Anime has a fascism problem
Summary
TLDRThis video script delves into the troubling intersection of anime fandom and far-right ideologies. It explores how Japan's historical and contemporary attitudes towards immigration and nationalism resonate with neo-Nazi and fascist ideologies, and how these views can infiltrate anime communities. The script scrutinizes the appeal of Japanese culture to these extremist groups and the role of online anonymity in fostering hate speech and toxic beliefs within anime forums. It also discusses the influence of specific anime series, like 'Attack on Titan,' which, despite not being overtly political, can be interpreted in ways that align with extremist views. The video concludes with a call for accountability and advocacy within anime communities to counteract the spread of bigotry and far-right extremism.
Takeaways
- 🌐 The speaker is an avid anime fan, familiar with both contemporary and classic anime, as well as manga like Chainsaw Man, Hell's Paradise, and Kaiju No. 8.
- 🗣️ Anime discussion spaces are generally free from politics, but there are underlying social issues such as racism, homophobia, transphobia, and ableism within anime communities.
- 🤔 The speaker questions the correlation between anime fandom and the presence of problematic ideas, particularly those related to right-wing ideologies.
- 🇯🇵 Fascists and alt-right individuals are drawn to Japanese culture due to its historical and contemporary conservative and anti-immigrant stances.
- 🌐 Japan's low immigration rates and perceived low crime rates are seen as positive by some right-wing groups, who view Japan as a model for an ethno-state.
- 🔍 The late Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was admired by some fascists and neo-Nazis for his nationalistic policies and historical revisionism.
- 🌐 The origins of 4chan, which is linked to 2chan, a Japanese message board, show how anime fandom can intersect with the spread of toxic beliefs.
- 🎭 Anime communities sometimes face backlash against inclusivity, such as casting decisions that do not adhere to racial stereotypes, which can be an entry point for right-wing ideologies.
- 📺 The anime series 'Attack on Titan' has been a subject of controversy, with some interpreting it as having right-wing or fascist undertones, which can be appealing to neo-Nazis.
- 🔊 The speaker calls for advocacy and awareness within anime communities to counteract the spread of far-right ideologies and to ensure inclusivity and representation.
Q & A
What is the main subject matter discussed in the video script?
-The video script discusses the intersection of anime fandom and problematic ideologies, particularly the appeal of Japanese culture and anime to certain right-wing and fascist-leaning individuals.
Why does the script mention Japan's history in relation to anime?
-The script mentions Japan's history, including its past with fascism and imperialism, to contextualize why certain elements of Japanese culture might appeal to individuals with right-wing ideologies.
What is the significance of 2chan and 4chan in the discussion?
-2chan and 4chan are significant because they are anonymous online message boards that have become hotbeds for nationalist and hate speech, which can contribute to the spread of right-wing ideologies within anime communities.
How does the script suggest that anime communities can inadvertently support right-wing ideologies?
-The script suggests that anime communities can support right-wing ideologies by providing spaces for anonymity that allow for the expression of toxic beliefs, and by not advocating for marginalized communities within these spaces.
What role does the script suggest that online platforms play in the spread of right-wing ideologies?
-The script implies that online platforms, such as message boards and social media, can act as entry points for right-wing ideologies by recommending and amplifying extremist content through algorithms and user engagement.
Why does the script discuss the casting of characters in anime adaptations?
-The script discusses the casting of characters to highlight how some anime fans express racist and exclusionary views, which can be an entry point for right-wing ideologies within the community.
What is the script's stance on the show 'Attack on Titan' in relation to right-wing ideologies?
-The script acknowledges the complexity of 'Attack on Titan' and its potential to be interpreted in various ways, but it criticizes the show for not providing a clear moral interpretation, which can be exploited by neo-Nazis and other right-wing extremists.
How does the script connect the lack of diversity in Japan to the appeal of Japanese culture for right-wing individuals?
-The script connects the lack of diversity in Japan to the appeal of Japanese culture for right-wing individuals by suggesting that the perceived homogeneity and strict immigration policies align with their ethno-nationalist ideals.
What is the 'alt-right pipeline' mentioned in the script, and how does it relate to anime?
-The 'alt-right pipeline' refers to the path that leads individuals towards right-wing and conservative ideologies, often starting with milder conservative content and escalating to more extreme beliefs. In the context of anime, it relates to how certain anime communities can serve as entry points for this pipeline.
What responsibility does the script suggest anime community members have in addressing right-wing ideologies?
-The script suggests that anime community members have a responsibility to engage with and advocate for marginalized communities, and to hold the community accountable to prevent the spread of right-wing and neo-Nazi activity.
Outlines
🌐 Anime Fandom and Social Issues
The speaker expresses their familiarity with anime, having watched a variety of shows and read manga. They acknowledge the existence of social issues within anime communities, such as racism, homophobia, transphobia, and ableism. The speaker also highlights the intersection of anime fandom with online right-wing activism, noting the prevalence of problematic ideas and behaviors among some anime fans. The video aims to explore the appeal of Japanese culture and anime to certain extremist groups and how these fandoms can inadvertently accommodate right-wing activism.
🌏 The Fascination with Japan and Anime
This section delves into the historical and contemporary ties between Japan and fascism, noting Japan's past as an imperialist power with a phase of fascist governance. It discusses how modern Japan, despite being a robust society with political discourse, still harbors conservative and anti-immigrant sentiments. The speaker then connects this to the appeal of Japan and anime to neo-Nazis and other right-wing extremists, who may view Japan's monocultural society as an ideal. The paragraph also touches on the influence of Japanese online message boards, like 2chan, which have been linked to the spread of nationalist and hate speech, and their impact on Western platforms like 4chan.
📺 The Influence of Anime on Right-Wing Ideology
The final paragraph focuses on the specific example of the anime 'Attack on Titan' and its creator Hajime Isayama. It discusses the show's complex themes of ethnic cleansing and its use of aesthetics from historical militaries, which have been interpreted by some as right-wing commentary. The speaker critiques the show for not providing a clear moral interpretation, which they argue can lead to its misuse by neo-Nazis and other extremists. The paragraph also addresses the broader issue of anime communities' responsibility to advocate for marginalized groups and to counteract the spread of fascist ideologies within their ranks.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Anime
💡Fascism
💡Neo-Nazi
💡Alt-Right
💡Online Spaces
💡Ethno-Nationalism
💡Historical Revisionism
💡Anime Pipeline
💡Inclusivity
💡Attack on Titan
💡Community Accountability
Highlights
The speaker is an avid anime fan with extensive knowledge of both contemporary and classic anime, as well as manga.
Anime discussion spaces are generally free of politics, but social issues like racism, homophobia, transphobia, and ableism persist within anime communities.
The speaker has observed a correlation between the use of anime profile pictures and conservative or right-wing online behavior.
Japan's historical phase of fascism and its current conservative stance on immigration resonate with some right-wing ideologies.
The lack of diversity in Japan is seen by some as contributing to lower crime rates, which appeals to fascist ideologies.
Late Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was admired by some fascists and neo-Nazis for his political stances.
Anime fans and alt-right extremists may share a common interest in online message boards, which can foster toxic beliefs.
2chan, a Japanese message board, and its descendant 4chan, have been linked to the spread of right-wing ideologies and hate speech.
The speaker discusses how certain anime and manga can be interpreted in ways that align with fascist ideologies, using 'Attack on Titan' as an example.
The complexity of 'Attack on Titan' and its themes of ethnic cleansing and military aesthetics have been co-opted by neo-Nazis.
The speaker argues that anime communities have a responsibility to engage with and advocate for marginalized communities to counteract fascist ideologies.
The video concludes with a call to action for viewers to support the channel and engage in discussions about the topics covered.
Transcripts
I love anime
credentials okay how about this I'm all
caught up in one piece I've done my time
this is a subject matter that I am very
familiar with I've watched the
Contemporary stuff I watch some of the
classics I read the mangas like chainsaw
man hell's paradise and Kaiju number
eight so believe me I'm not some jackass
trying to attack a form of media that I
have no interest in you know those kids
in the hall who scream animate stuff I'm
just like them not really but I read the
anime discussion boards I read the
Twitter takes I watch the anime tick
tocks by the way you should follow me on
Tech talk and YouTube too if you haven't
done so already okay thank you what I'm
saying is that I'm no stranger to online
anime discussion spaces and these
discussion spaces are generally politic
free but that's not to say that there
are no social issues within anime
communities if you watch my videos you
know I'm big on unraveling intersections
of well everything there are a lot of
POC queer trans and disabled anime fans
turns out there's a lot of racism
homophobia transphobia and ableism
Within These communities and this is not
unique to anime we all know the shitty
you wouldn't last five seconds in a Call
of Duty Lobby meme we have all heard
some [ __ ] complaining about wokeness
in Marvel movies but I am a little
curious about a few problematic ideas
that I see widely represented by anime
fans what am I getting at good God the
most horrifying and toxic arguments I
have ever gotten in online were with
anime girl profile pictures annoying
anime profile pic conservatives have the
most obnoxious [ __ ] posting bad faith
attitudes that I've ever engaged with
these conversations can Will me into
sticking my arm into a blender just to
experience the sweet relief of focusing
on physical pain instead of mental Agony
and whenever I spot mask off neo-nazis
fascism advocacy General right-wing
toxicity seven times out of ten is one
of the these profiles before anyone says
that yes yes I know that many many left
leaning great wonderful people use anime
profile pictures we love you keep up the
positive behavior but wife ashes them
why anime why do these seemingly
unrelated things have such a potent
intersection well they might be more
related than you think in this video I
will explain the appeal to Japanese
cultural fandom and Anime fandom for the
average fascism fan Neo-Nazi Etc and how
these fandoms are accommodating for
online right-wing activism just so we're
clear half the time I use the word
fascist in this video it's a blanket
term for Nazi [ __ ] okay great wonderful
to understand why fascists and all
writers love anime we need to understand
why fascists and ALT writers love Japan
first off I don't know if you remember
this but Japan had a bit of an angsty
fascism phase in the 20th century they
were obviously great buds with a certain
mustache man as well as the government
practice of statism a political system
in which the state has substantial
centralized control over social and
economic Affairs just one of many
flavors of fascism and listen modern
Japan is a robust place with lots of
political discourse it is home to
leftist political groups and egalitarian
pro-immigrant initiatives but anyways
I'm about to talk a bunch of [ __ ] on
Japan and they're objectively
conservative in anti-immigrant society
USA was not the only [ __ ] boy on the
Block Japan was a stinky [ __ ] on the
front of imperialism colonialism and
general atrocities has Japan made a
whole lot of historic and contemporary
effort to right these wrongs
no but after everyone said hey Japan
chilled the [ __ ] out Japan decided to
embrace egalitarianism leaving their
fascist Roots behind right no I'm going
to generalize here Japan and hates
immigrants and refugees the incredibly
low number of them that they allow into
Japan each year is no coincidence
America has many right-wing hate groups
and so does Japan with contemporary
nativism an anti-immigrant movement that
intensified through being shared in
online spaces these calls for ethnic
dominance perk the ears of some white
nationalists ethno state is a right-wing
nationalist romantic notion of a state
with a unified ethnicity and or a race
many ethno state enthusiasts fascists
cite Japan as what a contemporary ethno
State should be moreover the lack of
diversity in Japan is being credited for
lower crime rates thus Japan is a very
protective culture and policy practice
that Garners a lot of respect from
fascism enjoyers as anything
monocultural and non-diverse is a wet
dream for the average Neo-Nazi someone
who got a lot of respect from a certain
man who is loved by neo-nazis is the
late Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe
let's just say I have many political
disagreements with the man first
starters historical revisionism in
atrocity apologia not great cabinet
members closely associated with Japanese
Nazi movement yeah Abe sucked but
fascism fans and neo-nazis obviously
loved him and this is all to say that
there is a lot a lot a lot a lot to love
about this country and its culture if
you are a Neo-Nazi I think it's clear
that Japan has a fascism problem okay
that's part one now I know what you're
saying Karen you haven't talked about
anime for a couple minutes now well
guess what it is now anime time we still
need to explain why anime has a fascism
problem quick what do anime fans and
alt-right extremists have in common they
both probably fetishize Asian women and
need to take a shower yes but they are
also both in need of touching some
[ __ ] grass the point that I'm trying
to make is that generally both are
chronically online and are part of
Message Board communities good old
Message Board you can talk about your
favorite anime characters and about how
pure Bloodlines are in danger of being
compromised by foreigners and sometimes
both in the exact same website meet
hiroyuki nishimura while studying at the
University of Central Arkansas around
the year of 1999 nishimura founded a
little website called two channel or
2chan for short this website was mainly
used in Japan much like other message
boards people use two chance to talk
about media such as television music
movies anime and manga however the spin
on this website is that posts are
subject to Total anonymity the perks 2
Message Board anonymity is that opinions
won't be linked to Identity and the
poster won't be faced with IRL scrutiny
therefore the opinions are authentic but
such is the fate of every free speech
Anonymous Message Board website it soon
became a hotbed for nationalism and
inciting hate speech such as complaining
about those damn Koreans and starting
misinformation campaigns and attempts to
defame them now let's talk about the
elephant in the room two Chan that
sounds a lot like 4chan well that's
because 2chan is 4chan's predecessor the
vehicle for right-wing misinformation
hate speech and Cesspool of fascist
ideology was conceptualized from this
Japanese media internet Forum website
this is definitely worth pointing at
however I don't think that Free Speech
Forum websites are created in a vacuum
completely Reliant upon Japan I believe
that if there's an internet connection
it's gonna happen eventually but it's
very interesting that this anime ship
posting website was the brainchild for
4chan right in the relationship of anime
fans and anonymity of opinions is
extremely important none of these
cowards want to show their faces after
dropping the most unapologetically
racist replies on Earth after all but
the origins of 4chan is also interesting
because it also shows us the
relationship of anime fandoms and
expressing toxic beliefs and if these
beliefs were isolated to 4chan there
wouldn't be a problem but we all know
that they are not indoctrination isn't a
clear-cut system from peer-to-peer it's
more like a network an iceberg if you
will and it is known to us as
you know what it is now I know this is
gonna sound super familiar but for
anybody who has been living under a rock
for 30 years the alt-right pipeline is a
path to right wing and conservative
ideologies entry points for this path
are created in places where people share
their opinions YouTube videos online
gaming lobbies online forums Etc once
you start flirting with some of these
entry-level conservative ideas let's say
feminist gets owned content
recommendation algorithms start to push
you further and further down this path
and before we move on I would like to
talk about some of these entry points in
anime communities now let me set the
scene for you you are on anime Twitter
some new members of the one piece live
action casts were revealed we noticed
that the actor who plays arlong of the
arlong Pirates is a black man arlong is
a fish man and I don't know if you know
this but fishes don't assign themselves
racial identities at least as far as we
know you see a bunch of people complain
that a character who they like is being
played by a black man alright I'll be
generous maybe it's just a problem with
fish men nub also nami's sister damn now
this isn't an issue unique to anime
communities you see arguments against
inclusiveness in Marvel movie
communities in video games in pretty
much anywhere that has a fan base and I
posed the question what is the problem
with a character Being A different race
than the source material like where is
the actual problem it just makes people
uncomfortable that's it and let me make
this clear this is not about casting
decisions it's a common understanding
that as long as you aren't altering your
skin color to cosplay there are no rules
for race while dressing up like your
favorite anime characters but these
rules are IRL baby it's a different
story online there are Online Cosplay
police bullying anybody who isn't white
or Japanese who decides to dress like
their favorite characters as far as I'm
aware policing cosplay skin color or
casting decisions is the entry level for
the anime alt-right pipeline because
once you travel down this road and
follow these content creators follow
these Twitter [ __ ] posters you start
absorbing their ideas start having mixed
feelings when you see inclusiveness in
anime communities eventually start
having racist beliefs and saying racist
[ __ ] without seeing the problem start
saying transphobic and homophobic [ __ ]
until you start developing some
questionable opinions and the further
you go the more questionable your
opinions get to anybody who thinks that
Aaron Yeager is in the right and that
there are any and I quote good genocides
or justifiable genocides get some
[ __ ] help yep we are about to talk
about a show on manga that a lot of
fascists love Attack on Titan Hajime
isiyama is the creator of Attack on
Titan I haven't read the Manga but I'm
all caught up in the show it's good I
recommend it and this is going to be a
semi-spoiler-free analysis I will be
talking about the fate of a protagonist
and how they become the plot device for
the final Seasons so maybe click off if
you don't want to get spoiled isiyama
applies in apolitical interview
technique where he answers any questions
regarding politics very diplomatically
and I think that is kind of problematic
in emblematic of anime communities this
show is very complicated it deals with
topics such as ethnic cleansing and
borrows many Aesthetics from uh let's
say 20th century German and Japanese
militaries but the world that isayama
created seems to excite neo-nazis a lot
of people consider this show to be
right-wing commentary against Jewish
people in foreign powers and I'm not
gonna weigh in on whether I think the
story itself is pro-fascist but I do
want to focus on what's going on on the
Outside The Unofficial War doesn't have
heroes or villains theme in the pick
your favorite side approach that fans
are insisting the show has is massive
dog [ __ ] whether intentional or not it
is downright irresponsible for a story
with these kinds of intricacies to not
have a clear dialogue of moral
interpretation this is is how you get
[ __ ] on Message Board sharing their
Neo-Nazi opinions opinions such as
eldians are white people being tricked
by Foreign Jewish Powers into thinking
that they themselves are the enemies
whilst these foreign powers pull the
strings from the Shadows on the opposite
end of the right wing Spectrum it could
also be argued that an ethnic religious
group having the ability to change into
bloodthirsty Abominations is also not
that great and not to mention isiyama
kind of seems pro-japanese imperialism
based off of the imagery and character
designs used in the show some good and
not villainous characters are based off
of war criminals who did absolutely
terrible things isayama described
yoshifuru akiyama a war criminal who was
the inspiration behind the design of dot
Pixis as being quote respectful in
Frugal yikes an aesthetic surrounding
glorification of right-wing war
criminals is most definitely appealing
to neo-nazis kinda hard to argue against
that no no I'm not bonehead I have
comprehended the story and I'm not four
years old I understand that Aaron is the
new villain radicalized through the
trauma of being subject to ethnic
cleansing I understand that the show
pushes anti-right-wing extremism through
storytelling maybe it's not crystal
clear all the time and has been the
subject of years of debate but it's
still hard to deny I most definitely do
not think that isayama is intentionally
crafting the story and world to be
accommodating to neo-nazis but it is
accommodating to neo-nazis and as I have
stated in the video many of these
communities are accommodating to fascist
ideology and I think that is a big
problem I understand that there's only
so much one can do if a right winger is
going to love anime that's that but as I
mentioned before there is a system at
play there are beliefs that these shows
and communities can and should be free
from politics and political intersection
but no matter what no matter which
Community it doesn't matter if it's My
Little Pony Tony or Marvel movies
without advocacy for marginalized
communities Within These online spaces
there will be bigoted people attempting
to push them out if you see activism
advocacy and awareness spreading of
issues relating to marginalized
communities in your anime Community you
have a responsibility to engage with it
whether or not these issues directly
affect you what's more without
community-wide accountability I promise
you you will see far-right Neo-Nazi
activity faster than you may think and
if you think that bullying harassment
and Neo-Nazi activity within anime
communities is not a big deal or
impossible to avoid so why bother I must
ask what [ __ ] shows are you watching
do you just watch anime for the fun
colors you are fake as [ __ ] eat sand and
get sick thank you so much if you made
it this far I have been experiencing a
little bit of growth on this channel and
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bye
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