Is "Gaijin" a Racist Slur?

Maciamo · 14 Jun 2006

osias said:
I don't use the word gaijin when i speak japanese, but on an English forum like this one, this word seems to show up quite frequently, and i somehow use the word on an English forum, because others use it. Is gaijin an english word already? I find it strange that many gaijins prefer to use this word gaijin, while many others complain about its racist connotations?

I guess that those who have no problem its use are those who see themselves so different from the Japanese that they will never be associated with them. These are the people who haven t tried to integrate into Japanese society. Given the numerous negative connotation of the word "gaijin", I would say one must also be fairly thick-skinned or, on the contrary, naive to like being called like that.

I myself grew up overseas in 4 different countries, i've been a foreigner most of my life time. But i don't take offense at being considered a foreigner, because i am! I like the aloofness, rootlessness, etc of a global nomad.

Funny, I have a similar experience, also fee somehow "nationless" or like a global nomad, but I dislike being referred to by a word that is meant to exclude me, especially when I am living in that country, try to integrate, and that exclusion word is used by people I know well.

Maciamo · 14 Jun 2006

Damicci said:
But isn't that the case? Unless they come up with new classifications for Non Japanese residents in Japan (e.g. American-Japanese, African-Japanese, Chinese-Japanese) Like we have here then thats what you are. Non Japanese, a foreigner. It's not like it's "really" meant to say "Hey you guys are not Japanese hahaha we shall label you hahaha" It's mainly classification. Unless I am missing something, there is no true intentional disrepect with the word. Just some Japanese can use it offensively if they choose.

The connotation is not about nationality. As I said above, naturalised foreigners are still called "gaijin". But what bugs me most is that "gaijin" really means not belonging to the group, not knowing things Japanese people do, not being able to understand Japanese sensitivity... It means all this. That is why I say it is meant to exclude, in a negative way. When I hear gaijin, I hear "you will never be able to be like us", even if you speak Japanese and are naturalised Japanese. That is why I feel it has racist connotations.

Just so that you understand the importance of the connotation behind a word, the word "negro" just means "black" in Spanish. "Nigger" is just a deformation from "negro". So if calling someone "Black" is ok, then "negro" and "nigger" should be fine as well. It is a naive mistake to think that the words "gaikokujin" and even more the informal "gaijin" only mean "outsider" or "foreigner" in a neutral sense. Some Japanese may tell you it is fine, but I also know some Caucasians who think it is perfectly fine to call a Black a nigger.

Damicci · 14 Jun 2006

Maciamo said:
The connotation is not about nationality. As I said above, naturalised foreigners are still called "gaijin". But what bugs me most is that "gaijin" really means not belonging to the group, not knowing things Japanese people do, not being able to understand Japanese sensitivity... It means all this. That is why I say it is meant to exclude, in a negative way. When I hear gaijin, I hear "you will never be able to be like us", even if you speak Japanese and are naturalised Japanese. That is why I feel it has racist connotations.

This is just my opnion of course, but unless you want to be Japanese then that shouldn't be what you hear when the word is mentioned around you.

To add to the "nigger" that was MEANT to be offensive. I don't recall reading about gaijin meaning to be offensive. Now I am not as educated as you are so I am sure I have missed quite a few things. It just seems to me that it is only offensive when used in that manner. But I do undertsand your point in total.

Glenn · 14 Jun 2006

I just remembered one of my teachers telling me a story about one of his experiences with the word "gaijin." He said that he was walking down the street, and a kid said "it's a gaijin!" The kid who was with him happened to be friends with my teacher's son, and he said "that's not a gaijin; that's Ken's dad!" My teacher would never be mistaken for Japanese going by looks alone.

I don't know how representative this is, though. I think it would be interesting to ask Japanese people how they think of the word (I've never done so, so I don't really know).

Maciamo · 14 Jun 2006

Damicci said:
This is just my opnion of course, but unless you want to be Japanese then that shouldn't be what you hear when the word is mentioned around you.

Well I guess the problem is that I was trying hard to integrate into Japanese society, learn as much as could about the country, have a Japanese family, got a permanent residency, and still got called "gaijin" even by people who knew me very well ! It hurts somehow. They could just have said ﾂ青ｼ窶芭ﾂ人 or 窶ｰﾂ｢窶｢ﾃ?人 if they wanted to stress the fact that I was from Western or European origin. No need to use a word that means "outsider that will never belong here".

Glenn · 14 Jun 2006

I'm assuming your wife wasn't one of those people.

Damicci · 14 Jun 2006

Maciamo said:
Well I guess the problem is that I was trying hard to integrate into Japanese society, learn as much as could about the country, have a Japanese family, got a permanent residency, and still got called "gaijin" even by people who knew me very well ! It hurts somehow. They could just have said ﾂ青ｼ窶芭ﾂ人 or 窶ｰﾂ｢窶｢ﾃ?人 if they wanted to stress the fact that I was from Western or European origin. No need to use a word that means "outsider that will never belong here".

I am sure that sucks. I would figure after awhile terms would change and labels become different once you get to know someone. In your case Maciamo I think I woudl prefered to be call ﾆ但ﾆ陳?椎?ﾆ谷ﾂ人 over ﾅ?Oﾂ人ﾂ・ﾅ?Oﾂ坂?伉人. Especially when people know your origins and what not. Sorry to hear that.

Maciamo · 14 Jun 2006

Damicci said:
I am sure that sucks. I would figure after awhile terms would change and labels become different once you get to know someone. In your case Maciamo I think I woudl prefered to be call ﾆ但ﾆ陳?椎?ﾆ谷ﾂ人 over ﾅ?Oﾂ人ﾂ・ﾅ?Oﾂ坂?伉人. Especially when people know your origins and what not. Sorry to hear that.

Except that I am not American. In fact, when I am not pointed by children in the street who shout "gaijin da ! gaijin da !", it is "Hello America !", and it does not make me feel better, given that I am not American, and even if I were I would find it strange to associate Caucasian with "America" when the place of origins or Caucasians is Europe and Europe still has twice more white people than the USA.

Damicci · 14 Jun 2006

I know, just an example. I have heard the hello america comment before though. Ah ignorance.

RockLee · 14 Jun 2006

You can see western people do that too, you know. When there's a Chinese or asian person those stupid people say something like "ching chang chong" or make karate moves with the sounds or act like total retards. It happens to me often when I tell people I'm studying Japanese and I've been there & to China. It's not only Asian people, we have our own load of ignorant westerners.

Ma Cherie · 14 Jun 2006

After reading these posts I came to the conclusion that, I think the reason why foreigners have a problem with the word gaijin is possibly because whenever a Japanese person says "hey look, there's a gaijin!" to me, it seems like they have to make the point that you're not Japanese. This is possibly the reason why foreigners who live in Japan get offended, even though the word gaijin is supposed to be neutral. But if I lived in Japan, I wouldn't like it if I had to be reminded that I'm not Japanese.

Maciamo · 14 Jun 2006

RockLee said:
You can see western people do that too, you know. When there's a Chinese or asian person those stupid people say something like "ching chang chong" or make karate moves with the sounds or act like total retards. It happens to me often when I tell people I'm studying Japanese and I've been there & to China. It's not only Asian people, we have our own load of ignorant westerners.

Yes, but at least you can categorise such people as lower class (actually, what you described is almost my definition of 'lower class'). In Japan it exist throughout the spectrum of classes.

Maciamo · 14 Jun 2006

Ma Cherie said:
After reading these posts I came to the conclusion that, I think the reason why foreigners have a problem with the word gaijin is possibly because whenever a Japanese person says "hey look, there's a gaijin!" to me, it seems like they have to make the point that you're not Japanese.

That is partly the reason, yes. It sounds like a childish "You are different ! Haha !".

Elizabeth · 14 Jun 2006

Ma Cherie said:
After reading these posts I came to the conclusion that, I think the reason why foreigners have a problem with the word gaijin is possibly because whenever a Japanese person says "hey look, there's a gaijin!" to me, it seems like they have to make the point that you're not Japanese. This is possibly the reason why foreigners who live in Japan get offended, even though the word gaijin is supposed to be neutral. But if I lived in Japan, I wouldn't like it if I had to be reminded that I'm not Japanese.

It's gonna be an absurdly strong reaction of some nature in any case. If you're ever there and walk down the street reading a Japanese paper, the stares are of shock, disbelief and often admiration, particularly with luggage clearly showing tourist ; if you're confident and look like you know what your business is, it's cowed amazement ; if it appears a foreigner is lost or is sure which direction to turn the wonder turns to patronizing pity and ridicule (more like you'll find in some small towns regardless).

I've long given up taking these reactions as a gauge of anything personal and just go about the affairs I'm familiar with speaking normal Japanese and let the ignorance lie where it may -- as long as no one tries to get away with the "hey defective gaijin" label/epitaph ( 窶｢s窶氾??Oﾂ人 ).

Damicci · 14 Jun 2006

According to my girlfriend. She only uses ﾅ?Oﾂ人 or ﾅ?Oﾂ坂?伉人 when she knows nothing of the person or the origin. Once she knows enough information then she can refer to them based on thier nationality.

Ma Cherie · 14 Jun 2006

I can only imagine the frustration that foreigners must feel. I'm know it doesn't bother some people, but it bothers others. I understand that Japan is still fairly isolated, but that's no excuse for treating foreigners like they're something to be seen in a circus.

Damicci · 14 Jun 2006

It's like that here. I took my EX to My home neighborhood (majority black) and she was stared like "what!" because she is Asian. It happens all over in areas where people don't normally see those types of faces on a regular basis. I went to Fukuoka and supposedly there aren't many blacks there. Yes I saw more whites than blacks but nobody really stared me down.

ArmandV · 14 Jun 2006

Ma Cherie said:
I can only imagine the frustration that foreigners must feel. I'm know it doesn't bother some people, but it bothers others. I understand that Japan is still fairly isolated, but that's no excuse for treating foreigners like they're something to be seen in a circus.

From what I've seen, some foreigners look like they do belong in a circus.

Each time I've been in Japan, I've never been treated any way other than respectfully. Maybe some here were hanging out in the wrong sections.

Elizabeth · 14 Jun 2006

ArmandV said:
From what I've seen, some foreigners look like they do belong in a circus.
Each time I've been in Japan, I've never been treated any way other than respectfully. Maybe some here were hanging out in the wrong sections.

I've never been deliberately shown disrespect, I'm sure most of the behavior here is quite unconscious and culturally based. It also depends on the level of integration and expections from the non-Japanese side. The first 2-3 times I was there I didn't care who spoke to me in what language or didn't notice little tics and oddities that you start to question with time, I was so overwhelmed trying to digest and enjoy the experience itself. And gradually gotten used to the less savory aspects from that point forward.

JimmySeal · 14 Jun 2006

I think it's silly to think that the Japanese should invent a new word for "foreigner." What's insulting about "gaikokujin" is the way it's used, not its etymology. The word "foreign" comes from a Latin word meaning "outside," so foreigner is almost identical in meaning to gaikokujin.

One probably notices after a little time in Japan that Japanese people use the word "gaikokujin" more than we would usually use the word "foreigner." I think the reason for this is simple. The Japanese at least believe themselves to be a homogeneous unmixed race, and almost all of them are asian-looking, so it's easy (they believe) to pick out the ones that aren't Japanese and refer to them as gaikokujin. In the US, we have a diverse mixture of races, and we can't tell by sight who lives there and who doesn't. We tend to group people by race: white, black, hispanic, Asian, Indian, and I think we'd be more likely to use the words "tourist" or "immigrant" rather than "foreigner." I personally would prefer to be called 窶昶?卍人 or 窶ｰﾂ｢窶｢ﾃ?人 rather than ﾅ?Oﾂ坂?伉人 but I doubt that's going to start happening.

To answer osias' question, I think non-Japanese usually use the word "gaijin" with a degree of sarcasm as if to say "we're not accepted here, and we know that," which is sort of what Glenn was saying.

Maciamo · 14 Jun 2006

JimmySeal said:
I think it's silly to think that the Japanese should invent a new word for "foreigner." What's insulting about "gaikokujin" is the way it's used, not its etymology. The word "foreign" comes from a Latin word meaning "outside," so foreigner is almost identical in meaning to gaikokujin.

It's about connotation and the way it is used and abuse, not the root of the word. How many times do you call someone who look different than you a foreigner without actually knowing whether they are ? It's automatic for Japanese people, and they use that word much too much. It's a national obsession.

One probably notices after a little time in Japan that Japanese people use the word "gaikokujin" more than we would usually use the word "foreigner".

Exactly.

I think the reason for this is simple. The Japanese at least believe themselves to be a homogeneous unmixed race, and almost all of them are asian-looking, so it's easy (they believe) to pick out the ones that aren't Japanese and refer to them as gaikokujin. In the US, we have a diverse mixture of races, and we can't tell by sight who lives there and who doesn't. We tend to group people by race: white, black, hispanic, Asian, Indian, and I think we'd be more likely to use the words "tourist" or "immigrant" rather than "foreigner."

I don't think that Americans are in the best position to judge Japanese society on this because justly the USA is too diverse and multiethnic, and does not have a long-standing and fairly homogenous culture (everybody brings their own culture, as they say). Europeans may be better at comparing their country with Japan, as 50 years ago (before the decolonisation) Europe was more ethnically homogenous than Japan today. Some countries are more ethnically homogenous than others though (e.g. Nordic countries are more than France or the UK, even disregarding immigrants).

I personally would prefer to be called 窶昶?卍人 or 窶ｰﾂ｢窶｢ﾃ?人 rather than ﾅ?Oﾂ坂?伉人 but I doubt that's going to start happening.

One of the major things that trouble me about the use of "gai(koku)jin" is that it doesn't differentiate countries or regions of origins. All foreigners are alike for the Japanese. Gaijin are like this, gaijin are like that. Often, they mean "Westerners", but they could as well talk about Indians, Arabs, Chinese, Africans or Mexcians. In 4.5 years in Japan I have very rarely heard Japanese people call the people they were referring to by nationality (e.g. Indians), ethnic group (e.g. Caucasians) or linguistic group (e.g. English speakers). In 95% of the cases, it's just "gaijin". That's why I say it has such a strong connotation of "not ethnically nor culturally Japanese" rather than "foreigner".

caster51 · 14 Jun 2006

All foreigners are alike for the Japanese. Gaijin are like this, gaijin are like that. Often

because we dont know where they come from.
if we know their nationality once, we call them ...jin
it is simple

for Example Zico is from brasil.
we never call him gaijin or gaikokujin.

JimmySeal · 14 Jun 2006

I don't think that's always true. I think people call me gaikokujin even after they learn my nationality. Either that or they ask me "Do other gaikokujin yaddayadda?" Now I may be more knowledgeable than the outside world than they are, but for the most part the only other foreigners I know are Americans, so they should say "American!" And they don't need to use that word before they know my nationality either. If they want to say "Can your gaikokujin friend eat fish?" to someone assuming that I'm ignorant to their language, they can call me "kono hito/kono kata."

Maciamo · 15 Jun 2006

caster51 said:
because we dont know where they come from.
if we know their nationality once, we call them ...jin
it is simple
for Example Zico is from brasil.
we never call him gaijin or gaikokujin.

That's not true. Many people who know where I am from continue to call me "gaijin". For famous people, I also heard people call them "gaijin" rather than by their nationality. It bugged me that even my wife would ask me such questions as "how do gaijin do this ?" or "what do gaijin think about this ?" when she meant either Westerners, or Europeans, or Belgians, or just my relatives... (depending on the question).

Davey · 15 Jun 2006

I don't have a problem with the word, although I understand that when you look at the word closely it sounds racist. When I talk about myself as a foreigner in Japan, I call myself Gaijin, my wife calls me gaijin and also friends call me gaijin.

When a person looks at you and says heyzz gaijin, it means heyz foreigner! so I don't see any difference in gaijin, foreigner, or person from another country.

So the WORD itself isn't racist in my opinion

Is "Gaijin" a Racist Slur?

Is the word "Gaijin" a racist slur?

Yes, it is a racist slur and should never be used.

Yes, in practice, it is a racist slur.

No, but it have Racist connotations.

No, it is not a racist slur.

No, it is perfectly fine to refer to those who don't have Japanese Citizenship.

No, it is perfectly fine to refer to those who are not of Ethnic Japanese Descent.

I don't have an opinion.

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