This is the most thoroughly researched explanation of the recent developments involving Japan and Ubisoft. It's appalling to see an attempt to turn fanfiction into fact and to propagate a fabricated narrative in the West. The Japanese have every right to be upset about the disregard for their significant historical figures in favor of emphasizing a foreigner who was just one of the thousands Nobunaga collected as a curiosity. Japanese historians have even produced records of an event where Nobunaga hired over 100 sumo wrestlers for entertainment. After the event, he granted each of them a title, land, a stipend, and a ceremonial wakizashi. These historians also reviewed records of Nobunaga's court hierarchy, which revealed that all of the sumo wrestlers ranked above Yasuke, suggesting that he was likely named as an entertainer and held a position of minimal importance, likely due to his foreign status.
This guy is full of BS. There has been a survey by a famous Professor from Keio (best private university) of 23 years and expert of online conflict (wrote a book and co-wrote another on the topic). He has surveyed 3700+ on the Yasuke/Assassin's Creed controversy and debunked all the points. That's fine you don't like Ubisoft, I don't either. But don't mess with Japanese history and refer to self-published individuals and refer to real Japanese academics...
If your looking for something in the linguistic expertise then maybe... but no publishers, no cred. Meanwhile Locklee had his second paper peer reviewed in June in the midst of the whole mess...
The author of this article isn't an historian by profession but rather by hobby. Refers to himself as a "history nerd". An actual Japanese historian has said there is "no doubt" that Yasuke was a Samurai.
You can look up Yu Hirayama's sponsors and background to see why he has a very heavily vested interest in saying what he says, when no other Japanese historian agrees with him.
- NHK has defended their broadcast from 2021 on July 24th, and stated no issue with their broadcast calling Yasuke a Samurai (Based on Japanese Law - Broadcasting Act). AKA Japan's public broadcasting which is the second largest source of News stand by the fact Yasuke IS a samurai.
- More people in Japan are aware of Yasuke as a Samurai in Japan (33%) than of the Assassin's Creed/Yasuke issue (29%) based on a survey of 3,700+ which is more than 3x larger than your average election poll.
- There is no academically peer reviewed published work that claims he is not. The most recent paper on him in June of this year says he is...
- The reason why Japanese people are upset is due to two fake rumors being spread that 1) Lockley stated that Japan started slavery which is not true and has been debunked 2) On the Japanese net there was talk of rumors in the US that there were 100s of Black Samurai that shaped Japanese history including famous samurais people know by name. This rumor only exists as a rumor as no substantial discussion exists on the English social media sphere.
Americans are the most ignorant people on this planet. Good lord. Tatsuichi Kure already called BS on Yasuke being a Samurai and Yu's ridiculous out of context historical "analysis". Not a single peer agrees with Yu and the guy has recieved loads of money to spread westerner propaganda.
Also you are spreading lies, there is no peer reviewed published work that claims HE IS. The only documents that talk about Yasuke only mention him as a retainer or a Kosho.
And I would suggest anyone to fact check this garbage about Japanese people not being upset by going to actually Japanese websites.
Also the NHS DID answered about their infomertial, and was mostly entertainment and amde out of a book written by Thomas Rockley, oh look at that, a westerner !
Nobody can claim he is with certainty, and nobody can claim he isn't with certainty either. There are indeed clues that says he could've been a Samurai, but we don't have enough evidence to conclude it with certainty. What is clear though, is that he was either a Samurai, an entertainer, a servant, or a mix of all of this.
The thing is, he really could've been, it's not just invented fiction. You can't publish a paper to claim he was because you would lack enough evidence for it. There's also no paper claiming he isn't one, because again, it's a real possibility that he could've been.
Now having said all that, why would it be wrong to actually use this version for movies, books and games? Nobody's trying to appropriate your culture or history. History doesn't belong to anyone, it's only things that happened in the past. If I want to make a game about Nazis and add some fictional storytelling around it, why would that be wrong, especially if it's based on a real possibility?
The only people upset about this are very ugly people on the inside. This outrage is very ugly to see, this is some kind of toxic nationalism mixed with racism where you don't want anybody to talk about your history and you don't want to accept a real possibility that a Daimyo would have given honors to a black outsider... Please better yourself.
Only people who speak like you are the actual cancer of this world. I would like to know ACTUAL historical events. Not revisionist propaganda. As a Puerto Rican, I was lied to about my history until I found out for myself the cold hard truth. Americans use people and morph their history for their own benefit. Just because out eat their garbage, doesn't make you their savior. It is purely fiction because there is no actual documentation that he was a "Bushi" (aka Samurai). The Japanese also didn't have a very pretty past. Everyone has some blood on their hands, ESPECIALLY with slavery. That is a hard fact. It's how we learn from it and progress that matters. "Please better yourself."
Don't waste your breath, these people dont't care about reality, they only care about making themselves feel good, and if you disagree with them you are automatically racist, even if they are the ones literally pushing a racist narrative where they make fun of people who died in a nuclear attack.
Right, that's cool and all, but a couple of issues.
1 Ubisoft is a french-Canadian company, not American
2 The AC franchise isn't and has never been about faithfully presenting historical stories but a historical fiction (emphasis on FICTION) based on the premise that the history we know is a lie
3 Yasuke has been depicted as a Samurai in Japanese media long before AC Shadows began development.
Please do go on, keep telling Japanese about their history. I'm sure they all love to hear what you have to say. That's why the game is being a complete failure of sales in Japan, they love it so much when westerners try to rewrite their history.
>There are indeed clues that says he could've been a Samurai
No, there are not.
> You can't publish a paper to claim he was because you would lack enough evidence for it
You can that's what the white professor did in Japan.
>Now having said all that, why would it be wrong to actually use this version for movies, books and games?
And now you are trying to gaslight the conversation into "It's okay they actually tried to change historical records to sell a videogame that utterly disrespects Japanese culture so much even Japanese politicians started talking about banning it" ?
>The only people upset about this are very ugly people on the inside
Yeah how dare we not stand by disrespect of our culture and lies, we are horrible for telling the glorious first worlders to not treat our culture like garbage.
>with racism where you don't want anybody to talk about your history and you don't want to accept a real possibility that a Daimyo would have given honors to a black outsider.
I don't care about people writting fanfictions about my history. Just don't barge into my house and tell me to accept this new revisionism of history while you mock the deaths of a nuclear attack and disrespect sites of worship.
But then again expecting a foreigner who clearly has no sense of respect for others to understand that it's pointless .
Utter rubbish. This period in Japan is no longer considered "feudal", and the use of the word samurai in this context dates from after 1603, as does the wearing of two swords. In other words, this article is arguing about 16th century Japan using the terminology of the 17th century. Since the author is not an expert in Japanese history, this is perhaps to be expected.
Opening an article with diatribe aimed at "afrocentrism" while clearly demeaning it and people of African descent is just a dog whistle.
It clearly indicates your bias and the intent behind the article to attack what you PERCIEVE black people to believe.
There is nothing factual or researched in your assessment of afrocentrism or your gross assumption on how people feel about it or their reasons for engaging with it.
The racial derision is obvious from miles away and will only resonate with people also eager to further anti-black narratives
This article is actually very well researched and would be backed by most Japanese historians. Having an inferiority complex and trying to give accolades to a man who was not important or significant at the time because of his race shows shows your racist biased sir. I think the article explains really well how its african americans usually who try to push these narratives, and by your writings I would say you are probably African american as well...
Afrocentrism is a movement. It poses multiple theories and arguments, some credible, some less so.
Trying to portray an argument as lacking credibility BECAUSE it's afrocentric, is bigoted and disingenuous. Especially, when the label is used purely to discredit the claim without engaging with it.
This is the most thoroughly researched explanation of the recent developments involving Japan and Ubisoft. It's appalling to see an attempt to turn fanfiction into fact and to propagate a fabricated narrative in the West. The Japanese have every right to be upset about the disregard for their significant historical figures in favor of emphasizing a foreigner who was just one of the thousands Nobunaga collected as a curiosity. Japanese historians have even produced records of an event where Nobunaga hired over 100 sumo wrestlers for entertainment. After the event, he granted each of them a title, land, a stipend, and a ceremonial wakizashi. These historians also reviewed records of Nobunaga's court hierarchy, which revealed that all of the sumo wrestlers ranked above Yasuke, suggesting that he was likely named as an entertainer and held a position of minimal importance, likely due to his foreign status.
I’m sorry, “well researched”? If this were posted on Wikipedia, every claim would be followed with “citation needed”.
I imagine the same sources are also cited in the book this article is trying to sell you.
This guy is full of BS. There has been a survey by a famous Professor from Keio (best private university) of 23 years and expert of online conflict (wrote a book and co-wrote another on the topic). He has surveyed 3700+ on the Yasuke/Assassin's Creed controversy and debunked all the points. That's fine you don't like Ubisoft, I don't either. But don't mess with Japanese history and refer to self-published individuals and refer to real Japanese academics...
If your looking for something in the linguistic expertise then maybe... but no publishers, no cred. Meanwhile Locklee had his second paper peer reviewed in June in the midst of the whole mess...
The author of this article isn't an historian by profession but rather by hobby. Refers to himself as a "history nerd". An actual Japanese historian has said there is "no doubt" that Yasuke was a Samurai.
https://www.thegamer.com/assassins-creed-shadows-yasuke-real-life-samurai-japanese-historian-confirms-controversy-debate/
You can look up Yu Hirayama's sponsors and background to see why he has a very heavily vested interest in saying what he says, when no other Japanese historian agrees with him.
Ok show me a SINGLE document referring to Yasuke as a Samurai instead of a kosho. I'll wait, probably up to my death because those don't exist.
Wow... No offense but you are totally wrong.
- NHK has defended their broadcast from 2021 on July 24th, and stated no issue with their broadcast calling Yasuke a Samurai (Based on Japanese Law - Broadcasting Act). AKA Japan's public broadcasting which is the second largest source of News stand by the fact Yasuke IS a samurai.
- More people in Japan are aware of Yasuke as a Samurai in Japan (33%) than of the Assassin's Creed/Yasuke issue (29%) based on a survey of 3,700+ which is more than 3x larger than your average election poll.
- There is no academically peer reviewed published work that claims he is not. The most recent paper on him in June of this year says he is...
- The reason why Japanese people are upset is due to two fake rumors being spread that 1) Lockley stated that Japan started slavery which is not true and has been debunked 2) On the Japanese net there was talk of rumors in the US that there were 100s of Black Samurai that shaped Japanese history including famous samurais people know by name. This rumor only exists as a rumor as no substantial discussion exists on the English social media sphere.
I could go on and on...
Americans are the most ignorant people on this planet. Good lord. Tatsuichi Kure already called BS on Yasuke being a Samurai and Yu's ridiculous out of context historical "analysis". Not a single peer agrees with Yu and the guy has recieved loads of money to spread westerner propaganda.
Also you are spreading lies, there is no peer reviewed published work that claims HE IS. The only documents that talk about Yasuke only mention him as a retainer or a Kosho.
And I would suggest anyone to fact check this garbage about Japanese people not being upset by going to actually Japanese websites.
Also the NHS DID answered about their infomertial, and was mostly entertainment and amde out of a book written by Thomas Rockley, oh look at that, a westerner !
note.com/ankaku/n/n0f1d7118c545
Btw check the conversation on Twitter and the answers of Japanese people with a translator, everyone is calling out their bs.
You people should really stop trying to make your fanfiction about other cultures actual history. This is why nobody in the world likes you guys.
Nobody can claim he is with certainty, and nobody can claim he isn't with certainty either. There are indeed clues that says he could've been a Samurai, but we don't have enough evidence to conclude it with certainty. What is clear though, is that he was either a Samurai, an entertainer, a servant, or a mix of all of this.
The thing is, he really could've been, it's not just invented fiction. You can't publish a paper to claim he was because you would lack enough evidence for it. There's also no paper claiming he isn't one, because again, it's a real possibility that he could've been.
Now having said all that, why would it be wrong to actually use this version for movies, books and games? Nobody's trying to appropriate your culture or history. History doesn't belong to anyone, it's only things that happened in the past. If I want to make a game about Nazis and add some fictional storytelling around it, why would that be wrong, especially if it's based on a real possibility?
The only people upset about this are very ugly people on the inside. This outrage is very ugly to see, this is some kind of toxic nationalism mixed with racism where you don't want anybody to talk about your history and you don't want to accept a real possibility that a Daimyo would have given honors to a black outsider... Please better yourself.
Only people who speak like you are the actual cancer of this world. I would like to know ACTUAL historical events. Not revisionist propaganda. As a Puerto Rican, I was lied to about my history until I found out for myself the cold hard truth. Americans use people and morph their history for their own benefit. Just because out eat their garbage, doesn't make you their savior. It is purely fiction because there is no actual documentation that he was a "Bushi" (aka Samurai). The Japanese also didn't have a very pretty past. Everyone has some blood on their hands, ESPECIALLY with slavery. That is a hard fact. It's how we learn from it and progress that matters. "Please better yourself."
Don't waste your breath, these people dont't care about reality, they only care about making themselves feel good, and if you disagree with them you are automatically racist, even if they are the ones literally pushing a racist narrative where they make fun of people who died in a nuclear attack.
Right, that's cool and all, but a couple of issues.
1 Ubisoft is a french-Canadian company, not American
2 The AC franchise isn't and has never been about faithfully presenting historical stories but a historical fiction (emphasis on FICTION) based on the premise that the history we know is a lie
3 Yasuke has been depicted as a Samurai in Japanese media long before AC Shadows began development.
>Nobody can claim he is with certainty
Please do go on, keep telling Japanese about their history. I'm sure they all love to hear what you have to say. That's why the game is being a complete failure of sales in Japan, they love it so much when westerners try to rewrite their history.
>There are indeed clues that says he could've been a Samurai
No, there are not.
> You can't publish a paper to claim he was because you would lack enough evidence for it
You can that's what the white professor did in Japan.
>Now having said all that, why would it be wrong to actually use this version for movies, books and games?
And now you are trying to gaslight the conversation into "It's okay they actually tried to change historical records to sell a videogame that utterly disrespects Japanese culture so much even Japanese politicians started talking about banning it" ?
>The only people upset about this are very ugly people on the inside
Yeah how dare we not stand by disrespect of our culture and lies, we are horrible for telling the glorious first worlders to not treat our culture like garbage.
>with racism where you don't want anybody to talk about your history and you don't want to accept a real possibility that a Daimyo would have given honors to a black outsider.
I don't care about people writting fanfictions about my history. Just don't barge into my house and tell me to accept this new revisionism of history while you mock the deaths of a nuclear attack and disrespect sites of worship.
But then again expecting a foreigner who clearly has no sense of respect for others to understand that it's pointless .
>Please better yourself.
Look yourself into a mirror hypocrite.
Utter rubbish. This period in Japan is no longer considered "feudal", and the use of the word samurai in this context dates from after 1603, as does the wearing of two swords. In other words, this article is arguing about 16th century Japan using the terminology of the 17th century. Since the author is not an expert in Japanese history, this is perhaps to be expected.
Please calm down Mr. Atkinson. Your verbose inaccuracies betray your identity.
Unable to counter my expose of the obvious inaccuracies in your book, all you can do is to indulge in personal attack. What exactly is verbose? Sad.
Opening an article with diatribe aimed at "afrocentrism" while clearly demeaning it and people of African descent is just a dog whistle.
It clearly indicates your bias and the intent behind the article to attack what you PERCIEVE black people to believe.
There is nothing factual or researched in your assessment of afrocentrism or your gross assumption on how people feel about it or their reasons for engaging with it.
The racial derision is obvious from miles away and will only resonate with people also eager to further anti-black narratives
Sir this is KFC
"The racial derision is obvious from miles away and will only resonate with people also eager to further anti-black narratives"
Did you not get this far or are you just trying to confirm this conclusion?
This article is actually very well researched and would be backed by most Japanese historians. Having an inferiority complex and trying to give accolades to a man who was not important or significant at the time because of his race shows shows your racist biased sir. I think the article explains really well how its african americans usually who try to push these narratives, and by your writings I would say you are probably African american as well...
Afrocentrist theory conspiracist existed my man
Afrocentrism is a movement. It poses multiple theories and arguments, some credible, some less so.
Trying to portray an argument as lacking credibility BECAUSE it's afrocentric, is bigoted and disingenuous. Especially, when the label is used purely to discredit the claim without engaging with it.
We Wuz Kangz