What does "minority" mean to you?
What kinds of situations come to mind when you see or hear "minority"?
What do you want to know about "minority issues"? Why?
「少数派」という意味。反対語はマジョリティ(多数派)。多様な性のあり方を表す「性的マイノリティ(セクシャルマイノリティ)」など、少数なだけでなく、偏見や差別などにより社会的に弱い立場のグループや人々のことを指す場合が多いです。(ソーシャルインクルージョンを考えるWebメディア, 日付なし, マイノリティとは?)
「マイノリティ」とは、「マジョリティ(多数者)」に対する「少数者」を意味します。それが問題となるのは、ふたつの場合が考えられます。ひとつは、民主主義の話し合いという、手続過程における場合。もうひとつは、人種や言語がマジョリティと異なるために、マイノリティとみなされる場合です。そこで、前者を「プロセスにおけるマイノリティ」、後者を「存在としてのマイノリティ」と呼ぶことにしましょう。(ヒューライツ大阪, 日付なし, 用語の説明「マイノリティ」)
世界のおよそ10億人の人々が少数者グループに属する。その多くは差別や追放の対象となり、しばしば武力紛争の犠牲者となっている。民族的、種族的、宗教的かつ言語的グループの正当な願望を満たすことは、基本的人権の保護を強化することであり、文化的多様性を保護してそれを受け入れことである。また、それは社会全体の安定を強化することにもつながる。(国際連合広報センター, 日付なし, 少数者の権利)
1. “any small group in society that is different from the rest because of their race, religion, or political beliefs, or a person who belongs to such a group” (Cambridge Dictionary, no date, minority)
2. "Minorities are usually defined as groups of people whose ethnic, linguistic or religious identity differs from the "majority" members of society. There are several such groups of minorities in Japan who have a history of being discriminated against in various forms…. New groups of minorities are becoming increasingly visible, particularly those based on sexual orientation and religion, which brings a new set of issues. Whether old or new, the discrimination minorities face can be persistent; for minorities, the problem lies with the attitude of the majority. (Hurights Osaka, no date, minorities in Japan)
3. “A 'minority' is a type of 'identity'. As such, the term minority may refer to either a social category and/or a personal identity. … Whether as social category or as personal identity, the concepts identity and minority require the awareness of self and other. …In any category of identity (e.g., gender, disability, race, ethnicity, etc.), self-identifications (who I think I am) will inevitably be inextricably linked with other- identifications (who you think I am). “ (European Centre for Minority Issues, 2014, Beyond the (Non) Definition of Minority, p. 9, p. 11)
Japan: Levelling up career opportunities for those with disabilities (NHK, 19 June 2023)
日本:旧優生保護法は憲法違反 国に賠償命じる判決 最高裁 (関西NEWS WEB, 2024.07.03)
日本:なぜ日本のイスラム教徒が辛い目にあうのか 日本国内のイスラム教徒から深刻な訴え (東洋経済ONLINE, 2015.03.19)
Japan: Survey: 30% of teenage sexual minorities avoided school (The Asahi Shimbun, 10 January 2024)
China: There’s a good chance your cotton T-shirt was made with Uyghur slave labor (The Guardian, 9 April 2021)
Japan: Survey: 68% of multi-racial students in Japan bullied (The Asahi Shimbun, 11 September 2024)
Japan: A thousand cuts: A 'Zainichi' Korean reporter's deep dive into microaggression in Japan (The Mainichi, I March 2021)
UK: 'I'm called exotic for being black in a rural town' (BBC, 8 November 2024)
Minorities - Inclusion Not Stereotyping (United Nations, no date)
About statelessness (UNHCR, 2025)
The biggest barrier for people with disability is how society disables them (EPIC, 22 July 2021)
Indigenous Peoples' Rights (Amnesty International, 2024)
Should we drop ethnic minority for global majority? (BBC, 20 October 2024)
'A DIVE INTO HAFU' - The Hafu Phenomenon In Japan [Video 17:34] (Shugo Kawok, 21 February 2019)
All in 4 Minority Rights [Video 59 secs] (UN Human Rights, 20 June 2022)
Disability Inclussion Matters for All [Video 1:42] (World Bank, 11 June 2019)
Tokyo issues same-sex ‘partnership certificates’ amid cheers from LGBTQ community [Video 3:00] (South China Morning Post, 2 November 2022)
Cate Blanchett: What is statelessness? [Video 3:38] (UNHCR, 15 July 2022)
Linguistic Rights of National Minorities [Video 1:34] (The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, 17 May 2018)
Examples of local action in Japanese society
「法然と極楽浄土」アーティスト・浄土宗僧侶の西村宏堂さんのトークイベント 浄土宗の修行で学んだ「心が安心する3つの教え」とは?(美術展ナビ, 2024/06/04)
「障害者アート」で起業 著作権を保障し、障害者の生き方に選択肢を(公益財団法人東京都人権啓発センター, 2022/02/07)
Educating, Empowering And Embracing One’s Half-Japanese Heritage (Savvy Tokyo, 2020)
Shelter in east Japan provides temporary comfort to refugee applicants (The Mainichi, 17 January 2022)
Examples of local action in other societies
Australia (indigenous rights): Indigenous rights activists protest on Australia Day (France 24, 26 January 2025)
Ethiopia (women's rights): Pushing forward: Countering anti-feminist backlash in Ethiopia (UN Women, 18 November 2022)
France (language rights): Meet the people fighting for the survival of the Breton language (France 24, 10 February 2023)
South Korea (disability rights): South Korea: 'Protesting for 20 years and still no equal rights' (BBC, 27 January 2023)