Julian Keane "Considering the Racial Order & Fashion Embedded in Media & Everyday Life"

Racism is a major issue in fashion, and especially since the 2020s, it has come to the fore in relation to BLM (Black Lives Matter) and cultural appropriation.

Of course, racism is wrong. But what should we focus on, and what should we do? How should we confront the issues of discrimination that are cleverly hidden in everyday life and industrial structures? This time, we spoke with sociologist Julian Keane, who conducts research focusing on the everyday practices of "hafu" (ハーフ, coming from English "half"-Japanese) people.

Lurking "Racial Order" & Unaddressed "Anti-Discrimination"

First, please tell us about your interests and research, Keane.

My research focuses on how individuals with roots in both Japan and other countries—often labeled as "half (hafu)," "double," or "mixed roots"—cope with the challenges they face in their daily lives.

I am particularly interested in understanding how these people survive these challenges and why survival can be so difficult. My Master’s thesis was completed in March 2014, around the same time that the book "〈ハーフ〉とは誰か　人種混淆・メディア表象・交渉実践" was published in Japan, which focuses on the topic of mixed-race individuals.