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Feminism in Japan is the historical and contemporary political ideology and phenomenon that takes into account the unique experience of women within the social context of Japanese culture.
Japanese feminism is informed by and informs worldwide feminist discourse, but it eschews individualistic activism in favour of broad social gains and mutually constructive solution finding. Domestically, current activism includes pushing for women-only cars on train lines plagued by groping and other undesirable activities. Internationally, Japanese feminism works within the confines of the current global political situation, seeking goal accomplishment through agencies such as the UN.
Some issues that dominate Western feminism, such as Take Back the Night marches, have less relevance in a relatively crime-free society such as Japan. Questions such as the historical silencing of women's voices that dominate academic feminism in the West have less validity when one of Japan's oldest and most revered work, the Tale of Genji was written by a woman.
That said, queer theory, transexual acceptance, and other contemporary issues in worldwide feminism do have their analogues in Japanese feminism and are being discussed today within the unique social landscape of modern Japanese society.
History
Japanese feminism as an organized political movement dates back to the early years of the 20th century, when Kato Shidzue pushed for birth-control availability as part of a broad spectrum of progressive reforms. Shidzue went on to serve in the National Diet following the defeat of Japan in World War II and the promulgation of the Peace Constitution by US forces. Some amount of gender equality was enforced by the occupying powers, which illustrates the historical connection between Western conceptions of freedom and liberty.
In 1986, the Equal Employment Opportunity Act came into effect in Japan. It prohibits sexual discrimination in recruitment, hiring, promotion, retraining, welfare, retirement, and retrenchment. Indirect discrimination is not addressed by the act.
Other figures such as Hayashi Fumiko and Ariyoshi Sawako illustrate the broad socialist nature of Japanese feminism, a bias that exists today, much as feminism in England seeks to accomplish broad goals rather than celebrate the individual achievements of powerful women.
Current Issues
Although queer theory and gay liberation are closely associated with feminism in the West, even to the degree that gender studies programs combine all such liberation ideology into a unified field, Japanese feminism is more broadly family-focused and to some appearances seemingly more conservative and/or timid than its Western counterparts.
The prevalence of rape pornography and explicit comic books (manga) in even small train platform newsstands leads some outside observers to consider Japanese women to be trapped in an archaically pre-feminist world. The actual incidence of reported sexual assault, however, is the lowest in the world.
Feminism and Race
The complex dynamic of sexuality and race takes on an additional angle when it intersects with Japanese theories of national uniqueness, cf. nihonjinron. Statistical evidence shows Japanese men are far less likely to form romantic relationships with European or European-ancestry women than the converse. Some social critics believe the ability of Japanese women to "escape" Japan forms as a sort of cultural relief valve, delaying necessary reforms.
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