Do Japanese people differentiate between Okinawans, Ainu, and other Japanese?

Question:

Do people classify themselves into categories like "Okinawans" "Ainus" etc. or do all these people consider themselves as part of the same larger group (namely Japanese) and that's that? In the US, for e.g., African Americans, European Americans, Latin Americans, Native Americans and Asian Americans might all feel American but they also often times have a special affinity for their own group or they might see themselves as being "a part" of a more specific subgroup (or subset) of the American population. Is this true in Japan as well?

Answer:

Yes, they do.