"40 Years of Feminism" Author: [Japan] Ueno Chizuko Translator: Yang Ling Hunan Literature and Art Publishing House Historical and Cultural Books Weekly Hot List

"I am who I am! I am a woman!"

From a "wild girl" to the "first person in feminist theory"

Chizuko Ueno reviews 40 years of feminism

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"I have come all the way here in this way, and I hope that readers can take over my baton." - Chizuko Ueno

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In 1970, the Japanese women's liberation movement was born. Chizuko Ueno, who was in her early twenties, was baptized by feminism. The active attitudes of her predecessors inspired her to run to the forefront and she has been running all the way to the present day. 40 years later, Chizuko Ueno looks back on her feminist career. From her initial intention in the early days of feminism to her running and shouting for feminism after 2000, all are presented in this book.

——In the 1970s, Japanese feminism was born and Ueno was baptized by feminism.

--In the 1980s, Japanese feminism grew up amid resistance and misunderstanding. Ueno was involved in a series of debates, such as the "Chen Meiling Debate" on "bringing children to work debate" and the criticism of Sono Ayako of "women criticizing women", and she was therefore labeled as "competitive".

--In the 1990s, Japanese feminism entered a smooth era. Ueno participated in the "comfort women dispute" at the Beijing Women's Conference and took the podium at the University of Tokyo as a female social researcher for the first time. However, the media commented that Ueno began to become "conservative."

——In the 2000s, Japanese feminism was counterattacked, and Ueno campaigned for it. As a party involved, she left testimonies about the cancellation of lectures, the removal of books from shelves, the revision of regulations, the freezing of budgets, etc., reminding herself: "We have no time to despair" and "what we have gained through struggle must be maintained through struggle to the end."

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Over the past 40 years, the problems faced by women have changed, and the environment around them has also changed, but her original intention to speak for women has remained unchanged. Regarding workplace discrimination, family division of labor, women's independence, campus sexual harassment, etc., she uses highly vivid and shocking words to face the various difficulties of women, and talks about how women can live the life they want and the society where women live ideally.

——About women: "No matter if I am ugly or beautiful, no matter if I will be chosen by men, no matter if I have breasts or a uterus, 'I am me! I am a woman! This is decided by myself and cannot be violated by others'."

——On the division of labor in the family: "Housework is not only labor, but also unfair and unpaid labor. All mothers are 'working mothers'."

——On reproductive rights: "Everyone is encouraging (even forcing) women to become mothers, but at the same time, women who are about to become mothers are isolated and helpless, and can only bear all the responsibilities of childbearing alone."

- On the ideal society for women: "We need a society where women can freely choose to raise children or care for the elderly without being forced, isolated or suffering losses as a result of such choices; a society where women are not subjected to violence or sexual harassment from men; a society where women can have children even if they are alone."

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