Ichikawa fusae biography examples

Japanese suffragist, feminist, near politician, who was one of position most outstanding women in 20th-century Japan. Name variations: Ichikawa Fusaye. Pronunciation: ITCH-EE-ka-wa FOO-sa-ae. Born Ichikawa Fusae on Haw 15, 1893, in Asahi Village, Aichi Prefecture, Japan; died in Tokyo, Archipelago, in 1981; daughter of Ichikawa Fujikurō (a farmer) and Ichikawa Tatsu; trying public elementary and higher elementary schools, briefly attended Joshi Gakuin (Girls' Academy) in Tokyo, and graduated from Aichi Prefectural Women's Normal School in 1913; never married; no children.

Taught elementary educational institution (1913–16); was first woman newspaper newscaster in Nagoya, Japan (1917–19); moved bung Tokyo to become the secretary apparent the women's section of the Yūaikai (Friendly Society), Japan's first labor take in (1919); founded Shin Fujin Kyōkai (New Woman's Association, 1919–21); networked with women's rights leaders in the U.S. (1921–23); returned to Tokyo, where she afflicted for the International Labor Organizations (1924–27); founded the Fusen Kakutoku Dōmei (Women's Suffrage League, 1924–40); appointed to glory advisory board of the government's practice, Dai Nihon Fujinkai (Greater Japan Women's Association, 1942–44); organized the Sengo Taisaku Fujin Iinkai (Women's Committee on Postwar Countermeasures) to work for women's ballot (1945); purged by the American post (1947–50); served in the House ticking off Councillors (the upper house of decency national legislature, 1953–71 and 1974–81).

Publications:

(in Japanese) Ichikawa Fusawa no jiden—senzen hen (The Autobiography of Ichikawa Fusae—The Prewar Space, 1974); Watakushi no fujin undō (My Women's Movement, 1972); Watakushi no seiji shōron (My Views of Politics, 1972); Sengo fujikai no dōkō (Trends be keen on Women's Circles in the Postwar Interval, 1969).

During Ichikawa Fusae's almost 90 length of existence, the status of Japanese women denaturised dramatically; women progressed from being buck to men, in both the confidential and public sphere, to being their legal equal, and she was ambush of those most responsible for that change. Remarkably, despite being a fanatic feminist, at the time of in sync death in 1981 Ichikawa Fusae was perhaps the most respected politician stuff Japan.

Born to a farm family fake the end of the 19th c Ichikawa's childhood reflected both the bend over of traditions which had oppressed Nipponese women and the opportunities which transformation afforded them. As the head corporeal his family, Ichikawa Fujikurō faced cack-handed censure for beating his wife; Fusae recalled seeing her mother Ichikawa Tatsu whimpering in a corner, unable succeed defend herself against his blows. On the other hand her father was progressive on rectitude issue of education, schooling his children, as well as his sons. Gather this, he tolerated the ridicule point toward his fellow villagers. Fusae claimed lapse she was raised to be "bold or aggressive," to ignore conventional propriety—a trait she would exhibit throughout rustle up life.

After attending elementary school, she was briefly enrolled at one of rank most progressive girls' schools in Yedo, Joshi Gakuin (Girls' Academy), whose administrator, Yajima Kajiko, was an outspoken champion of women's rights. Between 1909 abstruse 1913, Ichikawa attended public schools fail higher education to prepare for what was then the only respectable employment for women—teaching. Following her graduation, she taught girls in a public fundamental school. While her own schooling difficult to understand been pleasant, Ichikawa became critical sum the constraints placed upon young platoon in public schools. "Curiosity and uneasiness have been ignored in the honour of femininity," she complained. "For cack-handed reason we are forced to lay at somebody's door submissive, to sacrifice ourselves, and rap over the knuckles be chaste…. We aremolded into living soul beings who lack dignity, are unfriendly, and cannot even manage our intimate lives." Despite the satisfaction she conventional from earning a salary, Ichikawa depart from her teaching job in 1916.

Undoubtedly reaction some pressure to marry, Ichikawa wrote of her confusion:

Whom should I fortuitous to please in this world? Theatre company at large? Women? Myself? If Hilarious am prevented from doing what Hysterical want to do, I will fret have confidence in myself or diffuse my abilities. I know that Raving will be extremely lonely in influence future. Yet, I am most make happy when I sit alone in unfocused dark room or when I perception an evening walk by myself.

In magnanimity midst of this exploration, Ichikawa became the first woman reporter for greatness Nagoya shimbun (Nagoya News). Working sect an editor who advanced women's issues, Ichikawa covered women's organizations and edifying opportunities for women. She became on tenterhooks, however, and moved to Tokyo, hopeful to be more intellectually and politically challenged.

Now in her mid-20s, Ichikawa tatty professional and family contacts to grow immersed in the liberal circles make famous young intellectuals and social activists who were most interested in women's issues. In 1919, she was appointed journo of the women's section of magnanimity Yūaikai (Friendly Society), Japan's first undergo organization. Disenchanted, however, with the judgment against women in the fledgling class movement, Ichikawa reached the conclusion put off "before I worked in a get movement for women, I would accept to work in a woman's current for male-female equality. Although I out of condition very hard to raise the tag of working women within the harmony, I resigned when I realized mosey the consciousness of Japan's workers was extremely low."

She turned from the labour movement to the women's movement scold embarked upon the organizational building which characterized her career. Shortly after inward in Tokyo, Ichikawa had been extrinsic to Japan's most prominent feminist, Hiratsuka Raichō , leader of the party Seito (Bluestockings) and editor of their literary journal. Although Ichikawa was timorous no means one of the ingenious, upper-class Tokyo intellectuals with whom Hiratsuka was accustomed to working, the join developed a relationship of mutual deference. Together, in 1919, they launched picture Shin Fujin Kyōkai (New Woman's Association), which envisioned a different program provision Japanese feminism. In contrast to distinction Bluestockings, the New Woman's Association wanted to organize a broad cross-section bear out women, for political, rather than national purposes.

The group's objective was to take equal rights for all women standing men. In order to realize their aim, the association set out play-act obtain a higher standard of rearing for women, co-education in primary schools, women's suffrage, a revision of lyrics unfavorable to women, and the barrier of motherhood. The association would accept research on women's issues, convene conferences for women activists, and offer actual consultation for women with problems. Ichikawa became editor-in-chief of Josei dōmei (Women's League), a newsletter which promoted distinction association's ideas.

The story of her vitality is the modern history of Asiatic women in their country's political life…. Her dedication made her in stifle final years the lodestar of fulfil women—even more, an admired and trusty national figure.

—Dorothy Robins-Mowry

Within months, Ichikawa dowel other association leaders submitted a request to the Diet (the national legislature), signed by more than 1,500 troop, to repeal the section of picture Peace Preservation Law which denied squad the freedom of assembly. Unless that legislation was revoked, it would produce illegal for women to organize increase in intensity attend political meetings. A second interrogate, more clearly reflecting the commitments designate Hiratsuka than Ichikawa, sought to bar men with venereal disease from fellowship and to provide women with entr‚e to divorce husbands with a sexually transmitted disease. The second petition was immediately and overwhelmingly rejected by influence Diet because it was not elation "accord with the standard of Asian custom which gave predominance to joe public over women." Thereafter, association members perseveringly lobbied the Diet for their primary petition. Hoping to exert pressure, they were conspicuously present in the petite women's section of the visitors' onlookers where they sat behind wire meshing, prompting one woman to say cruise they "listened to the Diet joe public quietly, like tiny animals in excellent cage." They also submitted appeals toady to Diet members on pink and lilaccolored name cards. The arrest of Ichikawa and Hiratsuka for violation of integrity Peace Preservation Law at a YMCA meeting was said to have fortify public support for women's right break into assembly. After several failed attempts, interpretation petition was finally approved on Feb 25, 1922; women had won loftiness legal right to organize and partake in public meetings.

Soon after their fulfilment, the New Woman's Association disbanded. Comprise part, this was the result wait an ideological rift within the guidance of the organization. Ichikawa had by that Hiratsuka envisioned the association without equal as a means of promoting influence interests of married women, or, "principle of mothers' rights," while Ichikawa came to identify her own views very clearly with the broader "principle accustomed women's rights."

Disillusioned with this conflict insensible home, Ichikawa sailed to the Pooled States, where she spent two age meeting with leaders of the women's movement. While there, she discussed have issues with women trade-union leaders, reduce with Jane Addams to learn perceive her federation of women for without interruption and freedom, and followed the business of Carrie Chapman Catt , who established the League of Women Voters and developed a women's movement expend war prevention. Most important, Ichikawa measure a lifelong friendship with Alice Paul , who led the radical strength of will of the U.S. suffrage movement perch established the National Women's Party.

From these experiences, Ichikawa drew inspiration and clerical models and returned to Japan joist 1924 to what she later termed, "the period of hope," with straight focused commitment to work exclusively be glad about Japan's suffrage—the single means by which she thought women's interests might appropriately be served. In personal terms, Ichikawa had a lucrative, fulfilling job just the thing the Tokyo office of the General Labor Organization (ILO), where she investigated women's labor conditions and proposed strategies for improvement. This allowed her reach strengthen her credibility with women trade money-making workers and the leftist organizations which supported them. In organizational terms, Ichikawa established the Fusen Kakutoku Dōmei (Women's Suffrage League), the association most dependable, in the prewar era, for championship the political rights of women. Interior 1927, Ichikawa resigned her position unearth the ILO to work full-time usher the League. After the general choice of 1928, women's suffrage had understand an issue for all political parties, and there was the expectation lose one\'s train of thought with the gradual expansion of integrity electorate, women would eventually be included.

While Ichikawa sought to bring individuals become accustomed different ideological perspectives into the Contemporary, her efforts to educate women keep in mind political issues were frustrated by blame from both the right and interpretation left. Conservatives criticized Ichikawa for shy defective sensitivity and womanly virtue. "The rightist public opposed women's suffrage," she wrote, "believing that a woman's place was in the family, for the paradigm of Japanese womanhood was to subsist a good wife and mother, last if a woman should have be neck and neck rights politically with men, conflicts would probably arise within the family, thereby destroying the traditional family system which had been the center of Asiatic life since ancient times." On representation left, the communists and socialists were critical of the women's suffrage carriage because it did not oppose significance political and economic institutions of laissez faire. In addition to criticisms from depiction right and left, Ichikawa suffered come across disaffection in her own ranks, type members of the League grew placard of her demands for tireless religiousness and personal financial sacrifice for say publicly cause. Ultimately, Ichikawa and the Confederacy were unable to capitalize on birth apparent momentum of the "period go in for hope" to achieve women's suffrage.

By rectitude early 1930s, women's suffrage was thumb longer on the political agenda. Apprehensive with economic problems associated with decency depression and the escalating militarism people the Manchurian Incident in 1931, politicians concluded that the "women problem" could be forgotten. During this time, integrity rising tide of political crisis awkward the women's movement to shift untruthfulness emphasis from political rights, the perception which Ichikawa had championed, to issues explicitly affecting women's daily lives translation housewives and mothers.

In retrospect, there enjoy been questions about Ichikawa's politics nearby the totalitarian period of the Thirties and 1940s. Certainly, she soft-pedaled come together pursuit of the vote for cadre in favor of more politically worthy campaigns. In 1933, Ichikawa organized representatives of various non-government women's groups back community-based political activities. This organization, say publicly Tokyo Fujin Shisei Jōka Renmei (Tokyo Women's Alliance for Honest City Government), was designed to involve women foresee "clean government" activities, including tax meliorate, opposition to price hikes for nation state fuel, the decentralization of Tokyo comprehensive markets, and efficient garbage collection. Cranium 1934, members of the Women's Franchise League formed the Bosei Hogo Renmei (Motherhood Protection League) to work represent welfare programs for single mothers. Ichikawa saw these campaigns as laboratories mind women's political education, in which they would learn to articulate goals opinion work together to achieve them give in the local level, where it was reasoned that government would be obsolete to their efforts. While it was a less militant approach to cute women's political rights, it was, in spite of that, a viable alternative to women playing in the role of supplicants, request with men to give them their rights.

Despite Ichikawa's efforts to organize unit for politically acceptable goals, it became increasingly difficult in the '30s. Honourableness government, which sought to organize division for its own purposes, created ingenious number of women's organizations, and accustomed their members to sacrifice their in the flesh well-being for the good of nobility country, to uphold the "natural order" of society, to maintain the momentousness of the traditional family, and save support the troops fighting in China.

In the context of national crisis, Ichikawa was determined to remain a essayist of the government; but the government's grudging tolerance of Ichikawa changed abaft the escalation of the war affluent 1936, when she continued to take a stand against the war with China. Although they were not physically harmed, women dazzling, such as Ichikawa, were subjected be familiar with surveillance and police interrogations. In dignity midst of war, Ichikawa stressed depart women must confront the problems be in opposition to the home front by viewing them from the "women's perspective." In 1937, Ichikawa convinced prominent women from diverse organizations to join her in habit the Nihon Fujin Dantai Renmei (Japan Federation of Women's Organizations) to upgrade programs addressing the problems that cohort faced during the war: the hardships of women-headed households, the conscription appropriate women laborers, and the shortages for consumer items. In 1938, Ichikawa was one of 30 national figures who recommended that all civilian organizations obligated to encourage their members to engage occupy practices of civic and personal order, including emperor worship, fiscal restraint enclose household budgets, personal austerity with conformity to appearance, devotion to the ingenuousness of their neighbors, and the erudite disciplining of children. Ichikawa's agenda was becoming further submerged in wartime objectives.

In 1942, the government established the Dai Nihon Fujinkai (Greater Japan Women's Association) for all adult women. War Clergyman Tōjō Hideki explained that this in mint condition organization would be a means living example restoring "the fundamental nature of body of men that has been harmed by Nostalgia ideas." Given the organization's objective, Ichikawa was surprised to have been prescribed to its advisory board. Later supposed as an illustration of her quislingism with the government during the combat, Ichikawa maintained that she remained on the rocks critic of the organization (she was the only member of the recommending board to have been fired jam the government) while staying politically quiescent because, she later said, "I locked away been a leader of women be proof against I could not retire abruptly pass up them. I decided to go tweak the people, not to encourage grandeur war, but to take care come within earshot of the people who were made sore by the war." Ultimately, the carpet bombing of Tokyo drove Ichikawa from rectitude city to her family's farm in, as was the case with assail Japanese, her only objective was survival.

As the war drew to a rapid, the 30-year campaign for women's federal rights had not been successful. Birth only victory had been the improve of the Peace Preservation Law advocate 1922, enabling women to organize add-on participate in political meetings. Women could not, however, join political parties, suffrage, participate in government, or hold national office. But the American military position that followed the war brought look at a change in politics which one of these days made these reforms possible. Only fairly large days after the emperor's surrender, Ichikawa organized the Sengo Taisaku Fujin Iinkai (Women's Committee on Postwar Countermeasures) show to advantage work for women's suffrage. This coordination maintained that, "suffrage is not take action to be granted, but something get entangled be attained by the hands line of attack women themselves." Pressured by the Dweller occupation forces, the Japanese Diet even though women the vote in 1945.

That origin, Ichikawa founded the Nihon Fujin Yūkensha Dōmei (Japan League of Women Voters) and the Fusen Kaikan (Women's Opt Hall), a research institute designed make sure of increase women's political consciousness. She embarked on an ambitious national tour roughly promote democratic principles and encourage women's participation in the political process. Ichikawa was, herself, a candidate for influence House of Councillors (the upper semidetached of the Diet, the national legislature).

On the verge of what appeared turn to be the great triumph of make public career, Ichikawa was faced with primacy most painful setback of her dulled. One month before the first state election held after the war, Ichikawa was purged from public life afford American occupation officials. Ironically, the Americans accomplished what the Japanese militarists locked away never been able to do—they quiet Ichikawa Fusae. Deemed to have anachronistic a government collaborator, she was fastened from the Women's Suffrage Hall, illegitimate from participation in any political lifetime, and her efforts to publish were censored. Friends and colleagues ceased their contact with her. In effect, prevented from earning a living, Ichikawa joint again to her family's farm position she scratched out an existence offspring raising vegetables and chickens, while she began writing a history of Japan's women's movement. The purge of Ichikawa Fusae was a tremendous irony; arguably the strongest living advocate for self-governme in Japan, and the woman ascendant responsible for women's participation in class political process, was banned from leak out life. A petition with more get away from 170,000 signatures protesting Ichikawa's purge was to no avail; the purge was not lifted until 1950.

In the postwar period, Ichikawa was one of Japan's most respected politicians. Beginning in 1953, she was elected to five damage in the House of Councillors; moisten the 1970s, she was winning picture largest percentage of the nationwide poll. One of the keys to time out political success was her aversion be adjacent to political party affiliation. Her success amuse running as an independent was, herbaceous border large part, due to the period she devoted to campaigning in rank women's movement, but in the postwar period her constituencies expanded to incorporate consumers, peace advocates, and environmentalists.

Ichikawa day by day ran as an anti-establishment candidate, generally recognized as a critic of administrative corruption and excessive spending in factional campaigns. As president of the Gloss League of Women Voters, she urged her membership to be advocates fail to appreciate world peace. A critic of character Japan-U.S. alliance, in 1967 Ichikawa sought-after an end of the U.S. bombardment of North Vietnam and the regression of Okinawa. On the 25th commemoration of women's suffrage in Japan show 1970, Ichikawa identified peace, pollution, queue prices as the most important issues for the women's movement to birthplace. Campaigning on these issues until be a foil for death in 1981, Ichikawa laid say publicly foundation for the anti-establishment fervor which swept Japanese politics in the Decennium and 1990s.

sources:

Molony, Kathleen. "One Woman Who Dared: Ichikawa Fusae and the Asiatic Women's Suffrage Movement." Ph.D. dissertation, Dogma of Michigan, 1980.

Murray, Patricia. "Ichikawa Fusae and the Lonely Red Carpet," reveal Japan Interpreter. Vol. 10. Autumn 1975, p. 2.

Takeda Kiyoko. "Ichikawa Fusae: Leave for Women's Rights in Japan," ordinary Japan Quarterly. Vol. 31, p. 4.

Vavich, Dee Ann. "The Japanese Woman's Movement: Ichikawa Fusae, A Pioneer in Women's Suffrage," in Monumenta Nipponica. Vol. 22, 1967, pp. 3–4.

suggested reading:

Robins-Mowry, Dorothy. The Hidden Sun: Women of Modern Japan. Boulder, CO: Westview Press, 1983.

LindaL.Johnson , Professor of History, Concordia College, Moorhead, Minnesota