6- Panel 4

Gender (1)

M. Crawford:

This paper examines the record of “Womenomics” in the light of the COVID recession (or “shecession”) of 2020 and the subsequent resignation of Shinzo Abe and reconsiders the policy and its prospects moving forward in the post-Abe era. Is a more radical and transformational approach to gender equality is necessary in order to reinvigorate the Japanese economy in the face of its daunting demographic and environmental challenges? Or is a “steady -as -she goes” incrementalism adequate to the task, as a strategy that will bear fruit once the male-dominated Baby Boom is completely retired by 2030? Could Japan surprise prognosticators with another ‘miracle’, under scenarios based upon “realistic” birth rates and politically realistic immigration rates?

Y. Shibata: A Report from Nikkei (Japanese Canadian) Narrative

“Ideals are not for packing away on the high shelf; they must be used. They will be damaged, broken. But that is what ideals is for – for daily use and daily life” (Anne Michaels, 2017). After 18 months Covid-19 pandemic behind us Canada’s social ills are rupturing, i.e. rising numbers of domestic violence, of racism and discrimination against people of colour. I remember wondering last spring when one of my Nikkei friends, Sansei, encountered a blatant racism at bus stop – – being spitted at because of her Asian mask. She is a gentle and polite person, no threat to anyone. What happened to the “polite Canadians”? Are we out of practice? Or, are we going backward? How could we undo the structural and cultural racism embedded so deeply? It is time to use Anne Michaels’ “ideals” in practice strengthening our “moral” muscles. By illustrating Nikkei narratives and social history, I hope to delineate how a small Nikkei community overcame hardships of racism and discrimination upon their arrival in White British Columbia in 1877. I hope Nikkei narratives tell us what really mattered for Nikkei as a person while creating a community for the future generations of Canadians to share their “furusato” ふるさと: a home away from home in Canada.

E. Schestak: Why #MeToo Didn’t Catch on in Japan: The Socio-cultural Factors and Media Framing That Stunted a Feminist Movement

Socio-cultural Factors and Media Framing That Stunted a Feminist Movement This paper examines the mobilization of #MeToo in contemporary Japan. Despite Japan having a significant gender gap, as highlighted by their ranking 120th out of 156 countries in the World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap Index in the year 2020, #MeToo was not widely participated in as it was in other national contexts. If gender inequality and sexual violence against women are prevalent issues in Japan, why were Japanese women so apprehensive about participating in a feminist which seeks to address those very concerns? This paper argues that due to modern opinions on feminism, socio-cultural factors such as an emphasis on stoicism, harmony, and individual responsibility, as well as a lack of education and legislation, #MeToo did not take off in Japan. Furthermore, the way the media framed female victims underscores these socio-cultural and political differences. Although the women who became the faces of #MeToo in the West were applauded for their courage and characterized as brave silence breakers by the media, the women in Japan received a tremendous amount of backlash and negative media coverage that platformed criticisms of the women’s character, behaviour, and dress. This paper therefore seeks to understand these socio-cultural influences through the lens of the media to understand how sexual harassment and assault are viewed in a Japanese context and how these same factors shaped the trajectory of the #MeToo Movement in Japan compared to other national contexts.