A courtroom win and new anti-discrimination law could be seen as signs Japan is warming to the protection of LGBTQ rights. But activists warn of a dark side.
They say recent months have seen a rising tide of hateful online rhetoric, particularly targeting transgender women.
Disinformation "linking transgender women to sexual violence in public spaces" is being "disseminated extremely widely," the Japan Alliance for LGBT Legislation warned earlier this year.
Unable to view this article?
This could be due to a conflict with your ad-blocking or security software.
Please add japantimes.co.jp and piano.io to your list of allowed sites.
If this does not resolve the issue or you are unable to add the domains to your allowlist, please see this FAQ.
We humbly apologize for the inconvenience.
In a time of both misinformation and too much information, quality journalism is more crucial than ever.
By subscribing, you can help us get the story right.
SUBSCRIBE NOW
With your current subscription plan you can comment on stories. However, before writing your first comment, please create a display name in the Profile section of your subscriber account page.