[steven]

I think people that go on this forum who live in Japan are the exception... but I see a lot of foreigners in Japan who don't really know the language. I have to admit, I was never really happy about people not speaking my language in my home country... and those people usually didn't have really good paying jobs. I think I'm talking about stuff that goes beyond simple cultural misunderstandings/miscommunications. I'm talking about those real feelings of dislike and frustration. I think it's easier to lump people together when you can't understand them or communicate with them. So as a visitor/foreigner, I think it's important to think about where the people you're talking to are coming from... and the best way to do that is to really have an understandign of their langauge and the manners that go with that.

I have sensed a little bit of distrust or dislike from many people, but once you talk to them, things usually clear up. People that usually say bad things or rude things are very hesitant to do it to your face when they know you know their language. Sometimes people don't know you know their language and assume you don't... that's when you can hear some interesting conversations about yourself and surprise them at the end. Those nights usually end well in that you can get some free drinks and maybe even some new friends.

I think I agree with the sentiment that people who are really racist are everywhere. Their country does nothing but decide the language they bash people with. I wouldn't think of Japan as any different from other countries in that respect. I would, however, argue that in Japans case most of the time Japanese are simply misinformed or they just don't know about certain things rather than purposefully being racist. That's not to say those real racists don't exist, but I'd argue that Japan has less of those real racists than most countries, including my own.

In my experience, the people I talk to are usually quite interested in talking to me in order to get a better understanding of things for themselves. It's that "want to learn" that I think separates "ignorant" Japanese from being racists.

I think most real racist Japanese have an agenda of some kind. I haven't really come into contact with any of those, though.

Edit:
"Overall though you will find that it is like GoNative says. Racism is rarely threatening in Japan at least towards people of European descent."

That is something I overlooked in what I wrote. I wrote what I wrote from an American perspective. I do believe Chinese people are looked down upon here quite a bit. There's a lot of stereotypes about them... but I believe that situation goes deeper than just stereotypes. Maybe someone else can expand on that?