Japanese companies have been waking up to the idea that offending some of their customers might be bad for business.

A video of an altercation in a Starbucks involving a black man, Japanese staff and a non-Japanese bystander will likely further nasty stereotypes.

A joke about her skin hasn't bothered Naomi Osaka, but there are broader ramifications from such kind of comedy.

Since many Japanese people don't have the opportunity to interact with black people in their daily lives, how the community is represented in the national media is important.

A few years back, I wrote a piece for Black History Month in which I challenged people of African descent living here in Japan to "be black history." I implored them not to necessarily dwell on the past but to: "Dwell on the ...

This month, cup noodle maker Nissin served up its animated "Hungry to win" ad campaign, drawn by "Prince of Tennis" artist Takeshi Konomi and featuring actual tennis prince Kei Nishikori and our newest bona fide global star, Naomi Osaka. I'd been anticipating Osaka's appearance since ...

One day next year, and the year after that, someone will ask me in the course of a conversation why I decided to stay in Japan. I know this because it ranks among the top questions I'm asked — by Japanese and non-Japanese alike ...

It has been a hot year for viral dance challenges and Japan has had its fair share. The most notable was the craze surrounding Da Pump's "U.S.A.," attempted by everyone from teenagers on TikTok to U.S. Marines on YouTube. More recently, though, six kimono-clad young ...

If you're a conspicuous non-Japanese living in the country, then you've likely experienced the empty-seat phenomenon with varying frequency and intensity.

As a Tokyo theater offers another Othello in blackface, Baye McNeil argues that breaking out the shoe polish is the laziest yet most problematic option.