A girl named Naomi, or three countries and a ‘Hafu’

Oct 07, 2018 Countryman, Features / Columnists

By Dennis Nichols

It’s a break from things Guyanese today, except to say that a month ago few of us may have known the name Naomi Osaka. Tennis buffs maybe. But on September 8 last, this young woman, just out of her teens, pulled off an unlikely win in an astonishing final at the U.S. Open Tennis Tournament in Queens, New York. She may also have stirred fresh interest in an ethnic debate that simmers just beneath the civility of Japanese social life.
You see, Naomi Osaka is a ‘Hafu’- a Japanese term meaning half ‘foreignness’, in her case Haitian. But she was born in Japan and plays for that country. So when she defeated Serena Williams at Flushing Meadows, the country’s biggest newspaper called Osaka “A new heroine that Japan is proud of!” You may want to take that headline with a bit of salt.
This is why. Japanese, as a people, are generally proud of their racial homogeneity, which World Report News, stated as being a “national identity, built around the notion of racial purity and cultural integrity, developed in part because of Japan’s geographical isolation as an island nation, and in part because of conscious political efforts to create a mythology of a ‘pure’ ethnic nation.” Not like motley Guyana.
The Director of Asian Studies at Japan’s Temple University said in 2015 that the population of foreigners in the country has doubled in percentage over the last twenty years. Osaka, her father, and sister Mari, are among them. So too is Ariana Miyamoto, who, at 21, became the first Hafu to be crowned Miss Universe Japan, in 2015. Her mother is Japanese; her father African American, and she, like Osaka, was born in Japan.
Miyamoto said that as a child, she was constantly bullied. Some children threw garbage at her, some refused to swim in the same pool as her, and she was sometimes called Kuronbo, the Japanese equivalent of the ‘N’ word. Osaka, who at three, went to live in the United States with her family, and currently lives in Florida, seems to have avoided such discrimination.
Now tennis fans, and sports lovers in general, are gushing over her, and the cliches are coming (to use a particular one) thick and fast – a breath of fresh air, ice-cool, the new Serena, shy, innocent, awkward. Add quirky, as she giggles and stumbles through interviews. Her ‘Ums’, ‘Yeahs’, and ‘Thank yous’, are typical teen-speak, but with a distinct deference to others.
What you get though is an honesty and lack of artifice that is refreshing in a sport dominated by intensity and aggression. Those she takes, and leaves, on the court, where she is anything but awkward. She can be a ferocious attacker, and clocked a massive 125 mph serve in the 2016 US Open.
As a player, there are similarities to Serena Williams, her admitted idol, whom she beat in straight sets to win the U.S. Open. They are both physically big and strong. (Osaka, at 5’11” is a full two inches taller than Serena) Both have older sisters who play professionally, were once coached by their fathers, and have fast, powerful serves.
But it is the difference in personalities, that many have commented on, especially after Williams’ dramatic outburst in the second set of the US Open final. While Serena ranted and railed at the chair umpire and forfeited an entire game, Osaka turned away, focused on what she had come to do – win her first grand slam. The emotion came later.
Although the media keeps referring to her as Japanese, Osaka on more than one occasion reminded them that she is also Haitian; a fact that she is obviously comfortable with.
When a reporter said she was ‘very proudly Japanese’ Osaka nodded that she was indeed honored to be playing for Japan, then added, “My dad’s side is Haitian, so represent!” It was a lighthearted but pointed reminder of her multi-ethnic, multi-national background. (She holds dual Japanese and American citizenship)
In an arena where non-white players are still relatively few, Osaka’s biracial identity is turning out to be a huge plus.
One reason could be that she seems to embrace it matter-of-factly; being born in Japan but growing up in a Haitian household in New York while honing her tennis skills in both Japan and the United States. Her first American home was in Long Island, New York, with her father Leonard Francois’s family. She is now trying to master the Japanese language.
One may have expected to see a greater outpouring of celebration from Haiti, the way it appears Japan, or at least its media, has embraced the star. The only news story I could find online from our Caribbean sister nation was headlined ‘Flash – Haitiano-Japanese Naomi Osaka wins the US Open against Serena William (sic). However, there were congratulatory messages from President Jovenel Moise, former President Martelly, and Haitian Senator Dieudonne Etienne.
Osaka has visited Haiti only once, a year ago, but her perception of her father’s homeland is striking. “Haiti is a beautiful little country,” she exclaimed. “I wanted to visit, although I have heard negative comments about (it) I find it hard to believe. That’s why I had a huge desire to walk on Haitian soil … the negative comments do not reflect the reality.”
Her Japanese grandfather may have felt differently. When he found out his daughter was romantically involved with a black foreigner, he was reportedly furious. It resulted in Tamaki Osaka having no contact with her family for over ten years. But now, according to a recent story, he is ecstatic over his granddaughter’s tennis prowess, and her recent sensational victory over Serena Williams.
Others are not so accommodating. A few online comments question whether Osaka is really Japanese because of her darker skin colour. (She in fact looks more Black than Asian) The same had been said about beauty queen Miyamoto, with one comment jibing, “I didn’t know Miss Japan doesn’t have to be pure Japanese … What a shock!”
But the world doesn’t seem to care too much about Naomi Osaka’s Hafu status, or her colour. She has become extremely marketable, and sponsors are clamouring for her endorsements, including a contract renewal with Adidas worth 6.5 million pounds – the biggest ever given to a female athlete.
Global car manufacturer Nissan has just made Osaka its latest brand ambassador with a three-year endorsement deal. Her growing line of sponsors include Nissin Foods Holdings, Citizen Watch Co., and the Japanese manufacturing firm Yonex, whose shares rose 10% since her US Open win.
Clearly this ‘Hafu’ girl is hitting the big time with a bang. It may be happening both because of, and despite, her biracial and multinational background. Maybe the sports world (and the world in general) is becoming colour-blind and race-unprejudiced. Maybe Naomi Osaka is the face of its future.