Recent studies in the social sciences have focused the attention on the role of children in cultural politics, in particular on children's experiences in nationalism, as well as on their participation in inter-ethnic relations. In line with this research, this study aims to investigate the relationship between childhood and political action and to conceptualize "childhood" as a contested political notion. More specifically, it discusses variations in the definition of "childhood" in "majority" and "minority" like contexts with a special focus on Japan. This article compares the Agency for Cultural Affairs and its programs for the promotion of "Japanese culture," with the Dowa Education's programs on the buraku issue, and discusses how the resulting definitions of "childhood" are based upon various representations of "group identities" and upon different conceptions of educational processes. In this sense, the notion of "childhood" reflects a variety of political projects based on various institutional agendas, upon which different understandings of children's role in society depend.