Nagoya University announced that it will open Gender Research Library, the first special library for gender studies in Japan on November 1st. At Gender Research Library, people can have access to over 40,000 books and documents related to gender. It was built for the bettering of gender studies and providing more information related to gender. Anyone can use this library and it is likely to be a hot topic. There will be books on the history of women’s human rights and discrimination based on gender and diaries written by gay women in Gender Research Library. There will be six bathrooms.
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On October 14th, Saturday, a fabulous event “PINK FOR ALL! Fashion Parade” was held at Shinjuku Isetan. The event livened up Shinjuku when many drag queens showed up. It was held as part of Shinjuku Town Festival 2017. Shinjuku Town Festival 2017 is an event aimed at spreading the charms of Shinjuku area as the town that embraces diversity the most in the world . This year marked the 38th anniversary. On the special stage on Shinjuku Street, Fashion Stage was held featuring a variety of performers from 12:30p.m to 4p.m. PINK FOR ALL! Fashion Parade was the last stage
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On September 29th, Science Council of Japan (SCJ) released policy recommendation: “Protection of Human Rights of Sexual Minorities. Engagement, Education and Labour.” ※SCJ was established in January 1949 as a “special organization” under the jurisdiction of the Prime Minister, operating independently of the government, for the purpose of promoting and enhancing the field of science, and having science reflected in and permeated into administration, industries and people’s lives. It represents Japan’s scientists both domestically and internationally with the firm belief that science is the foundation upon which a civilized nation is built. SCJ is extremely active in its deliberations, helping
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Izumi Hosaka, an openly MtF transgender woman living in the city of Nemuro, Hokkaido won her first election on September 10th. Twenty people ran for that election and she obtained the fifth most votes. Ms. Hosaka is registered as a man on family registry in Japan, but she lives as a woman and she openly came out as a transgender when she ran for that election. Another good news is the city of Nemuro stopped dividing candidates by sex from this election in response to the petition she made to the city for the abolishment of gender section on an
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On March 9th, as many as three hundred participants gathered at First Diet Members’ Office Building to attend “Rainbow Diet”, a gathering that asks for enactment of a law aimed at achieving better understanding of LGBTs among the public and prohibiting LGBT discrimination. The gathering was filled with excitement. Twelve Diet members from “LGBT all-party parliamentary group,” Shigeaki Saegusa (a composer), Kazuyo Katsuma(an economic analyst), and personnels from Japan Business Federation and U.N made a speech respectively. LGBT participants appealed the importance of the law and a jurist gave a briefing on the law. (There was supposed to be a
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A scene from the film “RAGE” right: Satoshi Tsumabuki as Yuma left: Go Ayano as Naoto On March 3rd, the 40th Japan Academy Awards was held in Tokyo. Satoshi Tsumabuki and Go Ayano received the best supporting actor awards for playing a gay couple in the film “RAGE.” The film became a topic of conversation for depicting real lives of gay people in Japan. They are probably the first actors who received the Japan Academy Awards for playing gay men in Japan. “Thank you, thank you. I never thought this could happen tonight and I wouldn’t have received this award
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It’s one scene from ”The Nail That Sticks Out Gets Hammered Down LGBT bullying and exclusion in Japanese schools”. The caption of this scene says “some teachers have direct homophobia”. Basic Principles for Preventing Bullying will be revised to stipulate LGBT students are also under the protection of the principles at educational institutions. On February 7th, Bullying Prevention Committee agreed on the revision to prevent bullying towards LGBT students. Manuals for dealing with bullying will be sent to schools. The manuals stipulate the importance of better understanding of sexuality, gender identity,and gender identity disorder and measures to be taken in
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The image pic of drama “IS -not a man or a woman-”. Both of leading actresses are very famous in Japan. It was found that the family court allowed two intersex persons in their twenties, who were born as girls, but identified as male due to disorders of sex development (DSD), to change their gender status on the family registry without sex change operation in 2015 and 2016. The family court’s decision is something we should celebrate because the inability to change gender status on the family registry had been a big obstacle for intersex people to alleviate gender dysphoria.
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The character of Recruit Sumai Company and its staff at Tokyo Rainbow Pride 2017 SUUMO, a well-known website for housings administrated by Recruit Sumai Company, is to launch a new housing listing service for same- sex couples starting this summer. They will be able to live together in the housings listed on the website. “There’s been a lot of voices from LGBT people crying for housings that accept same- sex couples. We hope to support the community by introducing LGBT-friendly housing owners to them.” Recruit Sumai Company commented on the new service. The company will start to add lists of
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Megumi Fuji, the chief of Rainbow Foster Care. On August 17th, Child and Family Policy Bureau announced to Child Welfare Divisions all over Japan that new guidelines for LGBTQ kids in foster home will take into effect. In childcare facilities, the number of LGBTQ children who have difficulties different from other children has been on the rise and childcare specialists sometimes face situations which are difficult to approach with old-fashioned guidelines. The new guidelines will help officials and staff working in childcare fields have better awareness of sexual minority and ask them to achieve better understanding of LGBTQ kids among
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