TOKYO – Holding handmade signs that read “Black Lives Matter,” several hundred people marched peacefully at a Tokyo park Sunday, highlighting the outrage over the death of George Floyd even in a country often perceived as homogeneous and untouched by racial issues.
Mitsuaki Shidara, standing in the crowd at Yoyogi Park, said Japan has plenty of discrimination problems, but they're overlooked.“We are all human first, but we are divided by nationality, gender, religion, skin color,” he said, wearing a pendant with the Japanese character for “love,” which he said was his favorite word.“What’s happening in the U.S.
shows racism is going on, even after 400 years,” said Shidara, who works for a food maker. Mio Kosaka, another participant, said.