Racism In World War Two

Throughout history, racism has been a huge factor in the outcome of events. A significant component of World War Two especially, was fought on racism. Adolf Hitler of Germany, along with some of his fellow Germans, thought that the aryan race was above all superior. Japanese citizens and officials despised Westiners. Even Americans propagandized the Japanese as “Vermin”. During World War 2, Japan’s hatred for Westerners, particularly shown towards Americans was clearly evident. There is still racism present, but American and Japanese differences have somewhat subsided, perhaps for the better of both countries. In World War Two, captured Americans were treated with brutality, degraded of all dignity. In World War Two, Americans and the Japanese

In both World War Two and now, we can learn that letting your hunger for power get out of hand can result in horrific amounts of casualties. Propaganda will result in prejudice amongst the enemy. Racism towards Japan and the U.S. is now handed out for different reasons, but still some of the same. Today, many Japanese look at foreigners if not 100% Japanese as according to Maya Wesby from Newsweek, “A kurombo”, The Japanese equivalent of the N-word. With many countries racism and self beliefs in racial superiority with technology advancements, the fear is rising now, not necessarily towards The Japanese, but towards other countries willing to inflict pain with new technology, which is exactly what many countries, including Japan excels in. Letting your egos and thirst for power take control will almost always end negatively. We must ensure that no matter the country, big or small, will never take the opportunity to bring danger to another country whether it be out of racial degradation or pure desire for

Propaganda was also used in Japan with a common goal, to influence and alter the population’s thinking, by instilling hatred and fear towards the enemy. Japan thought that Westerners were inferior. According to the Artifact Journal from the University of Missouri, propaganda was a main source of motivating others to rise to the occasion and fight. This turned the World War Two into a personal conflict, people wanted to fight for other reasons contrary to what World War two was actually being fought over. In the Pacific, Japan wanted to gain control of all of the islands. It was to conquer, but the other goal was to show their power and eliminate the inferior races. Though not over by the Pacific islands, The United States was one that was thought to be a a lower class enemy. An article by Anthony Navarro revealed how common media can change the way we think, “We imbibe a flood of information each day from numerous sources—radio, film, books, newspapers, magazines, and advertisements. We are consciously and subconsciously told what to think, what to do, how to feel, and how to behave.” This shows that are minds, slowly but surely can easily be toyed with and eventually manipulated enough into a new way of thinking. Though often depicted as being horrible and sneaky, propaganda also has some benefits. Propaganda can be used for something that is