It can be hard to feel connected to community when opportunities to physically be in community are limited. However, organizations are stepping up to provide opportunities to connect virtually. To celebrate the wealth of online events out there, and to make content from these events accessible to folks who may not be able to virtually attend, AAOP is regularly recapping local, community-rooted online opportunities. You can see our past and future recaps at http://aaopmn.org/tag/virtual-event-recap/
Siena Iwasaki Milbauer (she/her) is a mixed-race Japanese-American organizer and AAOP’s Content Creator Intern. She regularly covers virtual events for AAOP’s Virtual Event Recap blog series and is a contributor to AAOP’s “New Narratives” podcast.
On February 13th, Chicago-based abolition and liberation collective Nikkei Uprising hosted “What is Japaneseness?: Unpacking Race and Imperialism.” About 50 people from around the country joined the virtual space to discuss Japanese Imperialism, the myth of Japanese homogeneity, and the ulterior motives behind the creation of Japanese cool culture. Because of the challenging and introspective nature of the event’s focus, the space was open specifically to folks “who identify as Japanese– we mean this to include folks who identify as Nikkei, Japanese, Japanese in America, mixed-Japanese, or folks who are Indigenous to the islands we call Japan.” The workshop was structured so that participants alternated between a large group format where co-faciliators Cori (she/her) and sydney (she/her) shared contextual information and discussion prompts, and three small group sessions for more intimate unpacking focusing on the topics of experiences of racialization, experiences of Japanese gatekeeping and nationalism, and reflections on grappling with shame and identity issues respectively.
Cori opened the event by grounding it in the context of what motivated Nikkei Uprising to build this workshop. In the summer of June 2021, Nikkei Uprising released a statement that was disrespectful to the Indigenous Ainu people (the organization has since publicly acknowledged and apologized for this action). This situation and other gaps in knowledge spurred Nikkei Uprising to create a space for members of the Japanese diaspora community, in particular their own membership, to collectively learn about and interrogate preconceived notions of Japaneseness.
“We are folks with roots and connections to one imperial state, currently living on occupied lands of another imperial state.” Cori noted, describing the complex and fraught position that Japanese Americans occupy, and thus the layers of imperialism and colonialism we have to actively confront within ourselves and our communities.
The focus of the workshop was unpacking the concept of Japaneseness, an invented label created by imperial Japan and today kept alive by conservative elements of Japanese society. Japaneseness involves the erasure of Indigenous peoples such as the Ainu, distinct ethnic and cultural communities such as Ryūkyūans/Okinawans, folks who have made their home in Japan for generations but are not ethnically Japanese (and often face barriers to citizenship despite their multi-generational Japanese residency) such as a significant ethnically Korean population sometimes known as Zainichi, and mixed race Japanese folks in favor of a homogenous view of Japan as home to a single race of people. This homogenous presentation was crucial to imperial Japan’s goal of distinguishing itself as superior to other Asian nations as it tried to align itself with Western colonial powers in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, culminating in a brutal colonial regime that inflicted grievous violence on the people of Korea, China, Taiwan, Micronesia, and many other nations.
Today, Japaneseness is used to market Japanese cool culture to the world as the product of a singular, uniform nation. Japan essentially “self-orientalizes” explained co-facilitator sydney, emphasizing how special and unusual their culture is in order to attract tourism and develop soft power through global cultural influence. For an example, think of kawaii culture, its many commercial and artistic manifestations, and its global pull. This idea of Japanese culture as hyper-unique is called “Nihonjinron” and it is something that many Japanese folks and Japanese diaspora folks have internalized and even see as an attribute. However, the homogeneity this concept is built on is a lie, and while there are lots of amazing unique things to celebrate about Japanese culture, this is true of all cultures.
Meanwhile, on the ground in Japan, Japaneseness sets an artificially high barrier to entry into “true Japanese identity.” As Cori and sydney explained, the way Japaneseness is currently constructed, people are required to check four boxes: Language, culture, citizenship, and race. This construction gatekeeps Japanese identity from Indigenous people, mixed-race Japanese people, non-ethnically Japanese folks with roots in Japan, and many members of the Japanese diaspora community.
All this is quite heavy, and it could be easy to feel hopeless in the face of so many layers of prejudicial racial construction and such a strong exclusionary agenda. However, Cori and sydney stressed that within and without Japan, there is a long history of resistance to these harmful concepts and the devastation they inflict in practice.
Additionally, identity is not something which we are powerless to shape.
“Identity is a really complex interaction between how other people see you and how you express your own identity.” explained Cori.
Quoting Stuart Hall, Cori also noted that “cultural identity is not an essence, it is a positioning.” As members of the Japanese diaspora, it is our responsibility and in our best interest to understand how outside powers are trying to position and gatekeep our identities and culture. But we are not helpless in the face of these forces. We have the power to stand up, speak up, and craft a new conception of Japaneseness that is authentic, inclusive, and full of the beautiful multiplicity that is the real reason to be proud of being Japanese.
Sources:
Chen, Angela. “The Serious Subtext of Japan’s “Cute” Culture.” JSTOR Daily, 14 July 2016, https://daily.jstor.org/the-serious-subtext-of-japans-cute-culture/. Accessed 18 Feb 2021.
Okazaki, Eri. “Is Japan Embracing Diversity?” BBC, 24 Feb 2020, https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20200131-is-japan-embracing-diversity. Accessed 18 Feb 2021.
Photo Credit: Nikkei Uprising
Special thanks to Nikkei Uprising for allowing AAOP to attend and recap this event!
Learn more about Nikkei Uprising and follow them on Facebook and Instagram. This workshop was designed to be part of a potential 3-part series, so especially keep an eye out for announcements of future events!
Check out some background materials and recommended resources from Nikkei Uprising:
– Race is Real, But It’s Not Genetic
–The Social Construction of Race and Minorities in Japan (suggested reading pgs 147 – 152)
–Introduction: Race and Empire in Meiji Japan