The Stigmatisation of Religion in Japan and the Response to It

Abstract

The concept of stigma is used to analyse religion and social identity in Japan. After the Pacific War, religion in Japan and the social identity it provided can be said to have been stigmatised. Today, religion is still highly visible and still used as a mark of social identity and, thus, the effects of stigmatisation might still seem to be problematic. It is shown that in order to overcome this stigma a discourse has emerged. The discourse is associated with a typical reaction to the kind of threat to social identity and esteem that stigma can bring. This is made sense of through a conceptualisation of stigma incorporating the work of Link and Phelan, Nelson Goodman, and Tajfel and Turner. The stigmatisation and destigmatisation of religion and analytic tools to investigate it are particularly relevant today given the demonisation of Islam.