Japanese Guys React to Racist Stereotypes of Asian Men

January 3, 2017

One way or another, each of us had our share of hearing racist stereotypes.

In a recent video, YouTuber Yuta Aoki asked Japanese guys to react on Asian male stereotypes in American films.

One said it’s strange that such ideas still exist:

“I think they still have outdated ideas even though they have a lot of opportunities to see the actual Japanese people on the Internet. They still have those ideas and that’s strange.”

Another thought the American media is just having fun with racism:

“If they feature Japanese people, I want them to use them well.”

Meanwhile, one said it can be tough to forget old ideas:

“It’s inevitable that people want to use those stereotypes to make people laugh. It becomes discriminatory but I think it’s unavoidable. I see Japanese people doing the same thing too.”

Yuta also found one Asian-American man who responded to his question with:

“I don’t think it’s accurate, but they got the martial arts thing going for them so it’s good.”

Responses varied when Yuta asked why such stereotypes exist. Some said it’s because of (1) Japan’s defeat in the war against the U.S., (2) immigration history and (3) Japanese people trying to catch up on American culture.

When Yuta asked how stereotypes affect them, the Asian-American man said:

“It doesn’t help. As long as you get to know somebody better, like, you understand ‘Oh yeah. He’s just not into the library and studying all the time.'”

Watch Yuta’s full interview:

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