Knowledge of Sexuality as Part of Liberal Arts Education

When CGS was first established, I remember thinking that it didn't really have that much to do with me. Over the past 60-odd years of my life, I had never been that conscious of my own gender; rather, I saw myself as a human first, then a woman. I only had brothers, and my cousins were all boys, and I think I must have been brought up like a boy, too. Upon reflection, I realize that I was gender conscious in choosing to go to a women's university̶Ochanomizu University̶after high school because I thought men were too loud and bossy. Still, I had always thought of pregnancy and childbirth as a woman's prerogative, and for me they were experiences, along with child rearing, that were even more interesting and exciting than the performances of ICU's Wadaiko (Japanese drumming) club of which I am an advisor.

Such was my experience. I had never questioned or felt much resistance to the idea of being a woman, and I have always lived my life doing what I please. It was only when one of my students came out of the closet that the word "gender" truly struck me. Although my other students did not seem affected by it at all, it was a great shock to me that I had not realized it despite having taught the student for so long. I was on the brink of blaming myself, thinking that perhaps I may have been hurting that student unknowingly over the years. From that point on, I could no longer be indifferent to gender. I think it was because that student meant so much to me, and that importance did not change at all with their coming out.

Despite my best intentions, I was not able to fully grasp the situation straight away. I hurriedly read up on the subject to try and fill the gaps in my understanding with knowledge and facts. Even now, I am not sure how much I really understand about gender. I talk individually with students who have GID, but I can only imagine what their reality must be. I accept that there are gaps that I can fill through educating myself as well as certain aspects that I find difficult to comprehend. At first I thought that this was nothing to do with gender issues but more generally to do with personal relationships̶ just as there are always people you like or don't like and you can't be friends with everyone.

However, one day I was greatly disturbed to hear that a student with GID was being bullied. I felt both outrage and disappointment to learn that such an uncultured, uneducated act as bullying was being committed by ICU students. While bullies exist in every society, I had always believed that the ability to refrain from such behavior was cultivated by education. However, this experience taught me that this kind of awareness and understanding cannot be achieved without accurate and in-depth knowledge. That is why I decided to invite CGS staff to discuss gender and sexuality issues in my course "Health Education" in 2012. The response from my students was extremely sincere and challenging. This lecture series on gender and sexuality was trialed in only one of the four "Health Education" courses offered in 2012 for first-year students. As it has now officially been incorporated into the course curriculum, every student who entered ICU in 2013 will acquire knowledge of gender and sexuality. I trust that, as ICU students, they will absorb that knowledge and eventually come face-to-face with these issues in their everyday lives as cultured, learned individuals.

I look back now on the past nine years, filled with the realization that I myself have been afforded the opportunity for self-growth and self-awareness on the outskirts of the field of gender studies. I look forward to continuing this exciting journey in the coming years.