From Japan Focus Abstract: As long as U.S. military bases have existed in Okinawa, sex workers have served the troops. What has varied over the decades has been the women’s backgrounds, their working conditions, and their degree of agency. During the Pacific War, the Japanese military notoriously set up a “comfort women” system in which they enslaved thousands of … [Read more...] about Daisy’s Story: Filipina Migrants and Other Women in the Shadow of the U.S. Military Bases in Okinawa
Japan/日本
Mind the Gender Gap: Kawakami Mieko, Murata Sayaka, Feminism and Literature in Japan
From Japan FocusCompelling women’s fiction in Japan hardly began with its two brightest contemporary stars, Kawakami Mieko and Murata Sayaka. Tawada Yoko won the Akutagawa Prize back in 1993 and her work is widely read outside Japan (Tawada has long lived in Germany and writes in German and Japanese). Ogawa Yoko won in 1990 for her novel Pregnancy Diary (Ninshin karendaa, 妊娠 … [Read more...] about Mind the Gender Gap: Kawakami Mieko, Murata Sayaka, Feminism and Literature in Japan
Tokyo’s 2020 Olympics are showing the nightmare waiting for L.A. in 2028
By JULES BOYKOFF AND DAVE ZIRINJULY 23, 2019 12:08 PM (LA Times) … [Read more...] about Tokyo’s 2020 Olympics are showing the nightmare waiting for L.A. in 2028
Recent Japan Focus Stories
Grappling with Clientelism: The Japanese State and Okinawa under Abe Shinzo Gavan McCormackDecember 1, 2018 Volume 16 | Issue 23 | Number 1ResumeThis is a slightly expanded version of the talk delivered by the author upon the occasion of the launch of his The State of the Japanese State at Foreign Correspondents Club of Japan (FCCJ), Tokyo, on 17 October … [Read more...] about Recent Japan Focus Stories
Right-wing groups in Japan
From their Youtube channel: Whereas the West has seen a sudden spike in their extreme-right nationalist groups, Japan has had our fair share for years. These would-be cosplayers spend their time driving around in loudspeaker vans or invading South Korean islands. Nevertheless, they play a key role in Japanese politics. Just as western parties must appeal to their bases, so must … [Read more...] about Right-wing groups in Japan