Providing historical context for contemporary political issues relevant to women and gender in Japan, this first article examines gendered power structures in the U.S. Occupation of Japan (1945-1952). Occupational policies targeted Japanese women and the ideal of gender equity to remake Japan as a democratic nation. The Constitution of Japan, enacted May 3, 1947, states that “All of the people are equal under the law and there shall be no discrimination in political, economic or social relations because of race, creed, sex, social status or family origin” (Article 14). In addition, women received the right to vote and to mutual consent in marriage based on the “equal rights of husband and wife” (Article 24). Although drafting and revising the post-WWII constitution involved numerous political actors including a few Japanese women, historical accounts of this complex process often celebrate General Douglas MacArthur (1880-1964) as a generous patriarch who “granted” rights to women in Japan. Similarly, historians in the U.S. and Japan credit women working for the occupation forces, such as Beate Sirota Gordon (1923-), for “giving” Japanese women gender equality. Depicted as a liberator who helped to rescue Japanese women from feudalistic traditions, Lt. Ethel Weed (1906-1975) encouraged women to “pull themselves up by their geta straps to pioneer in democratic procedures.”

In addition to defining specific rights for women, the post-WWII Constitution of Japan (enacted 1947) also articulated a commitment to preserving peace. Article 9 of the Constitution reads in part, “Aspiring sincerely to an international peace based on justice and order, the Japanese people forever renounce war as a sovereign right of the nation and the threat or use of force as a mean of settling international disputes.” The “Peace” Constitution includes a statement that Japan will “never” maintain military forces. With the start of the Korean War in 1950, U.S. occupiers re-interpreted the Japanese constitution to create the “National Police Reserve,” which became Japan's Self Defense Forces (SDF) in 1954. SDF troops have since been deployed beyond national borders for “relief operations” beginning in 1992. Under international pressure following 9/11, Prime Minister Jun'ichiro Koizumi supported an anti-terrorism law in October 2001. This legislation allowed the SDF to provide “logistical support” for U.S. combat troops in the Indian Ocean. Based on the constitutional protection of peace, a group of 15 women led by feminist lawyer Nakajima Michiko (1935-2007) sued the Japanese state for deploying local troops to Iraq in 2004. Nakajima and the other plaintiffs argued that the continued presence of Ground SDF in Iraq violated the “right to live in peace.”

In addition to political participation, women's groups in Japan continue to advocate for equality in employment opportunities and to challenge gendered labor structures. Charles Weathers discusses the question of whether Japan has truly progressed towards equal career opportunities for women after twenty years of legislative interventions (1985-2005). Weathers provides a concise overview of some of the lingering obstacles that women confront in Japan's workforce. First, he highlights the reality that companies in Japan find ways of evading gender equality in hiring and promotion structures. The so-called “dual-track” personnel system allowed corporations to hire managers (men) versus clerical workers (women). Even after the equality laws established in 1985 and 1999, firms could still divide workers into “regular” versus “non-regular” categories. Female employees often fall into the category of “non-regular” workers, which include “part-timers” who may work full hours or temporary employees with limited contracts. Non-regular workers lack job security, an issue particularly discriminatory when some firms continue to offer “regular” male employees lifetime employment.

While Weathers highlights structural issues facing working women more generally in Japan, Chisa Fujiwara focuses specifically on the plight of single mothers. Fujiwara analyzes the intersections between gender and class in Japan, especially with regard to factors inhibiting single mothers from achieving self-sufficiency. The author aptly notes that in most studies of Japanese society, poverty and social class receive little to no attention. This oversight may result from assumptions that Japan is an affluent, homogeneous nation with a large comfortable middle class and no poverty. Fujiwara explains that 90% of the Japanese population self-identifies with this “middle class myth.” However, she demonstrates that the everyday realities of many individuals, including single mothers, present a challenge to this constructed notion. Along with ethnic and racial diversity, Japan features a far greater spectrum of socio-economic class differences than is often recognized.