Editing Ryukyuans (section)

===WWII and post-war history===
During [[World War II]] and battles like the [[Battle of Okinawa]] (1945), approximately 150,000 civilians (1/3 of the population) were killed in Okinawa alone.{{sfn|Hendrickx|2007|p=63}}{{sfn|Inoue|2017|p=4}} After the war, the Ryukyu Islands were occupied by the [[United States Military Government of the Ryukyu Islands]] (1945–1950), but the U.S. maintained control even after the 1951 [[Treaty of San Francisco]], which went into effect on 28 April 1952, as the USMMGR was replaced by the [[United States Civil Administration of the Ryukyu Islands]] (1950–1972). During this period the U.S. military requisitioned private land for the building of their facilities, with the former owners put into refugee camps, and its personnel committed thousands of crimes against the civilians.{{vague|reason=Which specific crimes?|date=July 2020}}{{sfn|Inoue|2017|pp=XIII–XV}} Only twenty years later, on 15 May 1972, Okinawa and nearby islands were returned to Japan.<ref name="MasamiIto2009"/> Whereas the Japanese had enjoyed political freedom and economic prosperity in the post-war years, the facilities, used for the purposes of Japanese regional security against the [[Communism|communist]] [[Red Scare|threat]], had a negative economic impact on the Islands, leading to many Ryukyuans feeling cheated, some considering the facilities a national disgrace.{{sfn|Kerr|2000}}{{sfn|Inoue|2017|pp=XIII–XIV, 4–5}} Since 1972 there have been extensive plans to bring Okinawa's economy up to the national level, as well continued support for the local culture and a revival of traditional arts started by the USCAR.{{sfn|Hendrickx|2007|p=64}}{{sfn|Inoue|2017|pp=48–49, 79}}

Okinawa comprises just 0.6% of Japan's total land mass, yet about 75% of all U.S. military installations stationed in Japan are assigned to bases in Okinawa.{{sfn|Rabson|2008|p=2}}{{sfn|Inoue|2017|p=2}} The presence of the military remains a sensitive issue in local politics.<ref name="MasamiIto2009"/> Negative feelings toward the mainland [[Government of Japan|Government]], [[Emperor of Japan|Emperor]] (especially [[Hirohito]] due to his involvement in the sacrifice of Okinawa and later military occupation), and [[United States Armed Forces|U.S. military]] ([[United States Forces Japan|USFJ]], [[Special Action Committee on Okinawa|SACO]]) have often caused open criticism and protests,{{sfn|Rabson|2008|pp=11, 17}} for example by 85,000 people in 1995 after the U.S. military [[1995 Okinawa rape incident|rape incident]],{{sfn|Inoue|2017|p=1}} and by 110,000 people in 2007 due to the Japanese [[Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology|Ministry of Education]]'s textbook revisions (see [[Battle of Okinawa#MEXT textbook controversy|MEXT controversy]]) which critics say downplays the involvement of the Japanese military in the forced mass suicide of the civilians during the Battle of Okinawa.{{sfn|Rabson|2008|p=1}}{{sfn|Inoue|2017|p=XXVII}} For many years the Emperors avoided visiting Okinawa, with the first ever in history done by [[Akihito]] in 1993,<ref name="Sanger">{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1993/04/25/world/a-still-bitter-okinawa-greets-the-emperor-coolly.html |title=A Still-Bitter Okinawa Greets the Emperor Coolly |author=David E. Sanger |date=25 April 1993 |newspaper=The New York Times |access-date=8 February 2017}}</ref>{{sfn|Rabson|2008|p=13}} since it was assumed that his visits would likely cause uproar, as in July 1975 when Akihito as a crown prince visited Okinawa and a firebomb was thrown at him,<ref name="Sanger"/>{{sfn|Rabson|2008|pp=11–13}} although these tensions have eased in recent years.{{sfn|Rabson|2008|p=14}} Discrimination against Okinawans both past and present on the part of the mainland Japanese is the cause of their smoldering resentment against the government.<ref>{{citation|last=Tanji|first=Miyume|title=Myth, Protest and Struggle in Okinawa |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=LLUpgYAwtl4C |year=2007|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-1-134-21760-1}}</ref> There is a small post-war [[Ryukyu independence movement]], but there are also Okinawans who wish to be assimilated with the mainland.<ref name="MasamiIto2009"/> A poll in 2017 by the Okinawa Times, Asahi Shimbun and Ryukyusu Asahi Broadcasting Corporation (QAB) jointly conducted prefectural public opinion surveys for voters in the prefecture. 82% of Okinawa citizens chose "I'm glad that Okinawa has returned as a Japanese prefecture". It was 90% for respondents of the ages of 18 to 29, 86% for those in their 30s, 84% for those aged 40–59, 72% for respondents in their 60s, 74% for those over the age of 70.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.okinawatimes.co.jp/articles/-/97097 |script-title=ja:【日本に復帰してよかった？】 沖縄82％が肯定、若い世代ほど高く 県民意識調査 |language=ja |date=12 May 2017 |work=[[Okinawa Times]]}}</ref>