A relative of mine was captured by the Japanese during World War Two and subsequently tortured quite horrifically. Since then he, understandably, has been unable to forgive or forget. He shuns Japanese people & refuses to buy any product manufactured in Japan ( TVs, cars etc )
So while this behaviour is understandable, is it justified?
2007-02-15 23:38:20 · 16 answers · asked by DAVE 6 in Society & Culture ➔ Cultures & Groups ➔ Other - Cultures & Groups
I'm Japanese, and I'd say this is perfectly understandable. Any war is atrocious, and those who suffer it's blows first hand will be naturally unforgiving of the enemies who dealt them. Your relative has every right to personally boycott Japanese related goods or etc, and she or he does not have to muster the will to forgive those soldiers who did so. However, he or she needs to understand that the actions of soldiers during our Imperial days no longer represent the intentions of our current nation and people.
Tell your relative I said hi.
From Albert K. Matsushita
2007-02-16 01:45:32 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
This is exactly like the black folks still holding the white folks responsible for slave days. Is it understandable, sometimes , is it justified, well if you try hard enough you can justify anything. One of the hardest things in life is to forgive..............I guess at the end of the day, you either choose yes or no. For those who choose no,life will go on as usual, blaming and hating. And for those who choose to forgive their lives will be fuller and richer for it. I am 50 years old and spent a lifetime choosing the hate and blaming path, a lot older and a little wiser now, I know now how much valuable time I squandered, in choosing the lesser.
2007-02-15 23:56:23 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 0⤋
You've just answered your own question - racism is based on fear or ignorance.
I cannot say that racism is justifiable, but in certain cases (like your relative) it can be understandable. This does NOT mean that it's right.
Every race or ethniticity has good people and bad people. You cannot judge a culture or race as a whole, each individual is worthy and different. That's what makes life so beautiful, that we are so different.
2007-02-15 23:47:34 · answer #3 · answered by soaplady99ca 4 · 1⤊ 1⤋
No - of course it is completely understandable, not many of us have been through that. However equating all Japanese people with the ones who tortured him is still wrong - that's the problem with racism, it focusses on a whole group of people when relatively few have hurt and/or insulted you.
2007-02-15 23:46:02 · answer #4 · answered by Lucy 3 · 1⤊ 1⤋
No, people always want to justify their hate. Not every Japanese person is guilty for the pain your relative suffered. I am not to blame for the crimes of my race, nor is the German population guilty of Hitler's sins. If I thought that I was justified to hate a whole race on account of a few people I'd hate everyone.
2007-02-16 00:55:15 · answer #5 · answered by Annabella Stephens 6 · 4⤊ 1⤋
These are isolated & extremely unfortunate cases and deserve full empathy. But racism is never justified, since the ends of racism, can only be horrific for humankind.
2007-02-15 23:46:04 · answer #6 · answered by Sam 7 · 1⤊ 1⤋
I don't think racism is EVER justified, because you are hating the WHOLE race, meaning every individual in that race. Not every mexican is an illegal alien. Not every black person is a gang member. Not every white person is a KKK member. Not every Asian knows martial arts. Get the picture? Stereotypes go along with racism, sometimes.
Don't hate the whole race just because a person of that race did something evil. You are hating the whole bunch of apples, just because of one bad one. You may be selling yourself short, and preventing meeting one of your best friends to come along in your life.
2007-02-15 23:47:26 · answer #7 · answered by snafu1 2 · 1⤊ 1⤋
Honestly, it makes me sick people are actually saying no. Absolutely, without a doubt justified in this circumstance. If you take away political correctness, and replace it with human nature I think you will find before conditioning this is a normal reaction. HE WAS TORTURED PEOPLE! I hope he never stops his tirade, I support his decision not to purchase anything from Japan, and to shun Japanese people in public. That is raw human nature and I respect it. We were at war, as we are now. I see many folks being politically correct about this war as well. Not me, for I fear doing so will cost American lives, something I am not ok with.
2007-02-16 00:56:57 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 5⤋
yes. The nation that is afraid to be deleted from the world of nations. this nation has a complex and tries to get rid of the rest of the people. So they unite their forces and begin f*** off the rest.
2007-02-15 23:45:55 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 1⤋
Yes, maybe. He is not racist but each time he meets them or their products, it reminds him of the torture. The wound is still there and it hurts when touched.
2007-02-15 23:44:42 · answer #10 · answered by wizard of the East 7 · 1⤊ 1⤋