The Association to Stop Racism Against Blacks facts for kids

The Association to Stop Racism Against Black People (Japanese: 黒人差別をなくす会) was a group started in Japan in 1988. It was based in Sakai, Osaka. This group became well-known because it convinced publishers across Japan to stop printing local versions of the children's book The Story of Little Black Sambo.

How the Association Started

A family named Arita – Toshiji, Kimiko, and their nine-year-old son Hajime – started this group on August 11, 1988. Kimiko Arita was the leader, and Toshiji Arita was the vice-leader. Hajime Arita managed the money. At first, they were the only members. But by February 1992, they had 135 members, and by December 1995, they had 225. There are no recent reports about the group's activities today.

In July 1988, an American newspaper, The Washington Post, wrote an article. It talked about how some items in Japan, like a doll by Sanrio and mannequins, showed black people in a way that could be seen as unfair or stereotypical. Sanrio quickly stopped making the doll and took back all the ones they had sold.

After reading this report, the Arita family agreed that such images could be harmful. They decided to look into how black people were shown in shops and products.

In August 1989, an African American group invited the Arita family to the United States. There, they met important people like Jesse Jackson, who had run for president, and Tom Bradley, who was the mayor of Los Angeles at the time.

What the Association Did

The association mainly sent letters to companies, comic creators, and publishers. They protested against characters, comics, and animations that they felt showed black people in a discriminatory way. Sometimes, they also spoke out against other types of racial discrimination.

The group sometimes complained about works that had only a small appearance by black characters. Some creators refused to change their works. But in other cases, these complaints caused authors to stop or pause the production of their books or shows.

The association looked at many publications that featured black people. In late 1990, they sent letters to all publishers. They asked them to take action by a certain date. Because of this, over 300 books were stopped from being published for a while. This included books like Kimba the White Lion and the "Complete Collection of Osamu Tezuka Comic." The protests were even mentioned in the "Message from the editor" section of Osamu Tezuka's comic collection.

In September 1993, they protested against a Sanrio picture book. It had a song called "Kawaii Cook-san" (meaning "Lovely Mr. Cook") that they found offensive. They asked for the book to be taken off shelves.

In June 1999, they protested against "Animal Kingdom of Osamu Tezuka" by Osamu Tezuka. This caused a short delay in its release, but the protest was eventually turned down.

In 2000, they asked for a book called "On the Edge of the Primeval Forest" by Albert Schweitzer to be stopped. They said its Japanese translation had unfair descriptions of native people in Africa. This event was also reported in America, and groups fighting against racism supported the association.

In 2002, they complained again to the same publisher about unfair descriptions in Doctor Dolittle.

Here are some things that happened because of their protests:

• The book The Story of Little Black Sambo stopped being published for some time starting in December 1989.
• In 1989, Takara (now part of Tomy) stopped using their "Winky Dolls" trademark.
• Calpis food stopped using their black symbol mark in January 1990.
• Some items in the Osamu Tezuka Exhibition were changed.
• In July 1990, the association protested against Obake no Q-Tarō. This comic had a chapter called "International Obake Union" that showed a ghost with the image of black people. As a result, some copies were taken back and stopped from being published. Jungle Kurobe was also stopped at the same time.
• In August 1990, the association protested against several popular comics. These included Dr. Slump by Akira Toriyama, Kochira Katsushika-ku Kameari Kōen-mae Hashutsujo by Osamu Akimoto, and others. These protests led to changes in these works.
• In 1992, the GOMES magazine published by Parco was taken back.
• In December 1995, Anmitsu Hime by Izumi Takemoto was taken back.
• In September 1998, a souvenir doll from Okinawa that looked like black people was removed from sale. Also, a children's park in Sapporo was renamed from Kuronbo Park to Ohisama Park.

How People Reacted

Because of the association's actions, showing black people in a stereotypical way in media became a taboo (something to avoid). Authors, publishers, and editors started to check their own works carefully before publishing them, which is called self-censorship.

However, the association also received criticism. Some people felt that by stopping the printing of older works, the group was limiting freedom of expression.

In April 1989, the deputy leader of the association wrote that "The picture book is just a piece of merchandise that discriminates against black people. No matter how well known the book is... that still does not excuse the fact." But later, in an interview, the deputy leader said they did not want to get rid of the picture book completely. Still, when publishers tried to talk with them about the issues, the association often refused to join the discussions.

Recognition

According to a report from November 1989, the association was called "Champions against discrimination."

See also

• Racial discrimination
• Kotobagari (word hunting)
• Black Lives Matter protests in Japan