01. From CGS: December 2009 Archives

Etsuko KATO
Director, Center for Gender Studies
Senior Associate Professor, International Christian University

【The article below is the same as the article that appears in the twelfth issue of the CGS Newsletter.】

From April 2009, I have had the honor of serving as CGS Director, following in the footsteps of Kazuko Tanaka(2004-2007) and Natsumi Ikoma (2008). It has "only", and at the same time, "already" been 6 years since the establishment of our center. I feel that we are now entering upon a second stage in our history.

Anonymous
3rd year student, Division of Languages, ICU

【The article below is the same as the article that appears in the twelfth issue of the CGS Newsletter.】

On May 20, 2009, I attended an open lecture on "The Politics Surrounding Names and Labels" as part of the "Approaches to Gender Studies" course. The speakers were Akira Miyama, host of the news website Delta G, and guest lecturer Yuriko Iino.
The lecture questioned why it was only non-heterosexuals who were compelled to label themselves. As stated in its flyer, it discussed the political nature of names and labels, including coming out, unilateral naming and the effect of naming on one's personality.

decofemi
ICU graduate

【The article below is the same as the article that appears in the twelfth issue of the CGS Newsletter.】

With plans for the construction of a large-scale dormitory currently underway at ICU, I would like to discuss the issue of ICU dorms in the light of my own experience.
Up until two years ago, I lived in a women's dormitory on campus. All the rooms were shared, and men were only permitted entry to the communal area on the first floor. If it was necessary for any man to go upstairs (such as a university employee) one of the dorm residents would have to call out "a man is coming upstairs!" before letting them through. This was one of the many dorm rules that I simply couldn't get used to. Even the hope of preventing sex-related crimes cannot justify the treatment of people as if they were potential sex offenders. One could even argue that this prohibition of "men" reflects a simplistic assumption that "problems (only) occur between the two sexes."