All about Yusuke Narita: Yale University Professor proposed mass suicide in Japan to deal with rapidly ageing population

Yusuke Narita, a Yale University professor has triggered outrage with his statement that the only way to deal with Japan’s rapidly aging population is mass suicide and disembowelment of elderly people. 

Who is Yasuke Narita?

Yasuke Narita is currently an Assistant Professor at Yale University. He was also a Visiting Assistant Professor at Stanford University. His research involves studying education and labour policy topics using various methods including casual interference, machine learning, economic theory and structural econometric modelling. 

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His work has been published in journals including Econometrica, AAAI (Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence), American Economic Review, and Management Science. He also obtained a Doctor of Philosophy from MIT.

The Yale University Professor made his remarks about the way to deal with Japan population on a news program in 2021. “’I feel like the only solution is pretty clear,” he said at the time. “Isn’t it mass suicide and mass seppuku of the elderly?” he suggested. 

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He has recently given his clarification on his 2021 statement in a New York Times profile saying he was “taken out of context.” He also said that euthanasia could become essential in the future, his comments forcing a backlash nonetheless.

The Professor stated that this would allow younger generations to make their way in business, politics and other aspects of society that the older generation refuses to leave by themselves.

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Narita’s comments not only made people angry but won him a large audience, currently over 569,000 Twitter followers. He spreads his message through social media, comedy shows, energy drink ads and even TikTok impressionists.  

Narita continues to emphasize that he’s softening his position and not to be taken literally, but the discussion is coming. “I am not advocating its introduction. I predict it to be more broadly discussed,” he added.

Narita also said that he was primarily concerned with the phenomenon in Japan, where the same tycoons continue to dominate the worlds of politics, traditional industries, media, entertainment, and journalism for many years.