Akira Iwai (岩井 章, Iwai Akira; April 25, 1922 – February 18, 1997) was a Japanese trade union leader. He served as the…
Akira Iwai (岩井 章, Iwai Akira; April 25, 1922 – February 18, 1997) was a Japanese trade union leader. He served as the secretary-general of the General Council of Trade Unions of Japan (Sōhyō) from 1955 to 1970. Born in Matsumoto, Nagano, Iwai left school in 1937 and began working as a locomotive hand on the Japan National Railways. He served in the armed forces during World War II, but returned to the railways after the war, and joined the National Railway Workers' Union. In 1950, he became the chair of the union's headquarters struggle committee, leading the union's "year-end struggle" in 1952 and 1953, but in 1954 he was sacked by his employer due his trade union activities. Within the national trade federation Sōhyō, Iwai voiced his disagreement with secretary-general Minoru Takano over Takano's "Peace Force Thesis," whereby Takano sought to align Sōhyō with the "peaceful" Soviet Union and Communist China against the "warlike" United States. In 1955, Iwai was instrumental in blocking the reelection of Takano to a fifth term, and was himself elected secretary-general instead. When the charismatic Kaoru Ōta was elected Sōhyō chairman in 1958, Ōta and Iwai formed a close partnership known as the "Ōta-Iwai Line," which sought to balance wage struggles with political struggles. Iwai supported Ōta's policy of the "spring wage offensive" (shuntō), an annual, coordinated, pre-scheduled strike by Sōhyō unions to secure annual wage increases in line with Japan's economic growth. Iwai also helped oversee Sōhyō's militant role in the 1960 Anpo protests against the U.S.-Japan Security Treaty and the 1960 Mitsui Miike Coal Mine Strike. However, both the Anpo and Miike struggles came to be viewed as defeats for the labor movement, as the Anpo protests failed to stop passage of a revised security treaty, and the Miike miners' union was broken when Mitsui corporation succeeded in hiving off a more pliable "second union" and reopening the mine. After these perceived failures, Iwai and Ōta sought to further moderate Sōhyō's renowned militancy, shying away from political protests and focusing more on bread-and-butter issues such as securing piecemeal workplace improvements and wage increases, negotiated amicably with employers in advance of the annual shuntō spring wage offensive. Public-sector unions, however, did not benefit as much from these efforts, and saw their wages falling behind private-sector counterparts. These workers remained extremely militant, and pressured Sōhyō to take more forceful actions vis-a-vis their government employers. When Sōhyō's public-sector unions threatened to go on strike in 1964, in defiance of a law banning public-sector workers from striking, Ōta and Iwai met face-to-face with Prime Minister of Japan Ikeda Hayato, and successfully negotiated an annual increase in public sector wages that would match pay in the private sector, in exchange for a promise to further reduce labor militancy. Iwai retired as secretary-general of Sōhyō in 1970, and was awarded the Lenin Peace Prize that same year. In 1972, he became vice-president of the Japan-Soviet Friendship Society.
Famous Japanese People: Activist
Activist: 224 people
Michiko Inukai (犬養 道子, Inukai Michiko; 20 April 1921 – 24 July 2017) was a Japanese Roman Catholic author and…
Michiko Inukai (犬養 道子, Inukai Michiko; 20 April 1921 – 24 July 2017) was a Japanese Roman Catholic author and philanthropist. She was the founder of the Michiko Inukai Foundation, which provides financial aid for refugees seeking education.
Motofumi Makieda (Japanese: 槙枝元文, 4 March 1921 – 4 December 2010) was a Japanese trade union leader. Makieda qualified…
Motofumi Makieda (Japanese: 槙枝元文, 4 March 1921 – 4 December 2010) was a Japanese trade union leader. Makieda qualified as a teacher during World War II, then taught at a junior high school. After the war, he was a founding member of the Japan Teachers' Union (JTU), and became its general secretary in 1962, and then president in 1971, in which role he promoted education for peace. In 1974, he led the union in a national strike. As it was illegal for teachers to strike, he was imprisoned, being released following an international campaign. From 1976, he was additionally president of the General Council of Trade Unions of Japan (Sohyo). In 1978, he was elected as president of the World Confederation of Organizations of the Teaching Profession, serving until 1982, during which time he built links between the federation and the rival International Federation of Free Teachers' Unions. Makieda retired in 1983, and thereafter devoted his time to the Japan-China Friendship Society. He also supported the merger of Sohyo into RENGO, a new trade union federation.
Isao Okazaki (岡崎 功, Okazaki Isao; 1920–2006) was a Japanese right-wing activist who caused the Matsue Incident in 1945.
Kenichi Hirosawa (広沢 賢一, Hirosawa Kenichi; 15 March 1919 – 15 February 2003) was a Japanese politician and political…
Kenichi Hirosawa (広沢 賢一, Hirosawa Kenichi; 15 March 1919 – 15 February 2003) was a Japanese politician and political activist. He was a member of the Japan Socialist Party (JSP) and served one term in the House of Representatives.
Haruo Wada (Japanese: 和田春生; 15 March 1919 – 17 October 1999) was a Japanese trade unionist and politician. Wada joined…
Haruo Wada (Japanese: 和田春生; 15 March 1919 – 17 October 1999) was a Japanese trade unionist and politician. Wada joined the Japanese Merchant Navy in 1939. He was a founding member of the All-Japan Seamen's Union in 1945. Starting in 1948, he worked full-time for the union as an organizer. In 1950, he was a founding member of the General Council of Trade Unions of Japan, and worked for it as a permanent secretary. He was opposed to its increasingly left-wing stance. In 1954, he helped found the All-Japan Trade Union Congress (Zenro) split, and was appointed as its general secretary. In 1964, Zenro became part of the Japanese Confederation of Labour, and he became its vice president. In 1965, he additionally served as president of the ICFTU Asia and Pacific Regional Organisation, and served until his resignation in 1968. Wada was a member of the Democratic Socialist Party, and in 1969 he was elected to the House of Representatives, serving until 1972. From 1974 until 1979, he served in the House of Councillors.
Takashi Nagase (永瀬 隆, Nagase Takashi; February 20, 1918 – June 21, 2011) was a Japanese military interpreter during…
Takashi Nagase (永瀬 隆, Nagase Takashi; February 20, 1918 – June 21, 2011) was a Japanese military interpreter during World War II. He worked for the Kempeitai (military secret police) at the construction of the Burma Railway in Thailand, and spent most of his later life as an activist for post-war reconciliation and against Japanese militarism. He made over a hundred visits to Thailand, and from the 1970s, arranged several meetings between former Allied prisoners of wars and their Japanese captors, in efforts to promote peace and understanding. In 1993, he met and reconciled with British former POW Eric Lomax—in whose torture sessions Nagase had been involved—an encounter retold in Lomax's 1995 autobiography The Railway Man.
Mutsuko Miki (三木 睦子, Miki Mutsuko; 31 July 1917 – 31 July 2012) was a Japanese activist who advocated on behalf of…
Mutsuko Miki (三木 睦子, Miki Mutsuko; 31 July 1917 – 31 July 2012) was a Japanese activist who advocated on behalf of pacifism, official compensation for comfort women, and improved Japan–North Korea relations. She was the widow of former Japanese Prime Minister Takeo Miki. Miki served as the wife of the Prime Minister of Japan, or First Lady, during her husband's two-year tenure from 1974 to 1976.
Michio Asanuma (浅沼 美智雄, Asanuma Michio; November 19, 1915 – 2001; also written as 浅沼 美知雄, Asanuma Michio) was a…
Michio Asanuma (浅沼 美智雄, Asanuma Michio; November 19, 1915 – 2001; also written as 浅沼 美知雄, Asanuma Michio) was a Japanese political activist and right-wing activist. He served as vice representative and supreme advisor of the Greater Japan Patriotic Groups Federation – Current Affairs Countermeasures Council (大日本愛国団体連合・時局対策協議会, Jitaikyō or Jitaitai Kyō); editor-in-chief and director of the Anti-Communist Newspaper Company; participant and supreme advisor of the Greater Japan Patriotic Party; captain and advisor of the Anti-Communist Volunteer Corps; advisor to the Student Movement Pure Alliance; caretaker of the All-Japan Patriots Friendship Association; second-generation representative of the Greater Japan Patriotic Groups Federation; advisor to the Gakunan Gijuku; advisor to the Speech Comrades Association; and representative of the Imperial Way National Federation.
Chang Chun-ha (Korean: 장준하; August 27, 1918 in Uiju County – August 17, 1975 in Uijeongbu, Gyeonggi Province) was a…
Chang Chun-ha (Korean: 장준하; August 27, 1918 in Uiju County – August 17, 1975 in Uijeongbu, Gyeonggi Province) was a Korean independence and democracy activist who later became a journalist in South Korea.
Minoru Takita (Japanese: 滝田 実, 15 December 1912 – 9 December 2000) was a Japanese trade union leader. Born in the…
Minoru Takita (Japanese: 滝田 実, 15 December 1912 – 9 December 2000) was a Japanese trade union leader. Born in the Toyama Prefecture, Takita qualified as an electrical engineer at Takaoka Technical College, then worked at Nisshin Bõseki. In 1948, he became the chair of the union at Nisshin Bōseki, and also of the Japan Federation of Textile Workers' Unions (Zensen), to which it was affiliated. In 1954, he additionally became president of the All-Japan Trade Union Congress (Zenrō), serving until 1964, when it merged into the Japanese Confederation of Labour (Dōmei). Takita became a vice chair of the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU) in 1965, and in 1968 also became president of the ICFTU Asia and Pacific Regional Organisation. The same year, he became the president of the Dōmei. He resigned from the leadership of Zensen in 1971, becoming honorary president, and in 1972 he left the leadership of Dōmei. In retirement, Takita worked as an advisor to his former unions, and in 1981, he was awarded the First Class Great Cordon of the Order of the Rising Sun. He died in 2000.
Shiro Azuma (東 史郎, Azuma Shirō; April 27, 1912 – January 3, 2006) was a Japanese soldier who openly admitted his…
Shiro Azuma (東 史郎, Azuma Shirō; April 27, 1912 – January 3, 2006) was a Japanese soldier who openly admitted his participation in Japanese war crimes against the Chinese during World War II. He was one of the few former soldiers of the Empire of Japan to admit to his participation in the 1937 Nanjing Massacre. After his confession, he visited China seven times to apologize and help Chinese scholars find more evidence of the Japanese soldiers' brutality. He prepared an eighth trip to Nanjing but died of cancer on January 3, 2006 in Kyoto.
Yukika Sohma (相馬 雪香, Sōma Yukika; 1912 – November 8, 2008) was a Japanese peace activist and scholar who founded the…
Yukika Sohma (相馬 雪香, Sōma Yukika; 1912 – November 8, 2008) was a Japanese peace activist and scholar who founded the Association for Aid and Relief.
Kaoru Ōta (Japanese: 太田 薫; 1 January 1912 – 14 September 1998) was a Japanese trade union leader. He served as chairman…
Kaoru Ōta (Japanese: 太田 薫; 1 January 1912 – 14 September 1998) was a Japanese trade union leader. He served as chairman of the General Council of Trade Unions of Japan (Sōhyō) from 1958 to 1966. Known for his cheerful demeanor and energetic activism, Ōta's many forceful statements in defense of the Japanese workers were affectionately known as the "Ōta Trumpet" (Ōta rappa).
Toshiko Karasawa (Japanese: 柄沢とし子; 7 May 1911 – 2 December 2013) was a Japanese politician for the Japanese Communist…
Toshiko Karasawa (Japanese: 柄沢とし子; 7 May 1911 – 2 December 2013) was a Japanese politician for the Japanese Communist Party (JCP) and labor activist. Born in Sapporo on the island Hokkaido, Karasawa graduated from Sapporo Kita High School in 1929, and served two terms as a representative for her party for the House of Representatives, in 1946 and 1949, before retiring soon after. Karasawa died of natural causes on 2 December 2013, aged 102, at a health care facility in Toyama, Toyama.
Doshin So (宗道臣, Sō Dōshin) (born Michiomi Nakano (中野道臣, Nakano Michiomi)), (1911–1980) was a Japanese soldier and…
Doshin So (宗道臣, Sō Dōshin) (born Michiomi Nakano (中野道臣, Nakano Michiomi)), (1911–1980) was a Japanese soldier and martial artist. He is most known as the creator and founder of Shorinji Kempo and the doctrine Kongo Zen (金剛禅, Kongō Zen). Practitioners of Shorinji Kempo refer to him as Kaiso, Japanese for "the founder".
Hwang Kyung Koh (Korean: 고황경; Hanja: 高凰京; 1909–2000) was the founder and first President of Seoul Women's University.…
Hwang Kyung Koh (Korean: 고황경; Hanja: 高凰京; 1909–2000) was the founder and first President of Seoul Women's University. She is also known by her art name Bahrom, which means "to live right". Koh's father was a physician and professor at Severance Medical College (now the medical school of Yonsei University). She studied at Ewha Womans College and Doshisha Women's College in Japan before completing her doctorate at Michigan State University. Koh established Seoul Women's University in 1961 to provide educational opportunities to the women of Korea.
Mitsu Yashima (八島 光, Yashima Mitsu; born Tomoe Sasako (笹子 智江, Sasako Tomoe); October 11, 1908 – December 7, 1988) was…
Mitsu Yashima (八島 光, Yashima Mitsu; born Tomoe Sasako (笹子 智江, Sasako Tomoe); October 11, 1908 – December 7, 1988) was an artist, children's book author, and civic activist.
Kashiko Kawakita (川喜多かしこ, Kawakita Kashiko; March 21, 1908 - July 27, 1993) was a Japanese film producer and film…
Kashiko Kawakita (川喜多かしこ, Kawakita Kashiko; March 21, 1908 - July 27, 1993) was a Japanese film producer and film curator, and the wife of Nagamasa Kawakita. As vice president of Tōwa Trading, together with her husband and daughter Kazuko Kawakita she was influential in the development of the post-war Japanese film industry, sponsoring actors and actresses, and in promoting Japanese cinema to overseas audiences.
Mikami Taku or Mikami Takashi (三上 卓; 22 March 1905 – 25 October 1971) was a lieutenant in the Imperial Japanese Navy…
Mikami Taku or Mikami Takashi (三上 卓; 22 March 1905 – 25 October 1971) was a lieutenant in the Imperial Japanese Navy, who participated in the May 15 Incident in which Prime Minister Inukai Tsuyoshi was assassinated. He composed the "Ode of Showa Restoration" as an anthem for the Young Officers Movement.
Shigeo Kamiyama (神山 茂夫, Kamiyama Shigeo) (1 February 1905 – 8 July 1974) was a Japanese communist. He was born in 1905…
Shigeo Kamiyama (神山 茂夫, Kamiyama Shigeo) (1 February 1905 – 8 July 1974) was a Japanese communist. He was born in 1905 in Shimonoseki. In 1928, he joined the Japanese Communist Party. On 1 May 1941, he was arrested as the leader of the Communist Party Rebuilding Committee. He was imprisoned in Sugamo prison where he met Hotsumi Ozaki. Kamiyama remained in jail until 1945. After the war, he was active in the Japanese Communist Party.
Nahoko Takada (Japanese: 高田なほ子, romanized: Takada Nahoko; née Watanabee, 18 January 1905 – 19 May 1991) was a Japanese…
Nahoko Takada (Japanese: 高田なほ子, romanized: Takada Nahoko; née Watanabee, 18 January 1905 – 19 May 1991) was a Japanese educator, trade unionist, politician, socialist and peace activist.
Seki Sano (佐野 碩, Sano Seki; January 14, 1905, Tianjin – September 29, 1966, Mexico City) was a Japanese actor, stage…
Seki Sano (佐野 碩, Sano Seki; January 14, 1905, Tianjin – September 29, 1966, Mexico City) was a Japanese actor, stage director, and choreographer. He contributed to the development of the theatre in Japan and later in Mexico, where he was known as the "father of Mexican theatre". He influenced numerous directors and actors both in Mexico and in Latin America. He was also a Marxist activist, known for being the Japanese translator of the socialist anthem The Internationale.
Hagiko Umezu (Japanese: 梅津はぎ子, romanized: Umezu Hagiko; April 22, 1904 – October 8, 1989) was a Japanese trade…
Hagiko Umezu (Japanese: 梅津はぎ子, romanized: Umezu Hagiko; April 22, 1904 – October 8, 1989) was a Japanese trade unionist. Having experienced harsh working conditions in textile factories, she became an advocate for her fellow female textile workers.
Ayako Ishigaki (石垣 綾子, Ishigaki Ayako; 1903 – 1996) was an Issei journalist, activist, and feminist, who was among the…
Ayako Ishigaki (石垣 綾子, Ishigaki Ayako; 1903 – 1996) was an Issei journalist, activist, and feminist, who was among the first Japanese American women to publish a memoir in English.
Kunio Maruyama (Japanese: 丸山 邦雄, June 2, 1903 – October 17, 1981) was a Japanese businessman, adventurer, and college…
Kunio Maruyama (Japanese: 丸山 邦雄, June 2, 1903 – October 17, 1981) was a Japanese businessman, adventurer, and college professor of English and economics. He was one of the three Japanese men who were secretly sent from Xinjing's Japanese Society, that led to the successful repatriation of most of the 1.6 million Japanese who had been trapped in the former Manchukuo at the end of World War II.
Yoshitora Kawai (Japanese: 川合 義虎; 1902–1923) was a Japanese communist activist involved with many Tokyo-based political…
Yoshitora Kawai (Japanese: 川合 義虎; 1902–1923) was a Japanese communist activist involved with many Tokyo-based political groups. Kawai attended Honzan hospital's nurse training school, but moved to Tokyo's Kameido district in September 1920 after being exposed to socialism by a professor, Oka-sensei. He was a member of Gyōminkai (Enlightened People's Society), a communist study group, and joined the Nankatsu Labor Union alongside Tanno Setsu. In March 1923, Kawai created the Tokyo Communist Youth League, the first instance of a Japanese group openly labeling themselves as communists. During the 1923 Great Kantō earthquake, Kawai was reported as having rescued three children who had been trapped under a collapsed house. Amidst the chaos of the earthquake's aftermath, he was captured on 2 September 1923, and a few days later, was killed by police in prison during the Kameido Incident.
Minoru Takano (高野実, Takano Minoru; January 27, 1901 – September 13, 1974) was a Japanese trade union leader. He served…
Minoru Takano (高野実, Takano Minoru; January 27, 1901 – September 13, 1974) was a Japanese trade union leader. He served as the first secretary-general of the General Council of Trade Unions of Japan (Sōhyō) from 1951 to 1955. A charismatic figure, Takano succeeded in instilling a wide-ranging social activism into Sōhyō's organizational culture.
Yoshio Shiga (志賀 義雄, Shiga Yoshio; 12 January 1901 – 6 March 1989) was a member of the Japanese Communist Party.
Iboshi Hokuto (違星 北斗; 1901 – January 26, 1929) was a Japanese Ainu waka poet and social activist. He devoted his life…
Iboshi Hokuto (違星 北斗; 1901 – January 26, 1929) was a Japanese Ainu waka poet and social activist. He devoted his life to improving the standing of the Ainu people, expressing his ideas as tanka in newspapers and magazines and influencing the Ainu youth of the time. He also circulated around the Ainu kotan (villages) of Hokkaido, preaching of the need for unity and the formation of an Ainu identity. Along with Yaeko Batchelor and Takeichi Moritake, Iboshi is counted as one of the "Three Great Ainu Poets" (アイヌ三大歌人). He has been called the "Takuboku of the Ainu".
Shōichi Miyake (三宅 正一, Miyake Shōichi, 28 November 1900 – 23 May 1982) was a Japanese peasant movement activist and…
Shōichi Miyake (三宅 正一, Miyake Shōichi, 28 November 1900 – 23 May 1982) was a Japanese peasant movement activist and politician who served as Vice Speaker of the House of Representatives from 1976 to 1979.
Junzō Inamura (稲村 順三, Inamura Junzō, 30 September 1900 – 21 February 1955) was a Japanese peasant movement activist and…
Junzō Inamura (稲村 順三, Inamura Junzō, 30 September 1900 – 21 February 1955) was a Japanese peasant movement activist and politician who served five terms in the House of Representatives. Active in the prewar proletarian and agrarian movements, he later became a leading figure in the left wing of the Japan Socialist Party and the Left Socialist Party of Japan, helping draft its platform. He died suddenly during the 1955 general election campaign; his elder brother Ryūichi Inamura ran as a replacement candidate and was elected. He used the pen name Susumu Murakami (村上 進).
Masakazu Nakai (中井 正一, Nakai Masakazu, alternative romanization Nakai Shōichi) (14 February 1900 – 18 May 1952) was a…
Masakazu Nakai (中井 正一, Nakai Masakazu, alternative romanization Nakai Shōichi) (14 February 1900 – 18 May 1952) was a Japanese aesthetician, film theorist, librarian, and social activist.
Cho Bong-am (Korean: 조봉암; Hanja: 曺奉岩, 25 September 1898 – 31 July 1959) was a Korean socialist independence activist…
Cho Bong-am (Korean: 조봉암; Hanja: 曺奉岩, 25 September 1898 – 31 July 1959) was a Korean socialist independence activist and politician, who ran for president in the South Korean presidential election in 1956. He was a founding member of the Communist Party of Korea (조선공산당; 朝鮮共産黨) and the Progressive Party (진보당; 進步黨), a moderate socialist democratic party in South Korea which was one of the country's major political forces. In 1919, Cho Bong-am participated in March 1st Movement and was imprisoned for the duration of one year. Cho Bong-am studied in Japan and the Soviet Union. In the 1920s, he was active in the Korean Communist Party. After Japanese rule, Cho left the Communist Party in 1946, criticising it for its subservience to the Soviet Union. After the end of the United States Army Military Government in Korea in 1947, Cho became the Minister of Agriculture under Syngman Rhee's presidency. In 1952, Cho ran for the presidency for the first time against sitting president Rhee, and Yi Si-yeong. He received only 0.8 million votes out of 5.2 million. The left-liberal Progressive Party was founded in the aftermath of the Korean War under Cho's leadership. Cho and his followers were able to build a wide coalition with the country's leftist forces. Cho also successfully created coalitions with right-wing forces opposed to Syngman Rhee's dictatorship. The party's founding and moderate success in Korea's hostile political environment is considered a large result of Bong-am's personal charisma. The Progressive Party advocated peaceful unification with North Korea, through strengthening the country's democratic forces and winning in a unified Korean election. Cho called for both anti-communist and anti-authoritarian politics, as well as advocating for social welfare policies for the peasants and urban poor. In the 1956 election, Cho ran against Rhee, the anti-communist strongman president. Cho lost with 30% of the vote, which exceeded expectations. Following the election, the Progressive Party broke apart due to factionalism. Three years after the election, Cho was charged with espionage and receiving funds from North Korea. His first trial resulted in an acquittal but he was convicted in a second trial and was executed on 31 July 1959. His death sentence was posthumously overturned in 2011 by the South Korean Supreme Court.
Kim Chon-hae (Korean: 김천해; Hanja: 金天海, Japanese reading: Kin Tenkai; 10 May 1898 – c. 1969) was a Zainichi Korean who…
Kim Chon-hae (Korean: 김천해; Hanja: 金天海, Japanese reading: Kin Tenkai; 10 May 1898 – c. 1969) was a Zainichi Korean who was a leading figure in the Japanese Communist Party and a founder of the pro-communist Chōren, predecessor of the modern Chongryon. He was subsequently a politician in North Korea, holding posts connected to the Workers' Party of Korea.
Hisao Kuroda (黒田 寿男, Kuroda Hisao; 14 April 1899 – 21 October 1986) was a Japanese peasant movement activist…
Hisao Kuroda (黒田 寿男, Kuroda Hisao; 14 April 1899 – 21 October 1986) was a Japanese peasant movement activist, politician, and lawyer. He was the first chairman of the Labourers and Farmers Party (founded in 1948) and a former member of the House of Representatives.
Bin Akao (赤尾敏, Akao Bin; 15 January 1899 – 6 February 1990) was a Japanese far-right (uyoku) politician who served as a…
Bin Akao (赤尾敏, Akao Bin; 15 January 1899 – 6 February 1990) was a Japanese far-right (uyoku) politician who served as a member of the House of Representatives of Japan during World War II. He was arrested 25 times for political activities. Akao was cofounder and first president of the Kenkokukai and became one of the leading ultranationalists in Japan during the 1920s. Akao was elected to the House of Representatives as an independent in 1942 and espoused a unique type of Japanese nationalism characterized by support for the United States and opposition to the Pacific War. Akao founded and became the first president of the far-right Greater Japan Patriotic Party in 1951 and continued to adamantly champion pro-United States, pro-British, and radical anti-communist stances in post-war Japan. He was known for his fiery street corner speeches, often delivered from noise trucks adorned with the Japanese flag, American flag, and Union Jack. He never held a salaried job, entering politics in his early twenties, and continued street activism into his nineties. Members of the Greater Japan Patriotic Party, both aged 17, were responsible for the 1960 assassination of Japan Socialist Party chairman Inejirō Asanuma and the Shimanaka incident. Akao, who was present at the Hibiya Public Hall when Otoya Yamaguchi fatally stabbed Asanuma, publicly praised the act; newsreel footage from Mainichi News recorded him saying the assassin "did well" and calling him "great," while a contemporary report quoted him describing Yamaguchi as "a paragon of Japanese virtue" and Asanuma’s death as "heaven-sent punishment." Akao was questioned and temporarily arrested in connection with both incidents, but was never charged with directing either attack.
Shigeri Yamataka (山高しげり, Yamataka Shigeri; 1899 – 1977) (also Kaneko Shigeri and later Yamataka Shigeri, sometimes…
Shigeri Yamataka (山高しげり, Yamataka Shigeri; 1899 – 1977) (also Kaneko Shigeri and later Yamataka Shigeri, sometimes incorrectly referred to as Shigeri Takayama) was a Japanese feminist and founder of the League for the Defense of Women's Rights. In 1952 she also took part in Chifuren, when it was formed, one of the largest women's organizations in Japan with more than 6 million members. She was also Chifuren's President.
Taki Fujita (藤田たき) (23 December 1898 – 4 January 1993) was a Japanese educator and activist for women's rights. Fujita…
Taki Fujita (藤田たき) (23 December 1898 – 4 January 1993) was a Japanese educator and activist for women's rights. Fujita was president of Tsuda College from 1962 to 1972.
Rikizō Hirano (平野 力三, Hirano Rikizō; 5 November 1898 – 17 December 1981) was a Japanese farmers’ movement activist and…
Rikizō Hirano (平野 力三, Hirano Rikizō; 5 November 1898 – 17 December 1981) was a Japanese farmers’ movement activist and politician. He held the rank of Junior Third Rank. Originally a national socialist, he later became a leader of the anti-capitalist, anti-fascist and anti-communist farmers’ movement. Known as a “political schemer” for his involvement in the founding of numerous parties, he continued as a member of the House of Representatives after the war and served as Minister of Agriculture and Forestry in the Katayama Cabinet. His elder brother was Hirano Masukichi. His wife, Shigeko Hirano, was a member of the House of Councillors for the Japan Socialist Party. Their second daughter, Yoshiko Hirano, became the second wife of the impresario Akira Jin (known as a “yobiyā”). Their third daughter, Teruko Hirano, was active in the Democratic Socialist Party. Saburō Hirano, who served as a Liberal Democratic Party member of the House of Representatives and later as Governor of Gifu Prefecture, was his nephew.
Ryūichi Inamura (稲村 隆一, Inamura Ryūichi, 7 March 1898 – 20 November 1990) was a Japanese peasant movement activist and…
Ryūichi Inamura (稲村 隆一, Inamura Ryūichi, 7 March 1898 – 20 November 1990) was a Japanese peasant movement activist and politician who served four terms in the House of Representatives. Active in the prewar agrarian and leftist movements, he belonged successively to the Japanese Communist Party, the Labour-Farmer Party, the Social Masses Party, and the Tōhōkai, before joining the Japan Socialist Party after the war. He was purged from public office during the Allied occupation and later returned the Order of the Sacred Treasure in protest against its award to Ryōichi Sasakawa. His younger brother was politician Junzō Inamura and his nephew was Toshio Inamura.
Hisa Sawada (Japanese: 沢田ひさ; 25 November 1897 – 9 November 1979) was a Japanese suffragist and politician. She was one…
Hisa Sawada (Japanese: 沢田ひさ; 25 November 1897 – 9 November 1979) was a Japanese suffragist and politician. She was one of the first group of women elected to the House of Representatives in 1946.
Tsuneko Akamatsu (11 August 1897 – 21 July 1965) was a Japanese politician who served in the House of Councillors.
Seiichirō Furuta (古田 誠一郎, Furuta Seiichirō; 27 June 1897 – 3 December 1992) was a Japanese social reformer, educator…
Seiichirō Furuta (古田 誠一郎, Furuta Seiichirō; 27 June 1897 – 3 December 1992) was a Japanese social reformer, educator, radio and TV personality, and politician from Wakayama city, Wakayama Prefecture. One of the leaders of the Boy Scouts' early days in Japan and the first to be elected mayor of Takatsuki, Osaka, he served as the director of the Scout Association of Japan, as well as executive director of the Japan Camping Federation.
Tomi Kōra (Japanese: 高良 とみ, Hepburn: Kōra Tomi; July 1, 1896 – January 17, 1993) was a Japanese psychologist, peace…
Tomi Kōra (Japanese: 高良 とみ, Hepburn: Kōra Tomi; July 1, 1896 – January 17, 1993) was a Japanese psychologist, peace activist, and politician. She published under the name Tomiko Kōra (高良 とみ, Kōra Tomiko).
Ch'oe Ch'angik (Korean: 최창익; Hanja: 崔昌益, 1896–1960) was a Korean politician in the Japanese colonial era. He was a…
Ch'oe Ch'angik (Korean: 최창익; Hanja: 崔昌益, 1896–1960) was a Korean politician in the Japanese colonial era. He was a member of the Korean independence movement. He was also known by the names Ch'oe Ch'angsŏk (최창석; 崔昌錫), Ch'oe Ch'angsun (최창순; 崔昌淳), Ch'oe Tongu (최동우; 崔東宇), and Ri Kŏnu.
Mumeo Oku (奥 むめお, Oku Mumeo; October 24, 1895 – July 7, 1997) was an important Japanese feminist and politician who…
Mumeo Oku (奥 むめお, Oku Mumeo; October 24, 1895 – July 7, 1997) was an important Japanese feminist and politician who served three terms in Japan's Imperial Diet after having been a leader in the early modern women's suffrage movement in Japan. She played an important role in various early Japanese women's rights movements, and she was a crucial part of Japan's consumer movement. She was a renowned activist in the 1920s, co-founding the New Women's Association with Hiratsuka Raichō and Ichikawa Fusae, and eventually held a seat in the House of Councilors from 1947 to 1965 when she retired.
Yagi Akiko (1895–1983) was a Japanese anarchist writer and activist. She wrote for anarchist women's arts journals…
Yagi Akiko (1895–1983) was a Japanese anarchist writer and activist. She wrote for anarchist women's arts journals Fujin Sensen (The Women's Front) and Nyonin Geijutsu (Women's Arts) on topics including Bolshevism, the commercial commodification of women, and the imperial founding of Manchukuo, a puppet state that she described as a slave, having traded one imperial ruler for another. Her travelogue "Letters from a Trip to Kyushu", written with Fumiko Hayashi, tells of their drinking and meeting men, as two modern women outré for the time period.
Kim Chun-yon (Korean: 김준연; Hanja: 金俊淵; 1895–1971) was a South Korean politician and journalist who served as the fourth…
Kim Chun-yon (Korean: 김준연; Hanja: 金俊淵; 1895–1971) was a South Korean politician and journalist who served as the fourth minister of justice for South Korea from November 23, 1950, to May 6, 1951.
Itō Noe (伊藤 野枝; January 21, 1895 – September 16, 1923) was a Japanese anarchist, social critic, author, and feminist.…
Itō Noe (伊藤 野枝; January 21, 1895 – September 16, 1923) was a Japanese anarchist, social critic, author, and feminist. She was the editor-in-chief of the feminist magazine Seitō (Bluestocking). Her progressive anarcha-feminist ideology challenged the norms of the Meiji and Taishō periods in which she lived. She drew praise from critics for her ability to weave her personal and political ideas into her writings. The Japanese government, however, condemned her for challenging the constructs of the time. She became a martyr of the anarchist ideology in which she believed during the Amakasu Incident, when she was murdered along with her lover, anarchist author Ōsugi Sakae, and his nephew.