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What are the words that killed Hana Kimura?

What happened to Hana Kimura?

Words are knives. On the 23rd of May 2020 we saw that in the tragic death of Hana Kimura, Wrestler and star of reality TV show Terrace House.

So what were the linguistic weapons that killed her? And what are the words that tried to come to her rescue? And how can we dodge the knives when they are thrown at us? Today I would like to tackle these questions by translating and analysing some of the comments made on Japanese social networks before and after her death.

I’ve divided these comments into the supporters of Hana, and the haters of Hana. And her own voice.

I want to start with the famous soccer player Keisuke Honda. He released a long audio commentary on the incident where he shared his own approach to dealing with online bullying. I will come back to the details of exactly what he does at the end, and hopefully that will help anyone that is listening if they ever have to deal with online abuse. First of all let’s look at one of his twitter comments.

 

Japanese Reading Difficulty

9/12 Could be read by 9th grade level student in Japan

Themes

Hana Kimura, Suicide, Online bulllying

Text Type

Social Media Posts

Supporter

Honda Keisuke

Famouse Japanese soccer player.

弱い人を狙うな。
Don’t target the weak people.
誹謗中傷はやるなって言ってもなくならないし、なのでやってもいいからちゃんと強い人を狙うこと。
Even if I say “quit hating online”, online bullying won’t go away. So I’ll just say, go ahead and bully, but target the strong.

「結論」
俺んところに来い。そして末長く誹謗中傷のプラットフォームとして使用してください。

Conclusion
Bring your bullying my way, and you can use your platform to troll me to your heart’s content.

Hater

テラスハウス史上、いやテレビ史上1番気色悪いです。
You are the most disgusting thing that has ever appeared on Terrace House, no, on Television.
ほんとにお願いだから目立たないでください。
Please just do us a favour and pull your head in.
プロレスもだれも応援してません。
No one is barracking for you, even as a pro-wrestler.

Supporter

長与 千種 Chigusa Nagayo
Wrestler
心がザワザワして苦しい。
My heart is heaving in pain. 
ありえん ありえん ありえん ありえんぞ、許せない 言葉は時に鋭利過ぎるナイフになって人の心の奥深くを 無残に切り裂き荒らす。
It’s impossible, impossible, impossible. It’s unforgivable. Sometimes words are over-sharp knives that cut cruelly, deep inside a person and sever the heart in two.

観たままの姿は基本キャラクターとしての偽りの姿。

If you only saw the face she (Hana) presented, you were seeing a fictitious character. 
本当の姿を出さずに生きる彼女はプロとして。
She lived without showing her true self, she was a professional.
長与千種の知る本来の持つ顔は清純なのに
The Hana that Chigusa Nagayo knew was a pure soul. 

Hater

テラハ見ていて初めて気持ちが悪くなりました。
For the first time, watching Terrace House made me sick.

テラハ大好きだったのに花さんのせいで嫌いになりました。早く卒業してください。大嫌いです。
I loved Terrace House until Hana came on. Please leave the show soon. I hate you.

お前が早くいなくなればみんな幸せなのにな。まじで早く消えてくれよ。
If you were gone, everyone would be so happy. I’m serious, just disappear.

Supporter

岡田結実さん

「人の言葉って刃物だっていうのが、人が亡くなってからわかるっていうのがすごく悔しいですし、そんなことあっちゃいけない」

「芸能人だから、顔を合わせない人だからっていって叩いてくる人多いじゃないですか

Celebrity and actress Yui Okada

The fact that people don’t realise that words are knives is just tragic. This sort of thing just shouldn’t happen.

Because someone is famous, and you don’t ever have to come face to face with them, a lot of people just think it’s okay to take pot shots.

Supporter

Hater

テラハに出なければ今頃底辺プロレスで地味にしかし平和に過ごせてたものの、
If you hadn’t gone on Terrace House, about now you would be a low-grade wrestler living a regular, yet peaceful, life.
あなたの性格ゆえに完全に人間として終わりましたね。
But because of your personality, you basically have lost all value as a human being. 
これで彼氏欲しいとか、DV絶対するからやめてください。
Because of that, don’t say things like “I want a boyfriend”. I’m sure you would be prone to domestic violence, so just don’t.
それともそういう家庭で育ったのかもですね。育ちは怖いですね。
I guess maybe you were raised in a household like that. How you are raised is a scary thing.

Supporter

メンタリストDaiGo @Mentalist_DaiGo

テラスハウスの木村花さんの訃報fuho見てやはり思うけど、芸能事務所とかは、ネットの誹謗中傷に対して、【情報開示請求】ちゃんとやって訴訟soshoしたらいいと思う。
On hearing of Terrace House Hana Kimura’s death, it made me think, yet again, that entertainment agencies need to step up, lodge information disclosure requests and sue.

アンチに容赦yoshaなど不要。損害賠償だけでなく、勤務先の会社にも内容 証明送りつけて【社会的に抹殺masatsu】すべき。
Haters need no leniency. And it shouldn’t stop at compensation for damages. People need to have their places of work sent evidence of what has transpired, these sort of actions need to be obliterated from society.

Hater

In response to Hana’s cat photo post

猫にも暴力ふるってんのー
Are you even being violent towards cats?

Supporter

Smiley Kikuchi – Commentator

ネットの誹謗中傷の書き込みをされて傷ついている人に「たかがその程度で」と考える人もいます。
There are people that think that being abused online is “no big thing”.
程度のレベルを決めるのは、やった側ではなく、やられた側が決めます。
But what is and is not a big thing isn’t decided by perpetrators, but by those that are perpetrated against.
悪戯とか死ぬとは思わなかったでは済まされない。
Saying that pranking around is not deadly does not cut it. 
書き込んだ者は言葉の凶器で命を奪った指殺人の犯人です。もうやめてください。
The people that have used their words as weapons are criminal “armchair murderers” who have stolen a life. Please just stop

Supporter

Kazuya – Youtuber & Commentator

ネットの誹謗中傷の書き込みをされて傷ついている人に「たかがその程度で」と考える人もいます。
There are people that think that being abused online is “no big thing”.
程度のレベルを決めるのは、やった側ではなく、やられた側が決めます。
But what is and is not a big thing isn’t decided by perpetrators, but by those that are perpetrated against.
悪戯とか死ぬとは思わなかったでは済まされない。
Saying that pranking around is not deadly does not cut it. 
書き込んだ者は言葉の凶器で命を奪った指殺人の犯人です。もうやめてください。
The people that have used their words as weapons are criminal “armchair murderers” who have stolen a life. Please just stop

Supporter

Katsube Genki – Social Commentator

@KTB_genki
木村花さんの死去shikyoを受けて、著名人がSNS上の誹謗中傷をどうにかして欲しいという声を上げているけれど、
Since Hana Kimura’s death famous people have been calling for something to be done about online bullying.
誹謗中傷を続けたい人たちが、早速彼等彼女等に誹謗中傷をしている。
That has led to the bullies in turn quickly abusing the people that are calling out the abuse. 
そうやって他の著名人が続かないようにしている。本当にクズだと思う。
That is how the bullies try to bring down the celebrities. They really are no better than garbage.

Hana's own comments

毎日100件近く率直な意見。 
Everyday, nearly 100 frank opinions.
傷付いたのは否定できなかったから。
The reason they cut me up is that I was unable to deny what they were saying. 
死ね、気持ち悪い、消えろ、今まで ずっと私が1番私に思ってました。
“Drop dead”, “you make sick”, “disappear”. These are all words I have told myself, more than anyone else. 
お母さん産んでくれてありがとう。
Mother, thanks for bringing me into this world.
愛されたかった人生でした。
In my life, all I wanted was to feel loved.
側で支えてくれたみんなありがとう。
Thanks to everyone who has been in my corner.

大好きです。 弱い私でごめんなさい
I love you. Sorry for being weak little me.

 

愛してる、楽しく長生きしてネ。ごめんね。

I love you. Have fun, and live long. I’m sorry.

Honda Keisuke's comments

Renowned soccer player Keisuke Honda released an auditory commentary on his Nowvoice platform, where he talked about approaches to online bullying and his own approach to dealing with haters. He has some interesting ideas that are hopefully useful to many people.

 

言葉の暴力ってというのは実際の暴力よりもはるかに時によっては、ダメージを受けるというのは間違いではないと思います。
The violence of language can cause more damage than real violence.
僕自身も誹謗中傷されて、全く平気かといったらそうではないし、それは気にはします。気にしないといったらウソになる。
I, myself, have been the subject of online abuse. To say that it doesn’t phase me would be a lie.
僕の場合は慣れてきたというか逆にそういった誹謗中傷がエネルギー元になってきたというのもあって。
But in my case, I guess you could say I’m used to it. It’s even gotten to the point where you could say that online abuse has become a source of energy for me.
僕は本当なにかおかしいこと言っているとかもしれないですけど誹謗中傷の人いなくなったらそれはそれですばらしい世界でなくなったらいいとん思っているんですよ。なくなるべきだとおもっているしなくなったらいいとおもっているんですけど
I might be saying something strange here, and I really do think the world would be a better place without the bullies, and I do think that bullying shouldn’t happen,
本当にそういった人たちもいるから反骨精神じゃないけどモチベーションになれているといのもあるんですよ。。。そういった意味では感謝している。
but I feel like those people have actually become a kind of motivation for me. Maybe it’s some kind of “rebellious spirit” kind of thing…but, in that way, I’m thankful to them.

He goes on to talk about how the bullies may have been raised in difficult circumstances themselves, and be projecting their own pain. He tries to identify or humanise them.
He talks about how he has received death threats and all sorts of abuse, but is still alive and well. He goes as far as saying he wants to accept their abuse as a way of helping them heal.
He says he was blessed with a supporting upbringing, but not everyone is like that. As a result
He says people are fundamentally drawn to being mean to each other, and that realistically there is no way to eradicate this human trait.
His answer, then, for himself, is to accept the hatred, and use it like garbage that you turn into rocket fuel. Burn it up, harness its energy. I think that is a really important message for anyone that anyone who is a creator, wants to take part in the arena of ideas, who wants to change the world in any way, or anyone that just has a voice.

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Who is behind this site?

I’m Peter Joseph Head. I lived in Japan for four years as a student at Kyoto City University of the Arts and on working holiday. I have toured the country six times playing music and speak Japanese (JLPT N1).

ピータージョセフヘッドです。3年間京都市立芸大の大学院として、一年間ワーキングホリデーとして日本に住み、6回日本で音楽ツアーをし、日本語能力試験で1級を取得しました。要するに日本好きです。

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