Xenophobia in Japan?

[blkmage]

Someone was kind enough to subconsciously detect the conversation going on here and write a blog post about this.

[Mr. SmartyPants]

Um.Also, of COURSE race is genetic. Otherwise you're saying two white couples could have a black baby, or that a white and a black couple could mysteriously have a child that looked Asian. They don't, because race IS genetic.

I think we're thinking at different angles here.

By no means am I saying that race does not exist, hence an "illusion". Race exists because the categories of differentiation are purely human constructs. i.e. What is stopping me from claiming to be pure Irish? Heck, why can't I even be pure Irish? Because my skin pigment isn't white or I don't have red hair? 85%]same[/i] "racial" population, meaning I am just as likely (or even more likely) to be genetically similar to you than I am to another Korean person.

Let's say I was born from Korean parents (which... I am), but adopted by Japanese parents immediately after birth. I'm socialized in Japanese society. I learn the language, customs, and social norms/mores/taboos. Am I Japanese? And if not, then why? Genetic Inheritability can't be a valid answer because the only reason my parents are Korean is that they are socialized in Korean society, which you then would regress that argument back to early history... and find out that we were all likely Chinese at one point. Heck, one of my ancestors may have even been Russian or something! Maybe I'm 1/32 Russian. If I were 1/32 Black in early 20th century then I would have been legally classified as "black"... which just makes absolutely no sense.

Hence, "race" is socially constructed, especially since classifications of race are always changing. The only reason I am Korean is because the world says so...

Refusing the accept the idea of Race existing is Colorblindness, and has it's own limitations as well. I don't like the idea of Colorblindness, because I personally believe "race"-focused solutions are necessary to make any progress. Treating people equally isn't going to do anything because systems themselves are racist. Dr. George Yancey speaks much on this subject. Race still has a major impact in society because not only is there racism at an individual level, but there is much institutional racism today, especially the repercussions of past exploits.

And here's a good wiki article:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_interpretations_of_race

Yeah, race can lend itself to stereotyping, but so can gender, and I don't see anyone saying we should regard gender as an illusion. Men and women are different, yet the same, and it's the same with race, we're all different, yet the same. It just bothers me when people say "There's no such thing as race" because there IS, plain as the noses on our faces.

Well Gender often is related to the socially constructed differences between male and females. Sex is the purely physiological differences between the two. Some people would argue that gender differences are purely socially constructed (i.e. many ultrafeminists), while others say that differences are a result of biological differences. I tend to take a more eclectic approach and say that both are true points.

[uc pseudonym]

Regarding the linked blog, I think that's something we should keep in mind here. My hope, however, is that this discussion hasn't been so much, "Is Japan racist?" as opposed to, "Does racism exist in Japan?" I think that's a fair question, as it is also fair to ask if racism exists in the US. In both cases the answer is yes, and though it's good to be conscious of differences and not generalize, in terms of people suffering from discrimination today, that "yes" still matters.

Even so, the fact remains that race ISN'T really an illusion, and refusing to accept the idea of race is actually still fairly racist to me. Different races have different cultures, and it helps to recognize that and celebrate the uniqueness of us all while still recognizing we are all human.

That's a valid point. I was trying to avoid this by strictly addressing just the genetic issue, but I guess I should have mentioned this side of things.

Culture exists, and so do genetic groupings. But those are a lot more complicated than race. Africa has a lot of different cultures and gene pools, not that I'm saying you don't know that. What I do mean to say is that "black" is simplistic if you're saying that someone raised in America is the same as a Kenyan or a Pygmy (and both of those categories include a lot of different groups as well) just because they have darker skin.

But if someone wants to call themselves black and they're referring to their culture and their heritage, I have no problem with that. Same with anyone else who wants to honor their people. Labels are always generalizations, which is fine so long as people acknowledge that.

In the end, my issue is that I don't think race is a meaningful way to talk about all the diversity among different peoples. To me it has more overtones of, "People that look similar must be the same" as opposed to the more benevolent version you described.

And just to cover more of my bases: I'm not saying that skin color and other traits I called "superficial" don't matter. There's still a lot of racism out there and the way people perceive your race does affect your life. This is part of why I prefer to be on the "race is nonexistent" side of the debate, because I think these labels have tended to be used wrongly more often than rightly.