It’s shaping up to be a pretty busy year for LGBT folk in the metropolis.
Since my last piece highlighting lesbian happenings in Tokyo and
beyond—which was written two years ago—so much has gone on that I hardly know where to begin.
May as well start, then, with perhaps the most exciting event in the
lineup: Tokyo Rainbow Pride—make
that, in fact, Tokyo Rainbow Week. Yes, folks: an entire week chock-full of events
celebrating LGBT culture—including film screenings, family picnics, foreign
embassy receptions, talk sessions on various social
problems continuing to face seku-mai (sexual
minorities), and even an outdoor run—right here in our own metropolis. Who said
we couldn’t keep up with other gay world capitals?
“Events will be focused around the following three
main topics: Knowing, connecting and having fun,” explains the event website. “We aim to
convey this message not only around Tokyo, but hope to have our message of the
importance of accepting and respecting diverse lifestyles reach and extend
throughout Japan, Asia, and the rest of the world.”
TRW follows on the heels of several additional initiatives recently
spearheaded to help make the lives of LGBT individuals in Japan a bit easier by
encouraging more social acceptance. Haato wo tsunagou gakkou (the “Connecting Hearts School”
project), following the long-running NHK television series of the same name,
was launched as a sort of resource clearinghouse for LGBT individuals seeking
to find information. Similar to the “It Gets Better” Project begun in the
United States to prevent queer* youth suicide, the Japanese website features
numerous video messages from seku-mai and
straight allies alike (including a number of famous individuals) with the resounding
message that you are not alone—and there
is nothing wrong with you. A great explanation of the project in English,
along with links to several of the videos, may be found on this blog post from the Stonewall AJET website.
Additional initiatives in this regard include Collabo, whose “lesbian life
support” offers resources including study groups and a telephone hotline; Good Aging Yells,
which spearheads LGBT-related projects such as shared housing and support for
older individuals; and the Koyuki Café—an event series put on by lesbian
activist (and former Takarazuka Revue actor) Koyuki Higashi
to discuss various issues relating to LGBT life.
Koyuki and her partner Hiroko—who appear in one of the Connecting
Hearts videos profiled in the Stonewall blog—recently became Japan's first same-sex couple to hold a public wedding ceremony in the
Tokyo Disneyland theme park. Although Japanese law presently offers no legal
recognition, protection or benefits to non-heterosexual couples, the ceremony
made news headlines around the country—including a 20-minute in-depth piece
that aired on Fuji TV, which covered the pair’s wedding story from both
personal and social angles.
“To have been able to hold a wedding
ceremony with my beloved partner brought me so much joy that I can hardly
express it,” Hiroko told me in an e-mail interview. “Many LGBT individuals in
Japan continue to have a hard time, as we tend to remain invisible within
society—almost as if we were surrounded by barriers. And while more and more
countries around the world are offering legal protections to same-sex couples,
we have not yet reached the stage in Japan where this issue has begun to be
discussed publicly.
“In Japan, (homosexuality) is not
objected to on religious grounds; instead, people are discriminated against due
to somehow diverging from what is considered ‘normal’,” she continued. “I think
that many people may simply have never been exposed to sexual minorities,
however, and so I intend to continue speaking out about this matter as often as
I can.”
One event that has continued to help bridge mainstream and queer communities over the
years is the Tokyo International Lesbian and Gay Film Festival,
whose 22nd run will take place this July, and which screens films
from around the world that give a glimpse into LGBT life. Similarly, the
smaller and yet no less enjoyable Asian Queer Film Festival, scheduled for the end
of May, also promises to bring viewers deeper understanding regarding the lives
of sexual minorities in Japan and elsewhere in Asia.
Indeed, it does appear that Japan’s
cultural and artistic spheres may be far ahead of the government in terms of nudging
the country onward in the direction of social acceptance for sekumai communities. In addition to queer niche magazines such as the lesbian Novia Novia and the gay male badi.jp, certain heterosexual publications are beginning to
venture into queer territory as well, with special
features on same-sex couples appearing in magazines such as the
fashion-oriented Tokyo Graffiti (forthcoming) and the ever-edgy
VICE.
And lest you think Tokyo’s culinary establishments are being left
out of all this rainbow action: think again. Gossip Café in Omotesando, and Rainbow Burritos in the Shinjuku gayborhood, both offer fantastic food
while also regularly hosting both organized and informal gatherings for queer folk.
As the country continues to inch slowly forward in the direction of
full acceptance for its LGBT citizens, then, Japan’s rainbow community in Tokyo
and beyond will continue to do its thing: quietly reaching out and building
community. And you can be pretty sure that they will be having a pretty good
time doing it.
Kimberly Hughes is a
freelance translator, journalist and community organizer based in Tokyo. For more information, see http://kimmiesunshine.wordpress.com/. She may also be
reached at kimmie.hughes@gmail.com.
*A word originally carrying derogatory
connotations, “queer” has been reclaimed with pride to serve as an umbrella
term for those outside of the mainstream with respect to sexuality and/or
gender (often used similarly to ‘LGBT’).
--Kimberly Hughes
