"Little Black Sambo" Makes A Comeback in Tokyo

“A writer’s death can do wonders for pushing that back catalog. Less drastically, a few books acquire cachet by being banned. Which may help explain why a reissue of “Little Black Sambo,” a turn-of-the-20th century illustrated children’s book attacked as being racist, is on the bestseller lists in Japan this spring.”

TheStateOf…Japan. Many African Americans I know that have traveled to Japan report that the Japanese–like many people all over the world–possess a particular fascination with black people, particularly black Americans. Black singers and dancers are frequent in Japanese nightclubs and caberets. The fascination is primarily physical, and the Japanese curiosity is quenched only by looking at images of black people, whether a Sambo book or a Snoop Dogg video.