Taiga Ishikawa
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| Taiga Ishikawa 石川 大我 |
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|---|---|
| Assembly Member for Toshima, Tokyo |
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| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office April 2011 |
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| Personal details | |
| Born | 1974 (age 38–39) |
| Alma mater | Meiji Gakuin University |
| Website | Official website |
Taiga Ishikawa (石川 大我 Ishikawa Taiga, born 1974) is a Japanese politician and LGBT activist. He became one of the first two openly gay male politicians to win an election in Japanese history when he was elected in April 2011 to a seat in the Tokyo's Toshima ward assembly.[1]Wataru Ishizaka, also openly gay, was elected in the same election to the Nakano ward council in Tokyo.
A graduate of the Meiji Gakuin University School of Law and a native of Sugamo, he previously served as a secretary to SDP chair Mizuho Fukushima, and founded the gay male support organization Peer Friends in 2004. He came out in 2002 at the age of 28 through a memoir, Where is My Boyfriend? (Boku no kareshi wa doko ni iru?). He has since been active in the Japanese LGBT rights movement and has appeared in various series, including NHK's Heart-to-Heart,[2] and has participated in Tokyo Pride Parade.
Political positions
Same-sex matrimonial rights
He helped to successfully lobby the Japanese government to amend the certificate allowing Japanese citizens to marry foreign nationals of the same sex in countries where same-sex marriage is legal.[3] He is campaigning for the creation of a municipal domestic partnership registry for Toshima which would grant ward-managed housing and hospital visitation rights.[4]
Voting rights
He supports extending local-level suffrage voting rights to foreign nationals.[citation needed]
References
- ^ Natsuko Fukue (Tuesday, April 26, 2011). "First openly gay candidate wins in Tokyo ward". The Japan Times.
- ^ Yuki Keiser and Rayna Rusenko (April 2008). "NHK's "Haato O Tsunago : Gays and Lesbians"". TokyoWrestling.com.
- ^ "Ministry clears path to same-sex marriage". The Japan Times. Saturday, March 28, 2009.
- ^ Natsuko Fukue (Friday, March 11, 2011). "Activist fighting for LGBT rights". The Japan Times.
