### Jap: >*Jap was not considered primarily offensive; however, during and after the events of World War II, the term became derogatory*. [Nisei][1] veterans [who served in *World War II*][2] were shunned with signs that read **No Japs Allowed** and **No Japs Wanted**, denied service in shops and restaurants, and had their homes and property vandalized. **[[Wikipedia]][3]** According to *Japan Talk*, the term *Jap* was not offensive before the World War II. Quoting from ***[Japan Talk][4]***. (The text is uncopiable so I'll post screenshots). > [![enter image description here][5]][5] > [![enter image description here][6]][6] --- From ***densho.org**:* >In the 1950s, [Shosuke Sasaki][7] launched a campaign to have the word “Jap” re-classed as a racial slur and eliminated from print media. He would continue that work for the better part of the next 20 years. > >As early as 1880, the English Oxford dictionary noted “Jap” as a colloquial term of abbreviation. Though it may have started out as a neutral term, it took on increasingly negative connotations as *[anti-Japanese sentiment][8]* grew. It was used as a slur against Japanese immigrants and, later, in reference to Japanese American citizens. Following World War II, the use of the word became even more [opprobrious][9] but was still in wide use. >In a letter to the Executive Committee of the Newspaper Guild of New York, Sasaki requested that Newspaper Guild Executive Committee place “Jap” in the same category as other racial epithets, discouraging use in newspapers and magazines. His arguments included: > > - “The term 'Jap' is regarded by the Japanese as an epithet of derision. Its use is resented by all Japanese and persons of Japanese ancestry.” > - “The excuse that the term 'Jap' is usually used without any derogatory intention is pointless. It frequently has been and is being used with the connotation of contempt. Furthermore, not even a moron would persist in calling a person by any name which that person considered offensive, when at the same time the goodwill and friendship of that person were desired.“ > - “The use of the term 'Jap' completely nullifies in the eyes of the Japanese all American claims to being the world’s champion of human dignity.” > >In February 1952 , the New York Newspaper Guild passed a resolution and sent a letter sent to all New York publishers. But the resolution was not as effective as Sasaki had hoped and “newspapers continued to use the epithet as freely as ever.” Sasaki mounted a letter-writing campaign to the offending papers and organized protests with the help of the New York JACL. [[**Densho.org**]][10] --- > [![enter image description here][11]][11] >This American propaganda poster, created in the months following the bombing of *Pearl Harbor* by the Japanese, is a prominent example of name calling. In this poster, the Japanese are derogatorily depicted as rats while the words **Jap Trap** is prominently displayed in bold, with quotation marks, near the bottom of the poster. During the Second World War, many Americans used the term “Jap” as a derogatory term to refer to the Japanese, mainly because of the word’s ability to create perfect rhyme with other words and thus, create easy to memorize slogans such as “Let’s blast the Jap clean off the map” and “Jap Trap.” By referring to the Japanese as “Jap” in this poster, the propagandist aims to brew anti-Japanese sentiment among its American audience. The rat itself, with its wrinkled, hairless skin, buck teeth, and clawed hands is extremely displeasing to the eye and looks more like a vermin than a human. Coupled with the stereotypical manner the propagandist drew this poster, with its narrow eyes, black hair, circular glasses, and shriveled skin, and the slogan, “Jap Trap,” it is hard not to associate the Japanese with a negative image after viewing this poster. The propagandist uses this extremely insulting and disgusting portrayal of the Japanese to associate the “Japs” with a negative image of a vermin and brew hatred among the American people. [[*PropangandaProjectJustin*]][12] >! Don't confuse *Jap* with *Jap's eye*. **Jap's eye** is a British vulgar slang for *the slit of the penis; the male urethral meatus.* [[Wikitionary]][13] ### References: - [Wikipedia][3] - [Spot a Jap - DailyMail UK][14] - [Japan Talk][4] - [Densho.org][10] [1]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nisei [2]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese-American_service_in_World_War_II [3]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jap [4]: https://www.japan-talk.com/jt/new/is-the-word-Jap-derogatory [5]: https://i.sstatic.net/97Baz.jpg [6]: https://i.sstatic.net/KSdLg.jpg [7]: http://encyclopedia.densho.org/Shosuke%20Sasaki/ [8]: https://densho.org/a-community-grows-despite-racism/ [9]: https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/opprobrious [10]: https://densho.org/shosukesasaki/ [11]: https://i.sstatic.net/HOT5t.jpg [12]: https://propagandaprojectjustin.weebly.com/name-calling.html [13]: https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Jap%27s_eye [14]: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-5020743/Shocking-WWII-propaganda-pamphlet-spotting-Jap.html