ABSTRACT
This chapter describes Japanese conservative protests against a signboard that was to be placed near the ruins of the Imperial Japanese Army’s 32nd Army Headquarters in Okinawa. The original draft of the signboard, which was created by a panel of Japanese academics, described atrocities committed by the Japanese military during the Battle of Okinawa – including the massacre of civilians and the mistreatment of so-called “comfort women.” To conservative activists, the signboard draft represented an “anti-Japanese” version of history that needed to be stopped. Led by conservative broadcaster Nihon Bunka Channel Sakura, activists created videos criticizing the signboard’s proposed content and calling on viewers to complain to the Okinawa prefectural government. The campaign’s outcome was a victory for the nationalist right – the signboard’s contents were changed to reflect their demands.
