A new advertisement launched by Nike Japan made Japanese netizens angry because of hinting that there was racial discrimination in Japan. According to a report by the Japan Times on the 2nd, the advertisement was released on November 27th. It is about two minutes long. It tells the story of their growth and dreams from the perspective of three Chinese, Korean and African-American girls living in Japan.
The video has been viewed more than 23 million times so far. Many people said that they were moved by the spirit of Nike’s propaganda, but some netizens said that the content of the advertisement implied racial discrimination in Japanese society and was defaming Japan.
According to the report, the theme of the Nike advertisement is “Keep moving forward: yourself, the future.” The future is no longer waiting, you can’t stop moving.” At the beginning of the advertisement, the three girls were treated differently by their classmates and society because of their different races.
They were pulled by their hair and robbed of schoolbags by their classmates. Social accounts often received malicious comments and messages. They felt painful and confused about it and under great psychological pressure. In the view of Japanese netizens, the advertisement spends a lot of space to show the experiences and psychological activities of three girls, giving people a feeling that Japan is not very friendly.
Although in the second half of the advertisement, the three put on Nike sportswear and sneakers to form a football team and regain confidence on the field, which was also recognized by the students, there were still dissatisfied netizens scolding under Nike’s official Twitter of Japan, criticizing Nike for its bias against Japan and deliberately promoting Japan as a “discriminatory country”.
even threatened to lose Nike sneakers, never buy Nike products again, etc. The Japan Times said that although Japan’s traditional concept is proud of “purebred athletes”, mixed-race athletes such as Naomi Osaka, who have a brilliant record, are attacking this view. So far, Nike Japan has not responded to the dissatisfaction of Japanese netizens, and the advertisement has not been removed from the shelves.
