Q&A: “Do you know of any LGBTQ (or LGBTQ-competent) counseling services in Japan?”
anonymous said: Vesper, do you know of any LGBTQ (or LGBTQ-competent) counseling services in Japan? Specifically in the Yokohama/Tokyo area, but online resources would also be appreciated. anon, you must be psychic, because you have impeccable timing. i just had a discussion with my psychiatrist about this the other day and was going to keep on procrastinating writing about how it went, but your ask was the nudge i needed to get off my ass and write The Thing. you may be interested in reading The Thing, but in the interest of saving you some time, here’s a spoiler alert: my psychiatrist wasn’t all that helpful. if you’re looking for counseling services in English, he seems skeptical about there being anyone in the Yokohama / Tokyo area (in so far as he knows) who offer services specifically dealing with LGBTQIA people or the issues that we face. as for counseling…
YouTube Pride Academy 2017
ever so aptly timed with YouTube’s second attempt at spotlighting LGBTQIA YouTube with the hashtag #ProudToBe, the first ever Pride Academy was held at YouTube Space Tokyo today. the name of the event itself being a play on one of YouTube’s programs for creators, Creator Academy. the event was aimed at encouraging and offering support to LGBTQIA people in Japan who might be interested in creating a channel on YouTube– regardless of the content that they chose to put on their channel. another aim of the event was to host a 交流会 (networking event) after the presentations in the hopes of fostering community among LGBTQIA youtubers in Japan by giving them a chance to meet each other. to that end, Google promoted the event at its booth during Tokyo Rainbow Pride this past May and i was pleasantly surprised to see the turn out, given the current state of LGBTQIA…
Tokyo Rainbow Pride 2017: ACES & ENBIES
fourth year and counting of Ace Spec Japan and friends meeting up at TRP. ? see also: TOKYO | FESTA | PARADE
Tokyo Rainbow Pride 2017: PARADE
when you turn and see someone’s face as they lose composure while looking your way as you approach them, you know it was all worth it. (featuring photos by: @7a6u3, @gonoi and @mom1615) see also: TOKYO | FESTA | ACES & ENBIES
Tokyo Rainbow Pride 2017: FESTA
if only ten photos or even four posts of photos were enough to capture the spirit of #TRP2017. see also: TOKYO | PARADE | ACES & ENBIES
Tokyo Rainbow Pride 2017: TOKYO
random glimpses of rainbows around Shibuya & Shinjuku. should’ve gone to Odaiba too, チェッ… see also: FESTA | PARADE | ACES & ENBIES
…annnd that’s a wrap!
to everyone who made it out to Tokyo Rainbow Pride today and metup with us (many of whom aren’t photoed above), otsukaresama deshita! it was great to see you all and i hope everyone had as great a time as i did. without going into a long-winded spiel because i’m exhausted (and might do it later), today was the highlight of Pride: the parade through Shibuya / Harajuku. imho, it’s safe to say that this year’s parade was the best yet in terms of asexual representation and visibility. not only that, there was also more non-binary, genderqueer and pansexual representation and visibility than in years past thanks largely in part to the NPO にじいろ学校 (formally にじいろ小町) whose group and float Ace Spec Japan walked with this year. more information and a lot more photos will be posted hopefully within the next week, so stay tuned. (original photo courtesy of @mom1615 via…
?Tokyo Rainbow Pride 2017: Parade & Ace Meetup
…it’s that time of year again. time for Tokyo Rainbow Pride! since 2014 myself and other aces in Japan (now known as Ace Spec Japan) have come together during Golden Week to raise awareness of asexuality by walking in the annual Tokyo Rainbow Pride Parade, followed by a casual meetup elsewhere in Tokyo. this year will be as awesome as ever and anyone interested in joining us– or even just stopping by to say ‘hi’– is welcome! walking in the parade is optional, of course. date: Sunday, May 7th, 2017 time: [parade] 10:30 ~ 14:00? (parade itself sets off at 12:00) ——- [meetup] 16:00 ~ ??? location: contact me for details even if you can’t make the above times, contact me and i’ll help you find us. i’ll also be around for the Festa on May 6th (Saturday) if anyone wants to meetup then. either way, ハッピープライド！ (photos from Tokyo Rainbow Pride 2016) […
Q&A: “I read your post about transphobia of Japan….”
anonymous said: I read your post about transphobia of Japan. I identify myself as genderqueer and MtF lesbian. I tried to join the event for lesbians in Tokyo, but they rejected me at the entrance. Because, I have my beautiful beard and my ID says I am biologically male. I was there with my classy black dress, but they didn’t think me as woman! This is so transphobic! Also, I think the term lesbian itself is very transphobic. TERF lesbians should go to hell. We need safe space for queer and non-binary in Japan! i’m really sorry to hear about the shitty experience that you had, anon. sadly, it’s not the first time that i’ve heard of someone having this experience and i suspect that i might even know the event that you tried to go to. it’s incredibly frustrating how a lot of LG(BT) spaces / events in Japan…
A.F.K.
i will be (semi-)AFK from Tumblr Nov. 2nd (Wed) – Nov. 6th (Sun) JST as i’ll be visiting Tokyo and Shizuoka. while i’ll still be around ‘liking’ posts for future reference / reblogging, i won’t be posting or reblogging anything nor will i be responding to asks. if for whatever reason you need to contact me, email (queerascat at gmail dot com) or Tumblr’s messenger are your best bet. as always, i’ll still be active on Twitter, Instragram, Snapchat, and elsewhere, so if you want to check out what i’m up to or see random snaps of what i’m doing (such as the Instagram video above taken during my last trip to Tokyo), maybe follow me outside of Tumblr? either way, 行ってくる！ see you in a few days.
