Screen Shot 2014-01-24 at 4.58.22 AM

All Nippon Airways has landed in some hot water thanks to a recent commercial advertising the company’s new international routes to Vancouver and Hanoi. The 30 second clip features a Japanese actor speaking English and wearing a fake nose and blonde wig. But is the commercial inherently racist? It seems the vote is split in this particular case.

The commercial in question starts out with a pair of Japanese pilots having a casual conversation in English about Haneda Airport offering more international flights. The dialogue takes a slight detour when the first pilot asks the second if he wants a hug after commenting that the increase in flights is so exciting. Things start to get controversial once the second pilot answers that he doesn’t want a hug.

▼ “Such a Japanese reaction.”Screen Shot 2014-01-24 at 4.55.27 AM

▼ “Because I am Japanese.”Screen Shot 2014-01-24 at 4.56.07 AM

▼ “I see.”Screen Shot 2014-01-24 at 4.56.48 AM

▼ “Let’s change the image of Japanese people.”Screen Shot 2014-01-24 at 4.57.42 AM

▼ “Sure!”Screen Shot 2014-01-24 at 4.58.22 AM

▼ “Wanna go?” “Yeah.”Screen Shot 2014-01-24 at 4.58.38 AM

Insert obligatory image of an ANA plane taking off…aaand scene. So let’s recap: two Japanese pilots are having a conversation in English, one stereotypes Japanese people, the other puts on a long nose and blonde hair in order to “change the image of Japanese people.”

So is this commercial racist? Some Twitter users were extremely offended by what transpired in the 30 second clip:

Others didn’t see anything wrong with ANA’s changed image of Japanese people:

https://twitter.com/AgrivatedDev/status/426377556044959744

But some were undecided if the clip should be labeled as “controversial”:

https://twitter.com/hobson_c/status/425496624597458945

These aren’t the first eyebrow-raising video clips to come out of Japan. Just this past week, a young Japanese boy’s series of videos in which he “acts like an Indian person” got a lot of attention, with most viewers agreeing that the videos were racist. But what about this ANA commercial? Watch the video below and decide for yourself:

Source: BBC News