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Though I do agree the cessation of Korean language education after the outbreak of the War could be considered a form of forced assimilation, but it had nothing to do with "racism". Rather, it is a manifestation of treating Koreans as their own people.
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Japan lacks any law which prohibits racial, ethnic, or religious discrimination. The country also has no national human rights institutions.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2020-01-15|title=World Report 2020: Rights Trends in Japan|url=https://www.hrw.org/world-report/2020/country-chapters/japan|access-date=2021-07-14|website=Human Rights Watch|language=en}}</ref> Non-Japanese individuals in Japan often face human rights violations that Japanese citizens may not.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Nagayoshi |first1=Kikuko |title=Prejudice against immigrants explained in numbers |url=https://www.u-tokyo.ac.jp/focus/en/features/z0508_00213.html |website=[[The University of Tokyo]] |access-date=10 April 2022 |language=en |date=16 June 2021}}</ref> In recent years, non-Japanese media has reported that Japanese firms frequently confiscate the [[passports]] of guest workers in Japan, particularly unskilled laborers.<ref>{{Cite news|title=Ghosn wasn't the only one trapped in Japan — many foreign workers also want to escape|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia_pacific/ghosn-wasnt-the-only-one-trapped-in-japan-many-foreign-workers-also-want-to-escape/2020/01/23/ea7bcaf0-3daf-11ea-971f-4ce4f94494b4_story.html|access-date=2021-06-10}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|last=Murakami|first=Sakura|date=2020-01-23|title=Japan should ban confiscation of foreign employees' passports, lawyer says|language=en|work=Reuters|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-japan-immigration-idUSKBN1ZM0T8|access-date=2021-06-10}}</ref>
 
In the early 20th century, driven by an ideology of [[Japanese nationalism]], theand Japanesein governmentthe implemented a seriesname of policies to form a united national identityunity, imposingthe assimilationJapanese programsgovernment in language, cultureidentified and religion, such as teaching a standard language based on the Tokyo dialect in education system. These policies have affectedforcefully manyassimilated marginalized populations, which included indigenous [[Ryukyuans]], [[Ainu people|Ainu]], and other underrepresented groups, butimposing haveassimilation alsoprograms ledin tolanguage, discussionsculture onand the preservation of cultural diversityreligion.<ref name="Heinrich">{{Cite book |last=Heinrich |first=Patrick |year=2012 |title=The Making of Monolingual Japan: Language Ideology and Japanese Modernity |publisher=Multilingual Matters |location=Bristol, UK |isbn=978-1-8476-9656-4 |pages=4, 90–91, 95–96, 100}}</ref> Japan usually considers these ethnic groups as a mere "subgroup" of the Japanese people and therefore synonymous to the [[Yamato people]], and does not recognize them as a [[minority group]] with a distinct culture.<ref name="IMA">{{cite book|last=Inoue|first=Masamichi S.|title=Okinawa and the U.S. Military: Identity Making in the Age of Globalization|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TnsVoSw8hRgC|year=2017|publisher=Columbia University Press|isbn=978-0-231-51114-8}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Loo|first=Tze May|title=Heritage Politics: Shuri Castle and Okinawa's Incorporation into Modern Japan, 1879–2000|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NjsfAwAAQBAJ|year=2014|publisher=Lexington Books|isbn=978-0-7391-8249-9}}</ref><ref name="MasamiIto2009">{{cite news |author=Masami Ito |title=Between a rock and a hard place |url=http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2009/05/12/news/between-a-rock-and-a-hard-place/#.WJepb4WcFMt |date=12 May 2009 |newspaper=[[The Japan Times]] |access-date=5 February 2017}}</ref>. However, Ainu people are officially recognized as an indigenous group with a unique cultural difference by the [[National Diet|parliament of Japan]]<ref name=":6" />.
 
==Background==
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{{see also|Ethnic groups of Japan}}
 
The nine largest minority groups residing in Japan are: North and South [[Koreans in Japan|Korean]], [[Chinese people in Japan|Chinese]] (also Taiwanese), [[Brazilians in Japan|Brazilian]] (many Brazilians in Japan have [[Japanese Brazilians|Japanese]] ancestors), [[Filipinos in Japan|Filipinos]], [[Vietnamese people|Vietnamese]], the [[Ainu people|Ainu]] indigenous to [[Hokkaido]], the [[Ryukyuan people|Ryukyuans]] indigenous to [[Okinawa Prefecture|Okinawa]], and [[Ryukyu Islands|other islands]] between [[Kyushu]] and [[Taiwan]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.japantoday.com/category/opinions/view/is-japan-really-racist|title=Is Japan really racist? ‹ Japan Today: Japan News and Discussion|date=November 11, 2013 |access-date=October 13, 2014}}</ref> The [[Burakumin]], an outcast group at the bottom of Japan's [[History of Japan#Feudal Japan|feudal order]], are sometimes included.<ref>Neary, Ian, "Burakumin in contemporary Japan," in Japan's Minorities: The Illusion of Homeogeneity, Michael Weiner, ed.</ref> There are also a number of smaller ethnic communities in Japan with a much shorter history.
 
According to the United Nations' 2008 Diène report, communities most affected by [[racism]] and [[xenophobia]] in Japan include:<ref>Diène,
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Following World War II, Koreans decided to illegally participate in the Post-World War II rebuilding of Japan because of the discrimination which they were being subjected to, both politically and economically; they were treated unfairly and paid low wages in Japan. {{Nihongo3|||Zainichi}} (resident in Japan) [[Korea]]ns are permanent residents of Japan registered as [[Joseon]] ({{Lang-ko|조선}}, Japanese: {{Nihongo3||朝鮮|Chōsen}}) or South Korean nationality. Joseon was annexed by Japan in 1910, therefore {{Nihongo3|||Zainichi}} Koreans with Joseon citizenship are de facto stateless. After [[World War II]], two million Koreans living in Japan were granted a temporary Joseon nationality under the US military government (because there was no government in Korea then). However, the meaning of Joseon nationality became vague as Korea was divided by the United States and the Soviet Union, and in 1948 North and South Korea each established their own government. Some obtained South Korean citizenship later, but others who opposed the division of Korea or sympathized with North Korea maintained their Joseon nationality because people are not allowed to register North Korean nationality.
 
Most {{Nihongo3|||Zainichi}} came to Japan from [[Korea under Japanese rule]] between 1910 and 1945.<ref>[[John Lie (professor)|John Lie]] ''Zainichi (Koreans in Japan)'' (Berkeley: University of California Press, 2008)</ref> A large proportion of{{Citation needed||date=October 2024}} this immigration is said to be the result of Korean landowners and workers losing their land and livelihood due to Japanese land and production confiscation initiatives and migrating to Japan for work. According to the calculation of [[Rudolph Rummel]], a total of 5.4 million Koreans were also [[Conscription|conscripted]] into forced labor and shipped throughout the [[Empire of Japan|Japanese Empire]]. He estimates that 60,000 Koreans died during forced labor in places such as [[Manchuria]] and [[Sakhalin]].<ref>{{cite book | first=R. J. | last=Rummel | title=Statistics of Democide: Genocide and Mass Murder Since 1990 | publisher=Lit Verlag | year=1999 | isbn=3-8258-4010-7}}
Available online: {{cite web | title=Statistics of Democide: Chapter 3 – Statistics Of Japanese Democide Estimates, Calculations, And Sources | work=Freedom, Democracy, Peace; Power, Democide, and War | url=http://www.hawaii.edu/powerkills/SOD.CHAP3.HTM | access-date=2006-03-01}}</ref>
 
1938（昭和13）年以降は必修科目ではなく、授業を行うかどうかは校長の判断にゆだねられることとなり1941（昭和16）年以降は朝鮮語の授業は行われなくなりましたが。冒頭の写真のように、その後も日常生活では普通に朝鮮語が話され、ハングルが用いられていました。}}</ref>. In 1938,During the Koreanoccupation languageof wasKorea downgradedby fromJapan, athe compulsoryJapanese coursegovernment toenforced ana electivepolicy oneof inforced schoolsassimilation. After the outbreak[[Culture of the Pacific War, Korea|Korean language education in public schoolculture]] was torepressed stopped, thoughand the [[Korean language and Hangeul in broadcast and newspaper]] was stilllabeled in used [http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c9/MaeilShimpo_%28August14-1945%29.jpg in the last days] ofa Japanese rule<refdialect name{{Nihongo|2=":3"方言}} /><ref name=":4" />. As citizens of the Japanese Empire sinceand 1910banned, Koreans were forced to learn the Japanesehow to bespeak a bilingual speakerJapanese and encouraged to take Japanese names in 1940s. However, Koreans resisted this and by the end of the 1940s, it was almost completely undone. Some ethnicEthnic Koreans in Japan were killedmassacred as rumours spread that Koreans were rioting, looting, or poisoning wellsscapegoats in the chaos of [[1923 Great Kantō earthquake|the Great Kanto earthquake]] in 1923 ([[Kantō Massacre]]).<ref>{{Cite web|title=関東大震災で犠牲の朝鮮人を慰霊 きっかけは墓地に埋もれていた碑文|date=September 4, 2021 |url=https://www.asahi.com/articles/ASP9465L8P94UTIL00H.html|access-date=2021-11-23}}</ref> Many Korean refugees also came to the country during the [[Jeju uprising]] in the [[First Republic of South Korea]]. Though most migrants returned to Korea, [[Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers|GHQ]] estimates in 1946 indicated that 650,000 Koreans remained in Japan.▼
During Japanese rule in Korea, the Japanese government promoted a policy of assimilation. [[Culture of Korea|Korean culture]] was repressed and the [[Korean language]] was labeled an ethnic language but not banned<ref name=":3">{{Cite journal |last=Lee |first=Hyong Cheol |date=2016 |title=Korean Language under the rule of Japanese Colony |journal=研究紀要 |volume=1 |pages=7–19 |url=https://cir.nii.ac.jp/crid/1050282812404993024 |quote=朝鮮が日本の植民地になってから日本語が国語となり、朝鮮語は民族語となったが、35年間に及ぶ全植民地期間中に朝鮮語使用が禁止されたわけではなかった。1920年代の文化政治期には教育熱が上がったため普通学校の新設が急増し、なお朝鮮人による朝鮮語（ハングル）の啓蒙運動と研究が展開され、制限的ながら言論、文化活動も許された。}}</ref><ref name=":4">{{Cite web |last=Harihara |first=Takayuki |title=日本統治時代の朝鮮の教科書 |url=http://www.nipponwomamorukai.jp/syutyou/harihara_takayuki/nihontoutijidai_no_tyousennokyoukasyo.html |website=Nihonmamoru |quote=以上のような皇民化教育が行われる一方、朝鮮語の授業も必修科目として行われていました。
▲1938（昭和13）年以降は必修科目ではなく、授業を行うかどうかは校長の判断にゆだねられることとなり1941（昭和16）年以降は朝鮮語の授業は行われなくなりましたが。冒頭の写真のように、その後も日常生活では普通に朝鮮語が話され、ハングルが用いられていました。}}</ref>. In 1938, the Korean language was downgraded from a compulsory course to an elective one in schools. After the outbreak of the Pacific War, Korean language education in public school was to stopped, though the Korean language and Hangeul in broadcast and newspaper was still in used [http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c9/MaeilShimpo_%28August14-1945%29.jpg in the last days] of Japanese rule<ref name=":3" /><ref name=":4" />. As citizens of the Japanese Empire since 1910, Koreans were forced to learn the Japanese to be a bilingual speaker and encouraged to take Japanese names in 1940s. However, Koreans resisted this and by the end of the 1940s, it was almost completely undone. Some ethnic Koreans in Japan were killed as rumours spread that Koreans were rioting, looting, or poisoning wells in the chaos of [[1923 Great Kantō earthquake|the Great Kanto earthquake]] in 1923 ([[Kantō Massacre]]).<ref>{{Cite web|title=関東大震災で犠牲の朝鮮人を慰霊 きっかけは墓地に埋もれていた碑文|date=September 4, 2021 |url=https://www.asahi.com/articles/ASP9465L8P94UTIL00H.html|access-date=2021-11-23}}</ref> Many Korean refugees also came to the country during the [[Jeju uprising]] in the [[First Republic of South Korea]]. Though most migrants returned to Korea, [[Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers|GHQ]] estimates in 1946 indicated that 650,000 Koreans remained in Japan.
 
After World War II, the Korean community in Japan was split between allegiance to [[South Korea]] ([[Mindan]]) and [[North Korea]] ([[Chongryon]]). The last major wave of Korean migration to Japan started after South Korea was devastated by the [[Korean War]] in the 1950s. Most notably, the large number of refugees were from Jejuans escaping from the [[Jeju Uprising|massacres on Jeju Island]] by the authoritarian South Korean government.<ref>{{cite journal|url=http://www.escholarship.org/uc/item/9bq66424|title=Diaspora without Homeland: Being Korean in Japan|author1=Ryang, Sonia|author2=Lie, John|date=2009-04-01|website=Escholarship.org\accessdate=2016-08-17|quotation="The same threat hung over thousands more who had arrived as refugees from the massacres that followed the April 3, 1948, uprising on Jeju Island and from the Korean War"}}</ref>
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Although more {{Nihongo2|Zainichi}} are becoming Japanese citizens, issues of identity remain complicated. Even those who do not choose to become Japanese citizens often use Japanese names to avoid discrimination, and live their lives as if they were Japanese. This is in contrast with the Chinese living in Japan, who generally use their Chinese names and openly form Chinatown communities. An increase in tensions between Japan and North Korea in the late 1990s led to a surge of attacks against Chongryon, the pro-North residents' organisation, including a pattern of assaults against Korean schoolgirls in Japan.<ref>[https://www.independent.co.uk/news/terror-attacks-on-koreans-rise-in-japan-1184794.html Terror attacks on Koreans rise in Japan] accessed at November 13, 2011</ref> The Japanese authorities have recently started to crack down on Chongryon with investigations and arrests. These moves are often criticized by Chongryon as acts of political suppression.<ref>[http://www1.korea-np.co.jp/pk/228th_issue/2006041508.htm FM Spokesman Urges Japan to Stop Suppression of Chongryon] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110210031805/http://www1.korea-np.co.jp/pk/228th_issue/2006041508.htm |date=February 10, 2011 }}, [[Choson Sinbo]], 5/13/06.</ref>
 
When Tokyo Governor [[Shintaro Ishihara]] referred to Chinese and Koreans as ''[[sangokujin]]'' {{Nihongo|2=三国人}} in 2000 in the context of foreigners being a potential source of unrest in the aftermath of an earthquake, the foreign community complained. Historically, the word has often been used pejoratively and Ishihara's statement brought images of the massacre of Koreans by civilians and police alike after the [[1923 Great Kantō earthquake]] to mind. Therefore, the use of the term in context of potential rioting by foreigners is considered by many as provocative, if not explicitly racist.{{efn|Citations:<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2013/06/29/national/anti-korean-groups-plea-to-use-public-facility-nixed/|title=Anti-Korean group's plea to use public facility nixed|date=June 29, 2013|access-date=October 13, 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2013/05/23/national/nationalism-rearing-ugly-head-with-greater-frequency/|title=Nationalism rearing ugly head with greater frequency|date=May 23, 2013|access-date=October 13, 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2013/08/04/national/rallies-dent-business-in-koreatown/|title=Rallies dent business in Koreatown|date=August 4, 2013|access-date=October 13, 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://mainichi.jp/english/english/newsselect/news/20130826p2a00m0na006000c.html |title=Teenagers take action against hate speech-fuelled anti-Korean rallies |publisher=[[The Mainichi]] |date=August 26, 2013 |access-date=August 26, 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130831060206/http://mainichi.jp/english/english/newsselect/news/20130826p2a00m0na006000c.html |archive-date=August 31, 2013 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://ajw.asahi.com/article/views/opinion/AJ201309020006 |title=INTERVIEW/ Yasumichi Noma: Giving hatemongers a taste of their own medicine |work=AJW by The Asahi Shimbun |access-date=October 13, 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141017220719/http://ajw.asahi.com/article/views/opinion/AJ201309020006 |archive-date=October 17, 2014 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.japantoday.com/category/national/view/2000-rally-against-hate-speech-in-tokyos-shinjuku|title=2,000 rally against hate speech in Tokyo's Shinjuku ‹ Japan Today: Japan News and Discussion|date=September 23, 2013 |access-date=October 13, 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://ajw.asahi.com/article/behind_news/social_affairs/AJ201309230105 |title=More than 1,000 rally against discrimination, hate speech in Tokyo |work=AJW by The Asahi Shimbun |access-date=October 13, 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141017220623/http://ajw.asahi.com/article/behind_news/social_affairs/AJ201309230105 |archive-date=October 17, 2014 |df=mdy }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://ajw.asahi.com/article/behind_news/social_affairs/AJ201312120046 |title=National Police Agency expresses concerns about xenophobic groups |work=AJW by The Asahi Shimbun |access-date=October 13, 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141017220722/http://ajw.asahi.com/article/behind_news/social_affairs/AJ201312120046 |archive-date=October 17, 2014 |df=mdy }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://ajw.asahi.com/article/behind_news/social_affairs/AJ201312130059 |title=INTERVIEW: Foreigners' rights activist says new secrecy law may encourage xenophobia |work=AJW by The Asahi Shimbun |access-date=October 13, 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141017220725/http://ajw.asahi.com/article/behind_news/social_affairs/AJ201312130059 |archive-date=October 17, 2014 |df=mdy }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://m.koreatimes.co.kr/pad/news/view.jsp?req_newsidx=152045 |title=Anti-hallyu voices growing in Japan |publisher=[[The Korea Times]] |date=2014-02-21 |access-date=2016-03-25}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2014/07/08/national/crime-legal/japanese-high-court-upholds-ruling-anti-korean-activists-hate-speech/|title=Japanese high court upholds ruling against anti-Korean activists' hate speech|date=July 8, 2014|access-date=October 13, 2014}}</ref>}}
 
In 2014, a United States government human rights report expressed concern about the abuse and harassment directed against Korean nationals by Japanese right-wing groups such as the [[Uyoku dantai]].{{efn|Citations:<ref>{{cite web|url=http://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/news/article/article.aspx?aid=2985673&cloc=joongangdaily |title=Koreans in Japan abused: U.S. report|date=February 28, 2014 |access-date=October 13, 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://japandailypress.com/anti-korean-hate-speech-rallies-in-japan-criticized-by-us-human-rights-report-2845063/|title=Anti-Korean hate speech rallies in Japan criticized by US human rights report|work=The Japan Daily Press|access-date=October 13, 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://english.chosun.com/site/data/html_dir/2014/03/03/2014030301639.html|title=The Chosun Ilbo (English Edition): Daily News from Korea – U.S. State Department Warns of Japanese Hate of Koreans|access-date=October 13, 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://ajw.asahi.com/article/behind_news/social_affairs/AJ201403030038 |title=Volunteers remove anti-Korea graffiti in Tokyo's Shinjuku |work=AJW by The Asahi Shimbun |access-date=October 13, 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141017220540/http://ajw.asahi.com/article/behind_news/social_affairs/AJ201403030038 |archive-date=October 17, 2014 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/news/article/article.aspx?aid=2985867|title=Japan's hate rallies cannot be tolerated|date=March 4, 2014 |access-date=October 13, 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://mainichi.jp/english/english/newsselect/news/20140717p2a00m0na014000c.html |title=Japanese gov't urged to implement anti-hate speech laws amidst growing concern |work=mainichi.jp |access-date=October 13, 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141018005039/http://mainichi.jp/english/english/newsselect/news/20140717p2a00m0na014000c.html |archive-date=October 18, 2014 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://english.chosun.com/site/data/html_dir/2014/07/17/2014071701663.html|title=The Chosun Ilbo (English Edition): Daily News from Korea – UN Pressures Japan to End Hate Speech|access-date=October 13, 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://ajw.asahi.com/article/behind_news/social_affairs/AJ201407250046 |title=U.N. human rights panel urges Japan to silence hate speech |work=AJW by The Asahi Shimbun |access-date=October 13, 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141017220716/http://ajw.asahi.com/article/behind_news/social_affairs/AJ201407250046 |archive-date=October 17, 2014 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2014/07/25/national/u-n-rights-panel-urges-japan-crack-hate-speech/|title=U.N. rights panel urges Japan to crack down on hate speech|access-date=October 13, 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/national/2014/08/12/59/0301000000AEN20140812004300315F.html|title=U.N. to review issue of hate speeches against Koreans in Japan|access-date=October 13, 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://mainichi.jp/english/english/newsselect/news/20141103p2a00m0na008000c.html |title=Thousands of anti-hate speech demonstrators take to Tokyo streets |work=mainichi.jp |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141103170524/http://mainichi.jp/english/english/newsselect/news/20141103p2a00m0na008000c.html |archive-date=November 3, 2014 }}</ref>}} In 2022, it was reported that anti-Korean racism in Japan has been on the rise,<ref name=":1" /> with homes burned, including one in [[Utoro district]] in [[Uji]],<ref name=":0">{{Cite news |last=McCurry |first=Justin |date=2022-07-18 |title='Utoro is my identity': can a museum heal the scars of Korean migrants in Japan? |language=en-GB |work=The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/jul/18/utoro-is-my-identity-can-a-museum-heal-the-scars-of-korean-migrants-in-japan |access-date=2023-09-19 |issn=0261-3077}}</ref> and death threats made towards ethnic Korean communities.<ref name=":1">{{cite web |last1=Ryall |first1=Julian |title=Why is anti-Korean racism in Japan on the rise again? |url=https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3164210/why-anti-korean-racism-japan-rise-again |website=South China Morning Post |access-date=14 April 2022 |language=en |date=23 January 2022}}</ref>
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The [[Ainu people|Ainu]] are an indigenous group mainly living in [[Hokkaidō]], with some also living in modern-day [[Russia]]. At present, the official Japanese government estimate of the population is 25,000, though this number has been disputed with unofficial estimates of upwards of 200,000.<ref name="Poisson, B 2002, p.5">Poisson, B. 2002, ''The Ainu of Japan'', Lerner Publications, Minneapolis, p.5.</ref>
 
For much of Japanese history, the Ainu were the main inhabitants of Hokkaido. However, as a result of Japanese migration into the island after 1869, the Ainu were largely displaced and assimilated.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Hokkaido {{!}} Facts, History, & Points of Interest|url=https://www.britannica.com/place/Hokkaido|access-date=2020-09-14|website=Encyclopedia Britannica|language=en}}</ref> Due to [[Meiji (era)|Meiji era]] policies, the Ainu were evicted from their traditional homelands and their cultural practices were outlawed.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Ainu: The Indigenous People of Japan|url=https://kirikomade.com/blogs/news/people-of-ainu|access-date=2020-09-14|website=Kiriko Made|date=October 26, 2018 }}</ref> Official recognition of the Ainu as an indigenous group occurred over a century later on June 6, 2008, as a result of a resolution passed by the [[government of Japan]], which recognized both their cultural differences and their past struggles.<ref name=":6">{{Cite news|date=2008-06-06|title=Recognition at last for Japan's Ainu|language=en-GB|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7437244.stm|access-date=2020-09-14}}</ref>
 
===Ryukyuan===
{{Main|Ryukyuan people|Ryūkyū independence movement}}
The [[Ryukyuans|Ryukyuan people]] lived in an independent [[Ryukyu Kingdom|kingdom]] until it became a vassal of Japan's [[Satsuma Domain]] in 1609. The kingdom, however, retained a degree of autonomy until 1879 when the islands were restructuredofficially annexed by Japan as [[Okinawa Prefecture]], from then on under Tokyo's direct jurisdiction. They are now believed by many being Japan's largest minority group, with 1.3 million living in Okinawa and 300,000 living in other areas of Japan.<ref>{{cite book |first=Osumi |last=Midori |chapter=Language and Identity in Okinawa Today |editor1-first=Mary Goebel |editor1-last=Noguchi |editor2-first=Sandra |editor2-last=Fotos |date=2001 |title=Studies in Japanese Bilingualism |publisher=Multilingual Matters |isbn=978-1-85359-490-8 |url={{GBurl|lDBCqwLfp8UC|page=69}} |page=69}}</ref>
 
The [[Okinawan language]], the most widely spoken [[Ryukyuan languages|Ryukyuan language]], is related to Japanese, the two being in the [[Japonic languages]]. Ryukyuan languages were heavily suppressed through a policy of forced assimilation throughout the former [[Ryukyu Kingdom]] after it was annexed in 1871 like other Japanese dialects1879. With only the standard [[Japanese language|Japanese]] based on Tokyo tone taught in schools and students punished for speaking or writing their native language through the use of [[dialect card]]s, the younger generations of Ryukyuans began to give up their "backwards" culture for that of mainland Japan. The Japanese government officially labels the Ryukyuan languages as dialects (Hōgen) of Japanese,{{Citation needed|date=April 2023}} although they are not mutually intelligible with one another, or even between each other. In 1940, there was a political debate amongst Japanese leaders about whether or not to continue the oppression of the Ryukyuan languages, although the argument for assimilation prevailed.<ref>Heinrich, Patrick. ''Hōgen ronsō: the great Ryukyuan languages debate of 1940.'' Contemporary Japan – Journal of the German Institute for Japanese Studies, Tokyo. Aug2013, Vol. 25 Issue 2, p167-187. 21p. 4 Charts. {{ISSN|1869-2729}}</ref> DuringJapanese thesoldiers [[Battleoutright ofshot Okinawa]],people thewho Japanesespoke militaryRyukyuan commander sought to suppress spying bylanguages banningduring the speaking[[Battle of the Okinawan dialectOkinawa]], whichbelieving is often unintelligible to nonresidents. As a result manythey were killed as spies.<ref name=":5">{{cite web|author=James Brooke |url=http://www.iht.com/articles/2005/06/20/news/oki.php |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060114010134/http://www.iht.com/articles/2005/06/20/news/oki.php |archive-date=2006-01-14 |title=1945 suicide order still a trauma on Okinawa |access-date=2013-10-12}}</ref> There are still some children learning Ryukyuan languages natively, but this is rare, especially on mainland Okinawa. The language still is used in traditional cultural activities, such as folk music, or folk dance.
 
After the annexation of the islands, many Ryukyuans, especially Okinawans, migrated to the mainland to find jobs or better living conditions. They were sometimes met with discrimination, such as workplaces with signs that read, "No Ryukyuans or Koreans."<ref>Inoue, Masamichi S. ''Okinawa and the U.S. Military: Identity Making in the Age of Globalization.'' Columbia University Press, 2007.</ref> At the [[Fifth National Industrial Exhibition|1903 Osaka Exhibition]], an exhibit called the "Pavilion of the World" (Jinruikan) had actual Okinawans, Ainu, Koreans, and other "backwards" peoples on display in their native clothes and housing.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/adv/wol/dy/campus/newreport_0903_10.html |title=News Report:Campus Now:Waseda Online |website=Yomiuri.co.jp |access-date=2016-04-01}}</ref> During the fierce fighting in the Battle of Okinawa, There were some Japanese soldiers committed multiple atrocities against Okinawan civilians, including rape and murder, using them as human shields{{Citation needed|date=October 2024}}, and encourage or orderforcing them to commit suicide rather than becoming captives <ref name=":5" />. In 2007, the [[Ministry of Education]] attempted to revise school textbooks to lessen mention of these atrocities, but was met with massive demonstrations in Okinawa.<ref>[http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2007/06/23/news/okinawa-slams-history-text-rewrite/ Okinawa slams history text rewrite] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151231213740/http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2007/06/23/news/okinawa-slams-history-text-rewrite/#.VoWgLXbP2Uk|date=December 31, 2015}}, ''Japan Times'', June 23, 2007. Retrieved 2023-05-31.</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Gheddo |first=Piero |url=http://www.asianews.it/news-en/Okinawa-against-Tokyo%E2%80%99s-attempts-to-rewrite-history-9666.html |title=JAPAN Okinawa against Tokyo's attempts to rewrite history – Asia News |publisher=Asianews.it |access-date=2013-12-04}}</ref>
 
Culturally, [[Okinawa Prefecture|Okinawa]] throughout its history had abeen close tiecloser to southern China, Taiwan, and Southeast Asia exceptas forcompared to Japan, reflecting its long history of trade with these regions{{Citation needed|date=November 2022}}. However, because of the standard use of Japanese in schools, television, and all print media in Okinawa, these cultural differences are often glossed over in Japanese society. Consequently, many Japanese consider Okinawans to be Japanese, sometimes ignoring their distinct cultural and historical heritage in insensitive ways.<ref name="IMA"/>
 
===Other groups===
{{See also|Americans in Japan|Australians in Japan|Bangladeshis in Japan|Brazilians in Japan|Britons in Japan|Filipinos in Japan|Indians in Japan|Indonesians in Japan|Iranians in Japan|Kurds in Japan|Mongolians in Japan|Nepalis in Japan|Nigerians in Japan|Pakistanis in Japan|Peruvian migration to Japan|Russians in Japan|Turks in Japan|Vietnamese people in Japan|History of the Jews in Japan}}
People of foreign origin and nationality are often are often called {{Nihongo2|外国人}} {{Nihongo3|||Gaikokujin}} (foreign country person) or {{Nihongo2|外人}} ''[[Gaijin]]'' (outsider or alien), with the latter term ocassionaly perceived to be [[pejorative]] and tended to be avoided by [[mass media]].<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Okamoto |first=Sachiko |date=2009-03-25 |title=Consideration on Avoiding Insensitive and Offensive Japanese Expressions |url=https://do-bunkyodai.repo.nii.ac.jp/records/114 |journal=Journal of Hokkaido Bunkyo University |language=ja |issue=10 |pages=63–7363-73 |via=Hokkaido Bunkyo University Tsuruoka Memorial Library}}</ref> First large influx of such people have started in the 1980s, as the Japanese economy was growing at a high rate.
 
During the 1980s and 1990s, the [[Keidanren]] business lobbying organization advocated a policy of allowing South Americans of Japanese ancestry (mainly [[Japanese Brazilians|Brazilians]] and [[Japanese Peruvians|Peruvians]]) to work in Japan, as Japan's industries faced a major labor shortage. Although this policy has been decelerated in recent years, many of these individuals continue to live in Japan, some in [[ethnic enclave]]s near their workplaces.
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===Pre-war xenophobia===
Racial discrimination against other Asians was habitual in Imperial Japan, which first practiced it during the start of [[Japanese colonialism]].<ref>[[Herbert Bix]], ''[[Hirohito and the Making of Modern Japan]]'', 2001, p.280</ref> Ayelet argues that theThe [[Meiji era]] Japanese were contemptuous of other Asians because they believed that other Asians were inferior to them.<ref name=raceinjapan>{{cite web|url=https://apjjf.org/2020/20/Zohar.html|title=
Introduction: Race and Empire in Meiji Japan|first=Ayelet|last=Zohar|publisher=The Asia-Pacific Journal|date=October 15, 2020|accessdate=November 12, 2023}}</ref> This sentiment was expressed in ''[[Datsu-A Ron]]'', an editorial whose author espoused the belief that Japan should treat other Asians as other [[Western imperialism in Asia|western empires]] treated them. Discrimination was also enacted against [[Ryūkyū people|Ryūkyū]] and [[Ainu people|Ainu]] peoples.<ref name=raceinjapan /><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/278729134278729134_Language_Conflict_and_Language_Rights_The_Ainu_Ryukyuans_and_Koreans_in_Japan|title=Language Conflict and Language Rights: The Ainu, Ryūkyūans, and Koreans in Japan.|first1=Stanley|last1=Dubinsky|first2=William D.|last2=Davies|publisher=ResearchGate|date=January 2013|accessdate=November 12, 2023}}</ref> The Shōwa regime preached racial superiority and racialist theories, based on nature of ''[[Yamato-damashii]].'' According to historian Kurakichi Shiratori, one of Emperor [[Hirohito]]'s teachers: "Therefore nothing in the world compares to the divine nature ({{Nihongo3|||shinsei}}) of the imperial house and likewise the majesty of our national polity (''[[kokutai]]''). Here is one great reason for Japan's superiority."<ref>Peter Wetzler, ''Hirohito and War'', 1998, p.104</ref> The Japanese culture long regarded [[Gaijin]] (non-Japanese) people to be subhumans and included Yamato master race theory ideology in government propaganda and schools as well.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/racial-purity-domination-world-war-ii-bryan-rigg|title=Racial Purity and Domination in World War II|first=Brian Mark|last=Rigg|website=[[LinkedIn]]|date=July 28, 2020|access-date=November 12, 2023}}{{rs|date=November 2023}}</ref>
 
As stated in ''[[An Investigation of Global Policy with the Yamato Race as Nucleus]]'', a classified report which was published by the [[Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare]] on July 1, 1943, just as a family has harmony and reciprocity, but with a clear-cut hierarchy, the Japanese, as a [[Supremacism|racially superior people]], are destined to rule Asia "eternally" as the head of the family of Asian nations.<ref>{{citation| title=The World War Two Reader| last=Martel| first=Gordon| publisher=Routledge| location=New York| year=2004| isbn =0-415-22403-9| pages=245–247}}</ref> The most horrific xenophobia of the pre-Shōwa period was displayed after the [[1923 Great Kantō earthquake]], where in the confusion after a massive earthquake, Koreans were wrongly maligned as poisoning the water supply. A vicious [[pogrom]] resulted in the deaths of at least 3,000 Koreans, and the imprisonment of 26,000.
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At the end of World War II, the Japanese government continued to adhere to the notion of racial homogeneity and racial supremacy, as well as an overall complex of social heirachy, with the Yamato race at the top of the racial hierarchy.<ref>{{Cite book | last = Kushner| first = Barak| year = 2007| title = The Thought War: Japanese Imperial Propaganda | publisher = University of Hawaii Press | isbn = 978-0824832087}}</ref> Japanese propaganda of racial purity returned to post-World War II Japan because of the support of the Allied forces. U.S. policy in Japan terminated the purge of high-ranking fascist war criminals and reinstalled the leaders who were responsible for the creation and manifestation of prewar race propaganda.<ref>{{Cite book | last = Chomsky| first = Noam| year = 2015| title = Year 501: The Conquest Continues | publisher = Pluto Press| isbn = 978-0745335476}}</ref>
 
Similar to what would occur in Korea, the overwhelming presence of American soldiers, most of whom young and unmarried, had a noticeable effect on the Japanese female populace.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Sims |first=Calvin |date=2000-07-23 |title=A Hard Life for Amerasian Children |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2000/07/23/world/a-hard-life-for-amerasian-children.html |access-date=2022-12-10 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> The obvious power dynamic after the war outcome, as well as the lack of accountability for American soldiers who impregnated Japanese women, placed these children into a negative light before their lives even began.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Times |first=Richard Halloran Special to The New York |date=1976-06-02 |title=Now-Now‐ Grown Children of G. I.'s in Korea Are Bitter |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1976/06/02/archives/nowgrown-children-of-gis-in-korea-are-bitter.html |access-date=2022-12-10 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> An unknown number of these children would be abandoned by their fathers. They would grow up associated with defeat and death in their own country and regarded as a reminder of Japanese subordination to a western power.{{citation needed|date=June 2023}}
 
===Post-war government policy===
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Article 14 of the [[Constitution of Japan]] states that all ''people'' (English version) or ''citizens'' (revised Japanese version) are equal under the law, and they cannot be discriminated against politically, economically, or socially on the basis of race, belief, sex, or social or other background.
 
However, Japan does not have [[civil rights]] legislation which prohibits or penalizes discriminatory activities committed by citizens, businesses, or non-governmental organizations. In January 2024, three Japanese citizens, including a man of Pakistani descent, filed a civil lawsuit against the Japanese government, alleging a consistent pattern of racially motivated police harassment and requesting improved practices, along with approximately ¥3 million ($20,330) each in compensation. The uncommon lawsuit in Japan aims to demonstrate that racial discrimination violates the constitution and international human rights agreements. The plaintiffs, including two permanent residents and one foreign-born Japanese citizen, claim repeated unjustified stops and searches by the police based on their race, prompting concerns about the country's ability to address the increasing diversity resulting from a growing number of foreign workers. The lawsuit names the Japanese government, the Tokyo Metropolitan, and Aichi prefecture governments.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-01-29 |title=A group of Japanese citizens launches a lawsuit against the police to stop alleged 'racial profiling' |url=https://apnews.com/article/japan-police-lawsuit-discrimination-0b474ea7222ba3924e8e5abafa3981b5 |access-date=2024-02-02 |website=AP News |language=en}}</ref><ref name=":2">{{Cite magazineweb |date=2024-01-30 |title=Japan Police Accused of Racial Profiling |url=https://time.com/6589912/japan-police-racial-discrimination-lawsuit/ |access-date=2024-02-02 |magazinewebsite=TIME |language=en}}</ref>
 
Attempts have been made in the [[Diet of Japan|Diet]] to enact human rights legislation. In 2002, a draft was submitted to the [[House of Representatives (Japan)|House of Representatives]], but did not reach a vote.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0XPQ/is_2005_May_16/ai_n13829869 |work=Japan Policy & Politics |title=LDP forgoes immediate Diet submission of human rights bill |year=2005 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080928222403/http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0XPQ/is_2005_May_16/ai_n13829869 |archive-date=September 28, 2008 }}</ref> Had the law passed, it would have set up a Human Rights Commission to investigate, [[name and shame]], or financially penalize discriminatory practices as well as hate speech committed by private citizens or establishments.
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