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October 28, 2025
 

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LGBTQ

A couple poses with the rainbow flag, which they brought from their home for a wedding photoshoot in Tokyo in November 2023.
JAPAN
Oct 1, 2025
Same-sex partners recognized under more laws in Japan
However, the government maintains the position that same-sex partners are not covered by 120 laws and ordinances, including those related to taxes and social security.
The Sapporo Family Court on Friday ruled that a legal provision requiring individuals to undergo genital surgery to change their legal gender is unconstitutional and invalid.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Sep 25, 2025
Court rules sex change appearance requirement unconstitutional
A court said that the world has made advances in medicine since the law was established, so genital surgery may not be necessary in some cases.
Gloria Tsang, a 33-year-old speech therapist, and her wife Jaedyn Yu, a 35-year-old drum school owner, walk on a pedestrian overpass in Hong Kong on Sept. 12.
ASIA PACIFIC / Society
Sep 17, 2025
Hong Kong newlyweds lament veto on same-sex rights bill as blow to city
The same-sex bill represented an opportunity to implement what would have been a rare liberal shift in Hong Kong's legal landscape.
World Athletics President Sebastian Coe stands on the track at the Diamond League Final in Zurich on Thursday.
MORE SPORTS / Athletics
Aug 29, 2025
Sebastian Coe confident gene testing will be completed for Tokyo worlds
Athletes who arrive at the global event without being tested can complete the process in the Japanese capital.
Kardinia Park, home stadium of Australian Rules football team Geelong Cats, on Oct. 23, 2020
MORE SPORTS
Aug 22, 2025
AFL under fire as another player banned for homophobic slur
Adelaide Crows forward Izak Rankine became the sixth AFL player since April 2024 to be suspended for directing a homophobic slur at an opponent.
The U.S. State Department's 2024 Human Rights Report was delayed for months as appointees of President Donald Trump altered an earlier draft dramatically to bring it in line with "America First" values, according to government officials who spoke on condition of anonymity.
WORLD / Politics
Aug 13, 2025
U.S. State Department softens criticism of some countries in human rights report
The 2024 Human Rights Report's section on Israel was much shorter than last year's edition and made no mention of the severe humanitarian crisis or death toll in the Gaza Strip.
U.S. President Donald Trump (right) meets with El Salvador President Nayib Bukele in the Oval Office at the White House in Washington on April 14.
WORLD / Politics
Aug 7, 2025
U.S. to ease criticism of El Salvador, Israel and Russia, says report
The Trump administration has increasingly moved away from the traditional promotion of democracy and human rights.
Participants take part in the Pride March in Amsterdam on July 26.
WORLD / Society
Aug 4, 2025
Going Dutch: LGBTQ+ Americans find Trump-free life in Netherlands
In the face of rolled back rights, some LGBTQ+ people have voted with their feet.
Wakana, a Japanese fan of Thai BL, visits a temple in Thon Buri, Bangkok featured in the Thai adaptation of the Japanese series “Cherry Magic.” Her media consumption kindled an interest in Thai culture and language, and ultimately led her to relocate to Thailand. “I fell in love with the whole country,” she says.
COMMUNITY / Issues / The Foreign Element
Jul 28, 2025
Boys’ love dramas from Thailand make waves in Japan
Thailand has become a top producer of BL (boys’ love) dramas — and audiences in Japan are among the most ardent consumers.
A Beijing store selling merchandise based on the "boys’ love" genre of graphic novels on June 16
ASIA PACIFIC / Crime & Legal
Jul 10, 2025
China detains female writers of 'boys' love' content in porn crackdown
The detentions since March have triggered debate on social media about the limits of free speech and the apparent sexist nature of the crackdown.
A person wears a mask depicting Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban on the back of the head during the Budapest Pride March on June 28.
WORLD / Society
Jul 7, 2025
Inside Budapest Pride: How organizers defied Orban's ban
The team behind the parade in Budapest went offline, meeting in private behind closed doors with everyone leaving their laptops and phones outside.
Akira Otani's genre-bending novel "The Night of Baba Yaga" takes place in Japan’s 1970s yakuza underworld and centers on the daughter of a mob boss and a ruthless martial arts fighter who serves as her bodyguard.
CULTURE / Entertainment news
Jul 4, 2025
Queer-coded yakuza story wins prestigious U.K. crime writing award
With “The Night of Baba Yaga,” Akira Otani is the first Japanese writer to win the Crime Writers’ Association Dagger Award for crime fiction in translation.
Pro-democracy activist Jimmy Sham speaks at a League of Social Democrats news conference at their headquarters in Hong Kong on June 29.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jul 3, 2025
Hong Kong proposes limited recognition of same-sex couples' rights
The move comes as the Hong Kong government seeks to comply with a landmark court ruling from September 2023.
About 41% of LGBTQ+ teens could not find people or places they could consult with about their struggles with gender identity or sexual orientation.
JAPAN
Jun 24, 2025
Over half of LGBTQ+ teens in Japan have considered suicide, survey finds
Of the 90% of junior high and high school students who said they had experienced harassment at school, 64% said such harassment came from teachers.
Kirsty Coventry, who will formally take over as the president of the International Olympic Committe on Monday, speaks during a news conference in Costa Navarino, Greece, in March.
OLYMPICS
Jun 21, 2025
As sports embrace gender tests, Coventry and IOC may follow
Such testing has its share of critics and the Olympics have already tried it once only to abandon it in 1996.
"In My Closet" by the artist Noumra is on display at Tokyu Plaza Harajuku's Harakado space until June 18.
CULTURE / Art
Jun 14, 2025
At Tokyo Pride’s first queer art exhibition, intimacy and resistance share the wall
A vibrant, community-sourced exhibition in Harajuku showcases queer art that spans the political, absurd and deeply personal.
Tokyo Rainbow Pride is wrapping up for the year, but a slew of events in cities all over the country, from Hokkaido to Kyushu, lies in store in the second half of 2025.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives
Jun 12, 2025
The persistence of Pride: LGBTQ+ events in Tokyo and beyond
Pride isn’t just a one-off weekend — a slate of activities and programs in support of the queer community continues in full force, from Hokkaido to Kyushu.
June is Pride Month, which means it’s the perfect time to get acquainted with how sexual minorities have been represented in Japanese fiction if you’re not familiar with these narratives already.
CULTURE / Books
Jun 11, 2025
Pride and prose: Novels that illuminate queer lives in Japan
From Yukio Mishima and Haruki Murakami to Li Kotomi and Akira Otani, dive into Japanese fiction’s LGBTQ+ narratives in honor of Pride Month.
Akihiko Ogino, president and CEO of Daiwa Securities Group, says Japan should press ahead with diversity initiatives as he attends the Tokyo Pride parade in the capital's Shibuya area on Sunday.
BUSINESS
Jun 8, 2025
Top banker vows loyalty to DEI at Tokyo Pride Parade as Trump’s pushback rages
Few Japanese executives have spoken out on U.S. backlash to DEI, though many firms seem to be quietly maintaining their initiatives.
Since moving to Tokyo from New York City in 2014, Hiraku Morilla has been promoting Keith Haring’s legacy in his professional life and advocating for the LGBTQ+ community.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / 20 QUESTIONS
Jun 6, 2025
Hiraku Morilla: ‘Pride means respect for those who walked so we could run’
The New York-raised director of the Nakamura Keith Haring Collection reflects on his queer, multiracial identity and LGBTQ+ rights in Japan.
Bear kills another person in Japan in record year for fatal attacks
Police investigate the scene of a bear attack that killed one person and injured three others on Friday in the village of Higashinaruse in Akita Prefecture.
Trump arrives in Japan for security and trade talks in test for Takaichi
U.S. President Donald Trump is welcomed by Emperor Naruhito upon his arrival at the Imperial Palace in Tokyo on Monday evening.
Japanese firms keep expanding in Germany's North Rhine-Westphalia
A Nishiyama Seimen employee works at its factory in Sapporo.
Inside Tokyo's 'phantom' stations — and the stories they tell
Mamoru Iwai, stationmaster of Keisei Ueno Station, says that, other than earthquake-proofing, the former Hakubutsukan-Dobutsuen (Museum-Zoo) Station has remained untouched.
Takaichi’s ‘Trump card’ for meeting U.S. leader? Her relationship with Abe.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi reacts as East Timor Prime Minister Xanana Gusmao greets her during the ASEAN-Japan summit in Kuala Lumpur on Sunday.
Ukyo Shuto's run into Japan Series history shows game is about more than speed
SoftBank's Ukyo Shuto rounds first base after hitting a double in the seventh inning at Mizuho PayPay Dome Fukuoka on Sunday.
Spanish artist and Japanese writer duos diversify the manga talent pool in Japan
"Menheim” is a dark fantasy manga with a story that centers on a girl’s quest to find a cure for her ill brother.
Japan’s youth are apathetic toward the climate crisis. Could anime change that?
“Future Kid Takara,” a series of anime shorts to be aired on NHK Educational TV in November, attempts to educate children about climate change.
Loss to Wallabies doesn't dampen Japan’s optimism
Japan's Michael Leitch controls the ball during the match against Australia on Saturday.
Lentil by lentil, Nepali food takes shape in Tokyo
At Nepalico, the "dal bhat" — a Nepali dish consisting of rice and lentils stewed with spices — with chicken curry is the most popular item on the menu.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

Mamoru Iwai, stationmaster of Keisei Ueno Station, says that, other than earthquake-proofing, the former Hakubutsukan-Dobutsuen (Museum-Zoo) Station has remained untouched.
Inside Tokyo's 'phantom' stations — and the stories they tell
By Alex K.T. Martin

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