Witness History
Witness History
The American who put women's rights in the Japanese constitution
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August 7, 2020
9 minutes
Available for over a year
In November 1946, Emperor Hirohito proclaimed a new post-war constitution for Japan which contained clauses establishing women's rights for the first time. They were the brainchild of Beate Sirota Gordon, a young American woman working for the Allied occupying forces. Simon Watts tells her story using interviews from the BBC archives.
PHOTO: Beate Sirota Gordon in Japan in 1946 (Family Collection)