One of the hardest things about being a multi-racial family is having to explain racism to your kid. (Okay, I think it should be a discussion in ALL families, regardless of race or ethnicity, but that is a subject for another post.) In our house, it’s an ongoing conversation, and one that is important to keep having.
On our family trip to Korea last year, my husband and I had a reality check that completely took us by surprise. One night, exhausted, we turned on the TV to find something to veg out to. We thought perhaps a movie on Armed Forces Television.
What we found instead has been the subject of conversation in our home many times since. What we were decidedly NOT expecting was a sketch comedy program, featuring a Korean cast, completely in black face. We’re talking full outfits, certain characters with bones through their noses, make-up embellished lips, skin darkened with make-up, and outfits designed to make the “actors” look like they had large hips and breasts. A laugh track accompanied the action, and while we couldn’t understand what was being said, there was no mistaking the intent.
I grabbed the camera–strange instinct, I know–and started to document what we were seeing. It felt too unreal to me, and as parents of a Korean-American child, both my husband and I feel like it is vital that we be able to explain to our son that Korea is a complicated place, some of it terrific, some of it rife with the problems that still plague us here in the U.S. We think honesty is important and added the photos as part of our overall trip photo albums. A moment in time, albeit a problematic and upsetting one.
A few days later, walking in an ancient neighborhood, we walked behind a young black woman. Near the Itaewon area, she was clearly an American service member, as I could tell from the patches on her backpack. On her day off, she was walking, just like we were, going about her business of the day. But, she was doing so as a black woman in Korea. I could only begin to imagine what her experiences were, and what it meant for her to be there, and to be black there.
All of this back story is my way of introducing a site I’ve just come across that explores being black in Japan. Black Tokyo promises “Japan with an Afro perspective,” and was founded by Eric L. Robinson, who has spent nearly 2 decades in Asia. “Black Tokyo (BT) was created to provide a voice and network for Blacks living in Japan. BT also sees to provide news on Japan and will address inaccurate or false information, stereotypes and other issues concerning Blacks in Japan. This site does not seek to bash Japan or its inhabitants. BT’s main purpose is to provide the reader with information and encourage discussion on Japan.” (via)
On his site, Robinson, AKA Zurui, looks at any number of issues. Yes, some of it is about racism in Japan–see the story about a production of Little Black Sambo at a preschool. But Robinson does more than that. For example, one recent post explored a proposed Japanese military base in Djibouti, Africa. Another applauded the appointment of the first female Bullet Train operator.
Black Tokyo is worth looking at, and again, recognizing that Japan is as complex as any other country. I love the idea that there is someone talking about and exploring these topics, and, sigh, just wish that one existed for Korea!
