Another Japan Is Possible
New Social Movements and Global Citizenship Education
Published on 29. January 2008
Book
Hardback
432 pages
978-0-8047-5781-2 (ISBN)
Description
This book looks at the emergence of internationally linked Japanese nongovernmental advocacy networks that have grown rapidly since the 1990s in the context of three conjunctural forces: neoliberalism, militarism, and nationalism. It connects three disparate literatures-on the global justice movement, on Japanese civil society, and on global citizenship education. Through the narratives of fifty activists in eight overlapping issue areas-global governance, labor, food sovereignty, peace, HIV/AIDS, gender, minority and human rights, and youth-Another Japan is Possible examines the genesis of these new social movements; their critiques of neoliberalism, militarism, and nationalism; their local, regional, and global connections; their relationships with the Japanese government; and their role in constructing a new identity of the Japanese as global citizens. Its purpose is to highlight the interactions between the global and the local-that is, how international human rights and global governance issues resonate within Japan and how, in turn, local alternatives are articulated by Japanese advocacy groups-and to analyze citizenship from a postnational and postmodern perspective.
Reviews / Votes
"To conclude, the use of the book is twofold. Firstly, it can serve as an eye-opener to readers who are stuck in the image of Japan as a country where discontent seldom takes the form of overt protest or citizen engagement. Secondly, it presents a lot of raw material and information which... can be useful to readers interested in Japanese civil society or the groups presented in the book. "-Japanese Studies "The days are gone forever when the prevailing cliche in Japan suggested that there were only two types of social entities: governmental institutions and non-governmental individuals (the so-called middle mass). However, of late the former has been fragmenting themselves while the latter has been flourishing and fraternalizing themselves with transnational and international counterparts. Jennifer Chan has vividly illustrated this incredible turnaround with good contextualizing narratives and rich and informative constructions of the thinking and sentiments those non-governmental organizations generate in a vast array of areas. A must read in the study of globalization and localization."-Inoguchi Takashi, Professor Emeritus, University of Tokyo, and Professor of Political Science, Chuo University, Tokyo "This book is rich in primary material on the human side of NGO activity in Japan, along a wide spectrum of organizations. In that alone it is a valuable text. This is a nuanced view of advocacy, strategies and institutions, sometimes against the grain of existing views, and it adds the perspectives of "new global citizens" of Japan, engaged in knowledge production. The book will be very useful indeed in social and political science courses, and in courses on globalization, social change and identity." -Merry White, Professor, Department of Anthropology, Boston University "A surprise for observers who view Japan as a developmental state, run by a powerful central bureaucracy and aligned with a conservative party whose policies often override public interest, Another Japan is Possible casts new light on a neglected but vital aspect of Japan's emerging political economy. A remarkable group of scholars, professionals and citizen activists reveal the growing numbers of committed Japanese participating energetically in local and global organizations devoted to a broad range of issues, from the environment and sustainable development to health care, migrant workers, disability, gender, and minority rights." -Daniel I. Okimoto, Professor, Department of Political Science, and Director Emeritus, Walter H. Shorenstein Asia Pacific Research Center, Stanford University "As a civil society scholar, I can say that this book is a desired piece of work...This book makes an important contribution to connecting Japanese accounts to both Japanese and global discourses on civil society." -Akihiro Ogawa, Stockholm University "Chan's study is a rare and comprehensive compilation of Japanese voices articulating their demand for an alternative model of citizenship...Chan's book can be highly recommended to all interested in 'the other Japan.'"-Internationales AsienforumMore details
Edition
New edition
Language
English
Place of publication
Palo Alto
United States
Target group
College/higher education
Edition type
New edition
Product notice
Cloth
Illustrations
8 illustrations, 5 tables
Dimensions
Height: 231 mm
Width: 157 mm
Thickness: 30 mm
Weight
680 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-8047-5781-2 (9780804757812)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Person
Jennifer Chan is Associate Professor of Education at the University of British Columbia. She is the author of Gender and Human Rights Politics in Japan (Stanford, 2004)
Content
@fmct:Contents @toc4:Tables and Figures iii Acknowledgments iii Note on Conventions iii @toc2:Introduction: Global Governance and Japanese Nongovernmental Advocacy Networks 1 @toc1:Part I Global Governance @toc2:Introduction to Part I 000 @toc2:1. Global Governance Monitoring and Japan @tocca:Kawakami Toyoyuki, Advocacy and Monitoring Network on Sustainable Development 000 @toc2:2. Education, Empowerment, and Alternatives to Neoliberalism @tocca:Sakuma Tomoko, Japan Center for a Sustainable Environment and Society 000 @toc2:3. Building a People-Based Peace and Democracy Movement in Asia @tocca:Ogura Toshimaru, Peoples' Plan Study Group 000 @toc2:4. Tobin Tax, Kyoto Social Forum, and Pluralism @tocca:Komori Masataka, Association for the Tobin Tax for the Aid of Citizens, Kyoto 000 @toc2:5. Education for Civil Society Capacity Building @tocca:Fukawa Yoko, Pacific Asia Resource Center 000 @toc2:6. Community Development, Peace, and Global Citizenship @tocca:Takahashi Kiyotaka, Japan International Volunteer Center 000 @toc1:Part II Labor @toc2:Introduction to Part II 000 @toc2:7. Globalization and Labor Restructuring @tocca:Kumagai Ken'ichi, Japanese Trade Union Confederation 000 @toc2:8. Corporate Restructuring and Homelessness @tocca:Kasai Kazuaki, Shinjuku Homeless Support Center 000 @toc2:9. Gender, Part-Time Labor, and Indirect Discrimination @tocca:Sakai Kazuko, Equality Action 21 000 @toc2:10. Migration, Trafficking, and Free Trade Agreements @tocca:Ishihara Virgie, Filipino Migrants Center, Nagoya 000 @toc2:11. Neoliberalism and Labor Organizing @tocca:Yasuda Yukihiro, Labor Net 000 @toc2:12. Water, Global Commons, and Peace @tocca:Mizukoshi Takashi, All-Japan Water Supply Workers' Union 000 @toc1:Part III Food Sovereignty 000 @toc2:Introduction to Part III 000 @toc2:13. Agricultural Liberalization, World Trade Organization, and Peace @tocca:Ohno Kazuoki, No WTO--Voices of the Grassroots in Japan 000 @toc2:14. Multifunctionality of Agriculture over Free Trade @tocca:Yamaura Yasuaki, Food Action 21 000 @toc2:15. Citizens' Movement Against Genetically Modified Foods @tocca:Amagasa Keisuke, No! GMO Campaign 000 @toc2:16. Self-Sufficiency, Safety, and Food Liberalization @tocca:Imamura Kazuhiko, Watch Out for WTO! Japan 000 @toc1:Part IV Peace 000 @toc2:Introduction to Part IV 000 @toc2:17. "We Want Blue Sky in Peaceful Okinawa" @tocca:Hirayama Motoh, Grassroots Movement to Remove U.S. Bases from Okinawa and the World 000 @toc2:18. World Peace Now @tocca:Hanawa Machiko, Tsukushi Takehiko, and Cazman, World Peace Now 000 @toc2:19. Article 9 and the Peace Movement @tocca:Takada Ken, No to Constitutional Revision! Citizens' Network 000 @toc2:20. Fundamental Law of Education, Peace, and the Marketization of Education @tocca:Nishihara Nobuaki, Japan Teachers' Union 000 @toc2:21. Japan and International War Crimes @tocca:Higashizawa Yasushi, Japan Civil Liberties Union 000 @toc2:22. Landmine Ban and Peace Education @tocca:Kitagawa Yasuhiro, Japan Campaign to Ban Landmines 000 @toc2:23. Nuclear Disarmament, Advocacy, and Peace Education @tocca:Nakamura Keiko, Peace Depot 000 @toc2:24. Building a Citizens' Peace Movement in Japan and Asia @tocca:Otsuka Teruyo, Asia Pacific Peace Forum 000 @toc1:Part V HIV/AIDS 000 @toc2:Introduction to Part V 000 @toc2:25. HIV/AIDS from a Human Rights Perspective @tocca:Tarui Masayoshi, Japan AIDS and Society Association 000 @toc2:26. HIV/AIDS, Gender, and Backlash @tocca:Hy'd' Chika, Place Tokyo 000 @toc2:27. Migrant Workers and HIV/AIDS in Japan @tocca:Inaba Masaki, Africa Japan Forum 000 @toc1:Part VI Gender 000 @toc2:Introduction to Part VI 000 @toc2:28. International Lobbying and Japanese Women's Networks @tocca:Watanabe Miho, Japan NGO Network on CEDAW 000 @toc2:29. Gender, Human Rights, and Trafficking in Persons @tocca:Hara Yuriko, Japan Network Against Trafficking in Persons 000 @toc2:30. Gender, Reproductive Rights, and Technology @tocca:Ohashi Yukako, Soshiren (Starting from a Female Body) 000 @toc2:31. As a Lesbian Feminist in Japan @tocca:Wakabayashi Naeko, Regumi Studio Tokyo 000 @toc2:32. Sex Workers' Movement in Japan @tocca:Kaname Yukiko, Sex Workers and Sexual Health 000 @toc2:33. Women's Active Museum on War and Peace @tocca:Watanabe Mina, Women's Active Museum on War and Peace 000 @toc2:34. Art, Feminism, and Activism @tocca:Shimada Yoshiko, Feminist Art Action Brigade 000 @toc1:Part VII Minority and Human Rights 000 @toc2:Introduction to Part VII 000 @toc2:35. A Proposal for a Law on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination @tocca:Fujimoto Mie, Japan Civil Liberties Union, Subcommittee for the Rights of Foreigners 000 @toc2:36. Antidiscrimination, Grassroots Empowerment, and Horizontal Networking @tocca:Morihara Hideki, International Movement Against All Forms of Discrimination and Racism 000 @toc2:37. Multiple Identities and Buraku Liberation @tocca:Mori Maya, Buraku Liberation League 000 @toc2:38. Indigenous Peoples' Rights and Multicultural Coexistence @tocca:Uemura Hideaki, Shimin Gaik' Centre 000 @toc2:39. On the Recognition of the Indigenous Peoples' Rights of the Ainu @tocca:Sakai Mina, Association of Rera 000 @toc2:40. "I Would Like to Be Able to Speak Uchin'guchi When I Grow Up!" @tocca:Taira Satoko, Association of Indigenous Peoples in the Ry'ky's 000 @toc2:41. Art Activism and Korean Minority Rights @tocca:Hwangbo Kangja, Mirine 000 @toc2:42. Ethnic Diversity, Foreigners' Rights, and Discrimination in Family Registration @tocca:Tony L szlo, Issho Kikaku 000 @toc2:43. Disability and Gender @tocca:Hirukawa Ry'ko, Japan National Assembly of Disabled Peoples' International 000 @toc2:44. The UN Convention on Refugee and Asylum Protection in Japan @tocca:Ishikawa Eri, Japan Association for Refugees 000 @toc2:45. Torture, Penal Reform, and Prisoners' Rights @tocca:Akiyama Emi, Center for Prisoners' Rights Japan 000 @toc2:46. Death Penalty and Human Rights @tocca:Takada Akiko, Forum 90 000 @toc1:Part VIII Youth Groups 000 @toc2:Introduction to Part VIII 000 @toc2:47. Experience, Action, and the Floating Peace Village @tocca:Yoshioka Tatsuya, Peace Boat 000 @toc2:48. Ecology, Youth Action, and International Advocacy @tocca:Mitsumoto Yuko, A SEED Japan 000 @toc2:49. Organic Food, Education, and Peace @tocca:Shikita Kiyoshi, BeGood Cafe 000 @toc2:50. "Another Work Is Possible": Slow Life, Ecology, and Peace @tocca:Takahashi Kenkichi, Body and Soul 000 @toc2:Conclusion: Social Movements and Global Citizenship Education 000 @toc4:Appendixes 000 List of Organizations 000 References 000 Index 000