Places, Images, Times & Transformations

Katō Shidzue

(1897-2001). Feminist and politician. Born in Tokyo. In 1914 graduated from the Joshi gakushūin (Peeresses' School) and married Baron Ishimoto Keikichi. Accompanying her husband to the United States in 1919, she met the birth control advocate Margaret Sanger. Shidzue returned to Japan the next year and began compaigning for safe family planning and other women's rights. She later divorced, supported herself and two sons through writings, then later married labor leader Katō Kanju. In the first postwar election in 1946, she and her husband were both elected to the House of Representatives as candidates of the Japan Socialist Party. She was elected to the House of Councillors in 1950, remaining a member until 1974. In 1988 she received the United Nations Population Award. (adapted from Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia. Tokyo: Kodansha, 1993)

There is currently no content classified with this term.

Subscribe to RSS - Katō Shidzue