The article is devoted to the analysis of ethnic discrimination problem, which is one of the aspects of intercultural communication process. Ethnic discrimination has multi-valued nature. On the one hand it leads to disappearance of cultural diversity, but on the other hand it stimulates the ethnic defensiveness of a nation. The problem of assimilation and discrimination in Japanese society attracts great interest, because there exists a traditionally formed special receptivity toward foreign people and cultures. Thus, in Japan many stereotypes were formed towards the Ainu people. These stereotypes have a considerable effect not only on interethnic relations, but even on contemporary social, economical and cultural development of the ethnic minority group. In the article main problems of the Ainu caused by discrimination have been examined.