Japan ruling party on defensive over Obama "slave" comment

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A legislator from the party of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe (pictured) said Barack Obama carried the "blood of ... slaves" (AFP Photo/Kazuhiro Nogi)
Tokyo (AFP) - A Japanese lawmaker who said US President Barack Obama carried the "blood of ... slaves" was under pressure to explain himself Thursday after his remarks sparked uproar.


Kazuya Maruyama, a legislator from Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's ruling party, was attempting to highlight the dynamism of US society while speaking in parliament in Tokyo when he made the remarks, which instantly backfired.

"Now in the United States, a black man serves as president," Maruyama told lawmakers on Wednesday, adding that Obama "carries the blood of black people.

"This means slaves, to put it bluntly."

He then described as "unthinkable" at the time of the founding of the United States more than two centuries ago the idea that a black man could become president.

"It is a nation that transforms itself in dynamic ways," he concluded, praising the power of the country to change.

Obama is not a descendant of slaves but rather the son of a white mother from Kansas and a black Kenyan father who went to US as a student.

Maruyama, when approached by reporters shortly after the parliament hearing, apologised and said he would ask for his remarks to be omitted from the official records.

He said he was trying to argue that Japan must learn from the United States and had not been aware of the tone of his comments, according to local media.

His clumsy effort to praise the US drew widespread condemnation and the fallout continued Thursday.

The remarks made national headlines and caused opposition lawmakers to submit a motion to the upper house of parliament pressing Maruyama to resign.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, the government’s top spokesman, said that Maruyama "must fulfil his obligation to explain himself" in comments at a regular briefing.

The case served as the latest headache for Abe, who has seen a score of embarrassing scandals involving ruling party members.

Akira Amari, a key ally who served as the chief negotiator for the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal, left his ministerial post last month over a graft allegation published in a magazine.

And just last week, junior ruling party parliamentarian Kensuke Miyazaki, who had wanted to become the first national lawmaker to take paternity leave, announced he was resigning his seat after an affair with a bikini model while his wife, also a lawmaker, was pregnant.
Japan ruling party on defensive over Obama "slave" comment - Yahoo News

 

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Japanese lawmaker in hot water after calling Obama ‘descendant of black slaves’ — RT News

Japanese lawmaker in hot water after calling Obama ‘descendant of black slaves’
Published time: 18 Feb, 2016 15:19
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U.S. President Barack Obama © Kevin Lamarque / Reuters
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“In the United States, a black man has become its president. I mean, he is in a bloodline of black people who were slaves,” Maruyama, a 69-year-old US-educated lawyer, said on Wednesday.

“People in the country’s founding era would have never thought that a black slave would become president. That’s how dynamically America has evolved.”

Maruyama later held a news conference to apologize for his gaffe.“I’m truly sorry I made remarks that could be misunderstood,” Japan Today reported him as saying.

Maruyama’s belief that all African-Americans were once slaves is“ignorant” and “racist in thought,” Eric L. Robinson, creative director of the Black Tokyo website, told the Japan Times. Obama, the first African American president of the United States, is the son of a Kenyan student and the daughter of Irish immigrants. Had Maruyama done his homework, he would have known that Obama was “not an African that was in slavery in America,” Robinson noted.

Shortly before making his comments on Wednesday, Maruyama toyed with the idea of Japan becoming part of the United States.

“What kind of problems with the Constitution could arise if, for instance, Japan becomes the United States’ 51st state?” he wondered.

“As the allocation of House of Representatives seats to each state depends on its population in the United States, ‘Japan State’ would probably hold the largest share in the House,” Maruyama, a former TV legal commentator, said.

“If so, someone from ‘Japan State’ might become US president,” he noted.

Last February Ayako Sono, a former education advisor to Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, caused public outrage when she praised apartheid in South Africa and called for Japan to adopt a system to force immigrant workers to live in separate zones, depending on their race. In her opinion piece published in the Sankei Shimbun newspaper, Sono said: “Since learning about the situation in South Africa 20 or 30 years ago, I’ve come to think that whites, Asians, and blacks should live separately.” Her comments sparked an outcry on social media platforms, with many calling them racist.

 

[Aepsilons]

A minor comment , perceived as racial by American state actors, being blown out of proportion. Why am i not surprised.

We In Japan do not view color of skin or racial identity as a barrier to growth or realization of potential. That kind of entitlement thinking is alien , totally foreign to the Japanese Mind, which is centered and grounded upon our Confucian blood.

 

[somebozo]

The most important thing is that he did not intend the comment as an insult but rather appreciation of american dynamic society...so it can only be regarded as difference in understanding...

 

[Aepsilons]

The most important thing is that he did not intend the comment as an insult but rather appreciation of american dynamic society...so it can only be regarded as difference in understanding...

Absolutely. A minor, innocent mistake , which has been made , purposely as it seems, as a political gaffe by Washington state actors. What is evident is that African American People in the United States, majority of them, are descendants of American Slavery, which was an actual policy in the United States. That there are organizations in the United States such as the NAACP, and other civil rights organizations that lauds for freedom of expression and rights for minorities, is testament to the symptom of that organic ailment.

Be that as it may; we shall take this as a learning process.

 

[MarkusS]

Absolutely. A minor, innocent mistake , which has been made , purposely as it seems, as a political gaffe by Washington state actors. What is evident is that African American People in the United States, majority of them, are descendants of American Slavery, which was an actual policy in the United States. That there are organizations in the United States such as the NAACP, and other civil rights organizations that lauds for freedom of expression and rights for minorities, is testament to the symptom of that organic ailment.

Be that as it may; we shall take this as a learning process.

Dont try to explain it. Few years ago our then PM Berlusconi dared to make a joke that he admires that Obama must not tan evry day. Which was meant as a light joke and is totally normal by italian standards but was blown up by the american PC nazis

 

[Aepsilons]

Dont try to explain it. Few years ago our then PM Berlusconi dared to make a joke that he admires that Obama must not tan evry day. Which was meant as a light joke and is totally normal by italian standards but was blown up by the american PC nazis

My Italian-German Friend ! I am glad to see you here again. And yes, we all know about the toxicity of PC-ness in some societies.

PS. how have you been? do stay with us here longer. okay? your absence was felt.

 

[AZADPAKISTAN2009]

Not appropriate to call US head of state slave

 

[Jlaw]

A minor comment , perceived as racial by American state actors, being blown out of proportion. Why am i not surprised.

We In Japan do not view color of skin or racial identity as a barrier to growth or realization of potential. That kind of entitlement thinking is alien , totally foreign to the Japanese Mind, which is centered and grounded upon our Confucian blood.

Liberalism is so messed up. Colored people complaining about lack of colour people for the Oscars, etc.

 

[MarkusS]

My Italian-German Friend ! I am glad to see you here again. And yes, we all know about the toxicity of PC-ness in some societies.

PS. how have you been? do stay with us here longer. okay? your absence was felt.

Im fine what about you?

 

[Aepsilons]

Liberalism is so messed up. Colored people complaining about lack of colour people for the Oscars, etc.

A manifestation of reverse racism on the elitism and innate high performance of Asian Americans. In fact i know for a fact that Asians are targetted because of their 'off the chart' scores on the SATs, ACTs, LCATs, MCATs, GREs, USMLEs, PCATs et al.

In other words, targeting against the group because that group (Asian) score too high, compared to the rest...

To the Japanese, Chinese, Korean Mind --- this is contrary to our meritocratic mindset.

Liberalism is so messed up. Colored people complaining about lack of colour people for the Oscars, etc.

Addendum: When I say Asian scoring high marks, in the United States, this refers to East Asian ; Chinese, Japanese and Korean ethnic origin.

 

[Jlaw]

A manifestation of reverse racism on the elitism and innate high performance of Asian Americans. In fact i know for a fact that Asians are targetted because of their 'off the chart' scores on the SATs, ACTs, LCATs, MCATs, GREs, USMLEs, PCATs et al.

In other words, targeting against the group because that group (Asian) score too high, compared to the rest...

To the Japanese, Chinese, Korean Mind --- this is contrary to our meritocratic mindset.



Addendum: When I say Asian scoring high marks, in the United States, this refers to East Asian ; Chinese, Japanese and Korean ethnic origin.

Yes I have heard about that. I think that is why they are changing certain curriculum for admission not entirely base on SAT scores due to high East Asian marks. It's really doing an injustice to the people who do not qualify to go to university. If say a black or Latino got into an Engineer program but really does not have the qualification other than affirmative action to get there, he will most likely drop out after one year. Waste of time and money for the student and the school.

How does US university work? For example, take one engineer student who study at Yale and another engineer student studying at a non Ivey league school but both will need to get their P.Eng when they come out. Would employers hiring and their salary based on the school they attended or their certification?

 

[Aepsilons]

How does US university work? For example, take one engineer student who study at Yale and another engineer student studying at a non Ivey league school but both will need to get their P.Eng when they come out. Would employers hiring and their salary based on the school they attended or their certification?

When I was working on my Ph.D in Industrial & Organizational Psychology at a University in New Jersey, one of my doctoral cohort member in my dissertation program was working on the Industrial Engineering platform (he had, at the time, a M.S in Industrial Engineering and was working on his PH.D in I&OP) he was in co-op program for a major pharmaceutical organization based of New Brunswick Area , and they look really at one's certification, as well as the grades , and lastly at the name of the school. An invisible variable is also one's networking. I'm coming from a more research oriented background (i have a MS in Neuroscience, MS in Clinical Psychology , specializing in psychometrics processes; then on the PH.D I&OP). So in my line of work there is emphasis on certification(s), research publications, and also the program. Industrial Engineers who go on for the PH.D in I&OP tend to get managerial positions (operational or tactical) based on their work experience, certs and alma mater. My university has a fairly well known Engineering Program, so graduates in the College of Engineering tend to get great job placement post-graduation.

Btw, most my doctoral cohort members were East Asian, some South Asian, and bunch of Jewish , and some White Americans. Majority were Asian.

Yes I have heard about that. I think that is why they are changing certain curriculum for admission not entirely base on SAT scores due to high East Asian marks. It's really doing an injustice to the people who do not qualify to go to university. If say a black or Latino got into an Engineer program but really does not have the qualification other than affirmative action to get there, he will most likely drop out after one year. Waste of time and money for the student and the school.

I do agree with you 100% that this is a disservice. Coming from one who has taught undergraduate and graduate level psychology, sociology, businesses psychology, and statistical courses --- i come from a position that holds directness to students as a benefit. I do not believe in grading curves, which actually gives and artificial sense of safety to students (i.e, there are no 'curves' in the professional life, especially in research and industry). So especially in introductory courses that i teach such as intro to psych, intro to health psych, intro to stats, intro to neuroscience --- i tend to have noticed certain 'filtration' candidates. Again this goes back on to the candidate pool. Like any job process, academia operates in the same way.

 

[Jlaw]

When I was working on my Ph.D in Industrial & Organizational Psychology at a University in New Jersey, one of my doctoral cohort member in my dissertation program was working on the Industrial Engineering platform (he had, at the time, a M.S in Industrial Engineering and was working on his PH.D in I&OP) he was in co-op program for a major pharmaceutical organization based of New Brunswick Area , and they look really at one's certification, as well as the grades , and lastly at the name of the school. An invisible variable is also one's networking. I'm coming from a more research oriented background (i have a MS in Neuroscience, MS in Clinical Psychology , specializing in psychometrics processes; then on the PH.D I&OP). So in my line of work there is emphasis on certification(s), research publications, and also the program. Industrial Engineers who go on for the PH.D in I&OP tend to get managerial positions (operational or tactical) based on their work experience, certs and alma mater. My university has a fairly well known Engineering Program, so graduates in the College of Engineering tend to get great job placement post-graduation.

Btw, most my doctoral cohort members were East Asian, some South Asian, and bunch of Jewish , and some White Americans. Majority were Asian.

Interesting. That's where US and Canada differs. I'm speaking from industry and not from academics perspective. In Canada, an engineer is an engineer if he get certified (P.Eng) in our case. Generally speaking, employers look for experience and certification and not necessarily the school or grade you did the undergraduate study. Although I have a few friends who went to US Ivy League school and were sought after by Canadian / foreign employers. But that is because they were the top 5% in their respective field for marks.

I guess that is why my cousins from US are so tough on their kids to get good grades! I never had good grades in highschool or university

 

[Aepsilons]

I guess that is why my cousins from US are so tough on their kids to get good grades! I never had good grades in highschool or university

I feel you , bro. Growing up as a child my father (in particular) always stressed on me (as i am the eldest among my siblings) to study hard, my siblings drew on my experience , i suppose, as a model. It was always particularly difficult for me due to my father's demands and expectations on me and my siblings. I know that he was like that out of love for us -- as afterall , what kind of father would want his children to NOT perform well? So i suppose i grew up in an environment that expected, trained, and molded high meritocratic ideation. Failure , really, was frowned upon. And i think that this is not just a Japanese trend, but also deeply ingrained in China, actually. In fact being in the United States --- where i was able to connect to and with a lot of ABCs (american born Chinese) or CBCIA (chinese born chinese in america) , i noticed that whenever i would go with my chinese friends' homes, i noticed that their parents also emphasized the same kind of thinking and work ethic as my own parents. I don't know if i ever told you this , but one of my good friends during grad school days was a chinese taiwanese , his parents own a lot of businesses ; suffice to say he comes form a wealthy family. and i mean wealthy. yet you now? his parents preferred to get him a decent working man's car (toyota camry), and encouraged him not just to remain in the family business, but to go beyond (i think this is an east asian parents' common theme, here, lol) to go into medicine, pharmacy, or graduate school.

So i think -- most japanese and chinese -- we can relate to family dynamic. i think we are raised almost the same way especially if we have traditional family practices and traditional minded parents.

Excellence, to us Chinese and Japanese, is the ultimate goal. Or at least continued pursuit of it.