ERIC L. ROBINSON
ABOUT BLACK TOKYO
THE PLATFORM
Black Tokyo was established in January 1999 as an online forum — one of the first online resources for the African Diaspora seeking information about Japan from an Afro-perspective. What began as a community space grew into a multi-platform brand covering Japanese culture, Black American life in Japan, race and identity, and society from the inside.
Today, Black Tokyo encompasses a YouTube channel with over 46,000 subscribers, an online store, a publishing imprint, and a physical presence in Yokosuka, Japan.
THE VOICE
Black Tokyo is the platform of Eric L. Robinson — U.S. Marine Corps veteran, author, and one of the most recognized Black American voices on Japan.
Robinson served as a Tactical Interrogator-Translator in Japanese and Korean and as a Human Intelligence Analyst. He holds a Master of Arts in Security Studies — Far East, Southeast Asia, and the Pacific — from the United States Naval Postgraduate School. He has lived in Japan for 25 years and has engaged with Japanese society, culture, and institutions since 1981.
He became one of the most recognized foreign faces on Japanese national television during his years on Sanma's Super Karakuri TV and has appeared on numerous Japanese prime-time programs. Reuters, The Washington Post, CNN, ABC News, Newsweek, The Guardian, The Japan Times, and Sankei Shimbun have cited his work on race, identity, and Black life in Japan. His work has been referenced in academic research at the University of California, Berkeley, and the U.S. Naval Postgraduate School.
THE COMPANY
Black Tokyo GK is located in Yokosuka, Japan, serving as a key provider of goods and services in support of U.S. Forces in Japan. The Black Tokyo Store is based in Yokosuka, Japan.
THE BOOKS
Black Tokyo Publishing is the independent publishing imprint of Black Tokyo. Its flagship publication is the Ura Shakai Series — a five-book literary fiction series by Eric L. Robinson drawing on forty years of engagement with Japan and twenty-five years of living there.
Book I: Ura Shakai: Foundations is available now in paperback and eBook via Black Tokyo Online.
THE CHANNEL
The Black Tokyo YouTube channel covers Black American life in Japan, Japanese culture, race and identity, and society from the inside. Over 46,000 subscribers worldwide.
Watch the Black Tokyo YouTube channel here.