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This book project examines how the rise of global human rights in the last few decades has transformed minority politics, giving rise to political activism by disadvantaged ethnic minorities in many corners of the world. Focusing on three minority social movements in Japan, Ainu people, Korean residents and the Burakumin, the project illustrates how the global human rights regime has provided new venues for contestation for minorities, growing flows of mobilizational resources for disadvantaged groups, and new vocabularies for framing their claims. These processes led to greater activism by all three minority groups in Japan, although the influence varied according to their historical backgrounds. Further, the movements all contribute back to the global political arena and elevated global human rights standards, demonstrating a feedback loop to the global regime. The book presents detailed accounts of these processes, using archival documents and interviews as main data sources.