Nike Japan’s Anti-Racism Advertisement Sparks Backlash–But It’s Groundbreaking!

A new advertisement from Nike Japan has sparked a backlash from people stating the 2-minute video is racist. Some are even calling for a boycott of the company. The video, titled “The Future Isn’t Waiting” features three teenagers who are bullied due to their race or other differences. The three teens find solace in soccer, however.

Two of the teen girls in the video are from racial minority backgrounds in Japan. They are shown dealing with bullying at school and some are criticizing the ad for portraying Japan as a racist country.

“Magician NIKE can change the discrimination into money,” wrote one YouTube user.

“Nowadays, you often see one or two people of different nationalities going to school perfectly peacefully. The one that’s prejudiced is Nike,” another comment reads.

“Seems like Nike hates discrimination and Uighur people What a double standard they are,” wrote another.

“Nike made the Japanese their enemy. The Japanese who do not know about this ad might keep buying Nike, but I will never buy Nike,” another comment on the YouTube video reads.

As of this writing, the video is approaching 12 million views online. The video has been liked 89 thousand times and disliked 68 thousand times.

Nike Japan/YouTube

A spokesperson for Nike Japan spoke to CNN about the advertisement.

“The objective of this film is to champion sport as a vehicle to empower youth to create the change they want to see,” the spokesperson said. “Discrimination is a global issue and it exists around the world. The testimonials of these real athletes inspired us to take action and speak more openly about bullying and discrimination.”

Supporters of the advertisement have commended Nike for their attempt at empowering minorities and bringing awareness to the discrimination they may face in a country that is around 98% ethnically homogenous. Another supporter said, “Nike is setting a good example with this ad, [especially] for the younger generations, who are more open to these ideas.”

Al Jazeera/YouTube

The video comes on the heels of backlash to an advertisement featuring Naomi Osaka from 2019. An animated commercial featuring the tennis-star was criticized for illustrating Osaka with a lighter complexion. Critics accused the Nissin noodle company behind the advertisement of “Whitewashing.” Osaka commented on the matter before last year’s Australian Open.

“I’ve talked to [Nissin] and they’ve apologised,” she said. “It’s obvious, I’m tan. It’s pretty obvious.”

“I don’t think they did it on purpose to be ‘whitewashing’ or anything, but I definitely think that, next time they try to portray me or something, I feel like they should talk to me about it,” she continued.

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