A woman who wore a kimono to cosplay a popular manga character and attend an anime exhibition in eastern China was refused entry and told that wearing the traditional Japanese attire was not allowed.
The incident happened on July 20 at the entrance of the Huanying Cartoon Exhibition in Jinan, Shandong province.
A Chinese visitor dressed in a kimono like Nezuko Kamado, the main character in the manga series Demon Slayer, was refused entry to the hall where the event was being held, reported the news portal Net Ease.
“Please get out. We have this rule and it is my duty. Please understand this,” the security guard said in a viral video.
“What a nonsense!Which company made this rule? Can you take me to talk to your manager?” the woman replied.
The security guard shouted at her: “Who do you think you are?”
“It’s just not allowed to wear a kimono here. This is China. Wearing a kimono is not allowed, you know?” he said.
The visitor then left.
The manga series Demon Slayer, published during 2016-2020, tells the story of a young boy Tanjirō Kamado who becomes a demon hunter after his family is brutally murdered by demons.
He sets out on a journey to find a way to turn his younger sister Nezuko back into a human.
The books and videos that have been translated into Chinese have been well received on the mainland.
It is not clear whether the Huanying event had issued any dress code restrictions in advance.
There was a similar case in central Hunan province in which two Chinese women wearing kimono were barred from visiting an anime show.
A security guard showed them a poster which said visitors were forbidden from wearing the garment because it is related to sensitive political, ethnic, historical and religious topics.
The controversies sparked discussion on mainland social media.
“I don’t understand. The animation show is all about Japanese manga culture. Why does it prohibit visitors from cosplaying characters in kimonos?” one online observer on Douyin said.
Others took a different view, with one internet user writing: “I side with the security guard. Kimonos are not simply Japanese clothes. This traditional Japanese garment reminds us of a humiliating time in history.”
