![Map of Ainu in Hokkaido](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/63/Map_of_Ainu_in_Hokkaido.svg)
Ainu Revolution Theory ( ja, アイヌ革命論, ''Ainu Kakumeiron'') is a left-wing political idea in
Japan that was active in the 1970s. It was a variant of
Proletarian Revolution Theory that came to light shortly after the revision of the
, focusing on the
Ainu. The actions and writings of Japanese left-wing thinker
Ota Ryu in particular made Ainu Revolution Theory well known.
History
In the early 1970s, a certain tendency of
Zenkyoto groups and the
Zengakuren
Zengakuren is a league of university student associations founded in 1948 in Japan. The word is an abridgement of which literally means "All-Japan Federation of Student Self-Government Associations." Notable for organizing protests and marches, ...
began to emerge among other
New Left activists in reaction to the stalemate of the All-Campus Joint Struggle League Movement (Zenkyoto). They believed that the
lumpenproletariat
In Marxist theory, the ''Lumpenproletariat'' () is the underclass devoid of class consciousness. Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels coined the word in the 1840s and used it to refer to the unthinking lower strata of society exploited by reactionary ...
could be the main body of the revolution, and that the Ainu people of Japan were also included inside this group. They believed that the Ainu people lived in a primitive communist system and were deemed worthy of being the "leaders of the Communist revolution".
In the mid-1970s, a number of violent incidents that appeared to have been influenced by the Ainu Revolution Theory occurred in various parts of the country (mainly in
Hokkaido
is Japan's second largest island and comprises the largest and northernmost prefecture, making up its own region. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaidō from Honshu; the two islands are connected by the undersea railway Seikan Tunnel.
The lar ...
), such as the
Shakushain Statue Incident, the
Bombing of the Fusetsu no Gunzo and Institute of Northern Cultures, the
Attack on the Mayor of Shiraoi, the
Hokkaido Shrine Arson Incident, the
Bombing of Hokkaido Police Headquarters, the
Hokkaido government bombings, and the
Bombing of Higashi Honganji. However, many of these incidents were carried out by the wider Japanese
New Left.
The Ainu people's own ethnic movements, such as the ''Removal of the
Old Earth Protection Law of Hokkaido'' movement, became active in the 1970s, but the development of Ainu Revolution Theory was not related to these movements. Ota Ryu was criticized for appropriating these movements. The Ainu Revolution discourse within leftist circles in Japan criticized Ota, saying that "by making the Ainu into the stock of the revolutionary movement, you are bothering them."
[
Ainu political activists Shoji Yuki and Kazuaki Yamamoto, along with others, formed the Ainu Liberation Alliance in 1972, challenging Japanese policy on the Ainu and public perception of the Ainu people. The ]Sapporo Olympics
The 1972 Winter Olympics, officially the and commonly known as Sapporo 1972 ( ja, 札幌1972), was a winter multi-sport event held from February 3 to 13, 1972, in Sapporo, Japan. It was the first Winter Olympic Games to take place outside Europe ...
held in 1972 helped inspire militants to become more active in Hokkaido. Yuki became acquainted with Ota around 1972, accompanying him when he read out a public questionnaire at the Japanese Anthropological and Ethnic Association Congress at Sapporo Medical University
is a public university in Chūō-ku, Sapporo, Hokkaidō, Japan. The precursor of the school was founded in 1945, and it was chartered as a university in 1950.
History
The , the precursor of the university, was founded in 1945. The Sapporo Medi ...
. Yuki later criticized that Ota's Ainu Revolution Theory was inconsistent with Ainu beliefs and circumstances. After both were arrested in 1974 for inciting riots ( Nolle prosequi), Ota and Yuki mutually criticized each other, with Ota being insulted and isolated.[Winchester, Mark. ]
A Study of the History of Ainu Thought in the Modern Age: With a Focus on the Writings of Masao Sasaki
'. Hitotsubashi University Graduate School, 2009 (Doctoral Dissertation). p. 72-73.
Eventually, Ota's decline, conversion to becoming an ecologist, and subscription to conspiracy theories led to a rapid decline in the popularity of Ainu Revolution Theory.[Editorial Committee of the Post-war Revolutionary Movement Encyclopedia (eds.) (Koji Takazawa, Shiro Sacho, Ryoichi Matsumura et al.) ''Encyclopedia of the Post-war Revolutionary Movement''. Shinsensha, 1985. ASIN 85037622 (Renamed and revised new edition of ''Encyclopedia of the Modern Revolutionary Movement'' (1982))]
See also
* Anti-Japaneseism
References
{{New Left in Japan
Political theories
Politics of Japan
Politics of Hokkaido
History of Hokkaido
Left-wing activism
New Left
Ainu politics
Ainu history
1970s establishments in Japan