30 Years of Sisterhood:
Women of the 1970s Women's Liberation Movement in Japan

February 27, 2006 at the University of Illinois
Screening and discussion of Ripples of Change (directed by Nanako Kurihara, 1993) and 30 Years of Sisterhood (2004).

Thirty Years of Sisterhood
Guide regarding tour

Thirty Years of Sisterhood Blog
On the US tour of a Japanese documentary film by Yamagami Chieko and Seyama Noriko, "Thirty Years of Sisterhood: Women of the 1970s Women's Liberation Movement in Japan."


Summary of Videotaped Panel Discussion

Panelists
YAMAGAMI Chieko, filmmaker
SEYAMA Noriko, filmmaker
DOI Yumi, San Francisco-based writer
MIKI Soko, Professor of English/Women's Studies, Kyoto Seika University, Japan
YAMAGUCHI Tomomi, tour coordinator, Post-doctoral Scholar, Center for East Asian Studies, University of Chicago
TAKEYAMA Akiko, Graduate Student, Anthropology, UIUC
James Welker, Graduate Student, East Asian Languages & Cultures, UIUC

Chaired by Karen Kelsky (Head of Department of East Asian Languages and Cultures, Associate Professor of EALC and Anthropology, UIUC)

Introduction by Karen Kelsky

This panel discussion, chaired by Professor Karen Kelsky, focuses on the legacy of the 1970s Women's Liberation Movement in Japan and considers the current status of women in contemporary Japan. Filmmakers Yamagami and Seyama explain their reasons for making their films, Thirty Years of Sisterhood and Ripples of Change, which reflect upon the impact of the Women's Liberation Movement on the lives of Japanese women today, and they discuss what they view as the successes and failures of the movement. Doi and Miki are two prominent feminist leaders who appear in Yamagami's film, and here they reflect upon their involvement in the 1970s movement and offer their general opinions on the state of feminism in Japan today. UIUC graduate students Akiko Takeyama and James Welker offer their reactions to both films and pose questions to the panelists.

View Panel Discussion
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Last Updated March 22, 2006