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[Insider] Urine Nation: Japan’s 150-Years-Long War Against Peeing in Public
During Japan's Edo Era, peeing in the street wasn't a crime, but a contribution to the economy. Here's how Meiji Japan, anxious…
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[Insider] Japan Invented MSG. Why Do Even Some Japanese Call It “Poison”?
MSG has been pilloried for decades in the United States. But Japan's "additive-free" movement has also labeled glutamate's most prominent supporter a…
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[Insider] New Zealand Deported a Japanese Porn Star. Is Japan’s Porn Law to Blame?
Japanese adult video actress Fukuda Yua says she was turned away at the New Zealand border. While she may have simply been…
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[Insider] Japan Wants to Jail Men Who Buy Sex. Sex Workers Say That’ll Get Women Hurt
A majority of voices are clamoring for Japan to criminalize prostitution buyers. Here’s why the country's sex worker advocates oppose that.
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[Insider] Why Gender Equality is Stalling Under Japan’s First Female Prime Minister
Japan finally has its first female Prime Minister. But that isn't translating into victories for ordinary Japanese women.
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[Insider] The Three Tactics Japan’s Hosts Use to Saddle Women with Soul-Crushing Debt
The rules and agreements meant to help save women from the worst abuses aren't helping, as clubs have already figured out a…
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[Insider] “Utility Pole Girls”: Japanese Media Has a Demeaning New Buzzword for Women
A survey of 3,000 women found 58% identified with the phenomenon. But it's the label that has people riled up.
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[Insider] How a “Library War” Helped Japan’s Communists Elect a New Mayor
A plan to shutter four of Kiyose City's six libraries angered citizens so much that it gave the Japanese Communist Party a…
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