Is that a Texas only thing?
Mac is mistaken. There are Spanish speaking employees all over the food service industry in Texas.
Most of the US in fact, especially any decent sized city.
Truth. My favorite Japanese restaurant in the States had a primarily South American immigrant staffed kitchen.
I mean, it’s also racism. Those people are just stupid.
It literally isn’t racism though. You can disagree with it and think it should be banned, but there is no interpretation that it can realistically be called racism
I lived in Japan for a while. I’ve seen a couple places with a sign like this. In my experience every place like this is perfectly willing to have foreigners that speak Japanese. They simply don’t want to deal with the hassle of a language barrier
I should also note these places were always in touristy areas. If they don’t have a sign like that, they’ll end up with majority English speaking customers, because Japanese customers prefer places without rowdy tourists that can’t speak the local language. I did too. Going out for an after work beer, you want an entirely different atmosphere from tourists getting hammered
It doesn’t say “if you are of that race we are open”. It says you must understand the language. So learn it - you’ll need it anyway to live there - or go elsewhere, where staff can serve you on your language, provide a menu on your language etc.
A hate system where you can upgrade your status by learning is not racism. Also not necessarily a hate system in the first place.
It would still not be racism
Xenophobia at worst, only hatred of tourists at best
Xenophobia is inherently racist.
Arent they different things? Racism is about race, xenophobia is about country of origin
Probably a venn diagram but with a large overlap.
Yeah let’s start calling it racism when Barcelona locals spray tourists with water guns and see how quickly these same people scream “THAT’S DIFFERENT!”
If an American moves to Europe and doesn’t attempt to learn the local language, then by a few months to a year in with zero effort people will say they’re in the wrong for not making an effort to integrate and expecting everyone to speak English for them.
Clearly “Americans expecting foreigners to speak English” is different from “Other countries expecting Americans to speak the local language” from a moral point of view. So why is Japan then lumped in with America as the “Local people must accept and accommodate foreigners who can’t communicate in the local language” bucket, when anywhere else it’s “If you’re traveling there and you didn’t even try learning the language, then you’re ignorant and entitled.”?
that’s absolutely not the case in places like the netherlands and the nordic countries, people dont really give a fuck cus everyone speaks english anyway (unfortunately)
i think the dutch and the scandinavians have hit their head or something cus their languages are so easy to learn but in iceland and finland it’s possible to never get fluent even with a lot of effort, cus the languages are damn hard, so people are understandably more forgiving
Meanwhile in the west:
Racism: 🤬
Racism against Asians: 😆😝🤡
Nope. Racial against Asians is an US thing.
I am an Asian and live in Europe. Racism against Asians exists here as well. And it’s pretty much normalized.
OK I didn’t know that. Sorry
“heh you must be good at math because you’re Chinese” (they’re Filipino)
