Stereotypes of Asians in the U.S. and Blacks in Japan

Stereotypes

What are they? Where do they come from? Why do they exist?

War propaganda: Scenes from “Bugs Bunny Nips the Nips”

More examples of wartime racist caricatures

Stereotypes of AsiansAbercrombie and Fitch T-shirts

Company recalls T-shirts in 2002 after complaints and protests

Minstrel showsThe “slave” character, or “Jim Crow”

The Original Jim Crow (Sheet music from the 1830s)

White actors (and later some black actors) dressed up in “blackface”

Minstrel showsCallender's Colored Minstrels in a plantation scenario, post-1875.

Minstrel showsPoster advertising a minstrel show, 1900.

Minstrel showsPostcard, 1908.

Minstrel showsAfrican-Americans also performed in blackface. (Picture of Bert Williams, 1921)

The “Golliwog”from The Adventures of Two Dutch Dolls and a Golliwog, by Florence Kate Upton

The character is wearing traditional minstrel attire, with dark black skin, bright red lips, big white eyes, and wild, wooly hair.

Image became popular in the U.K. and was used as mascots for products, dolls, and various other items.

Queen’s shop removes golliwog toyFebruary 5, 2009 (BBC)

Stereotypes of Blacks used todayScreenshot of “Golly Dollies” website, 2012

The “Pickaninny”

Caricature of Black children

Blackface and “darkie” caricatures

Commodore Perry showed Japanese treaty negotiators a minstrel show aboard the Pohatan. The “Ethiopian minstrels” performed in several places in Japan.

“Kuwaman with Three Bicrees (K3B)”

“Gosperats”

Japanese dressed in blackface

On January 31st, the J.League Division 1 team Yokohama F. Marinos held “Tricolore Festa”, a party for its supporters, which included members dressing up in blackface.

“Shimura Zoo” turned former pro boxer Yoko Gushiken into a “black rapper” to see if his dog would still recognize him

Japanese game show has contestants dress up in blackface and sing "We Are the World"

The “Jynx” character in “Pokemon” was changed after complaints

“Bubblesisters” (Korea)

Korean television show

Dutch people in blackface celebrating the controversial “Sinterklass” holiday

Use of blackface in other countries

1993: Ted Dansen performs in blackface at a club next to Whoopi Goldberg, his ex-girlfriend. The club later apologized for the routine.

April 2012: Swedish minister of culture Lena Adelsohn Liljeroth attends a taxpayer-funded party

Gatsby ad showing black men with a chimpanzee imitating them

Due to protests, Gatsby stopped ad campaign

The “Mammy”

“Little Black Sambo”• Written by Helen Bannerman (Scottish)• Original illustrations featured a caricatured South Asian boy• Led to many pirated versions• “Sambo” was a common slave name and began to be used as a stereotypical African-American name about 150 years ago

ちびくろ　さんぼPublished by Zuiunsha in 2005

Sequel to “chibikuro sambo”: “Ufu and Mufu”(August 2011, Kyoto Station)

What if we were to “put the shoe on the other foot”?

『ちびきいろじゃぷ』“Little Yellow Jap” (parody)

“to put the shoe on the other foot”

What do you think?