LGBT JAPAN 2020: The Path to Rainbow Companies [4]Show your support for the LGBT community! Get your "Aliance" now!
Japan's largest LGBT festival, "Tokyo Rainbow Pride 2016," was held from April 29 to May 8. This annual event aims to realize a society where sexual minorities, including LGBT individuals, can live more authentically and positively without facing discrimination or prejudice.
Dentsu Inc. Diversity Lab (DDL) also exhibited at a booth in the vibrant venue. This time, DDL member Ayaka Asami brings you an event report.
Japan's largest LGBT event, drawing over 70,000 participants
"Tokyo Rainbow Pride" is the collective name for a series of events consisting of the "Rainbow Week" campaign held nationwide and the main event in Tokyo.
This year's Rainbow Week, held during Golden Week from April 29 to May 8, featured approximately 60 events nationwide, primarily in Tokyo.
The main event, held over two days on May 7 and 8 at Yoyogi Park in Shibuya Ward, drew 70,500 participants, with the outdoor stage event "Main Festa" and the Pride Parade creating a lively atmosphere.
Pride parades are held worldwide to celebrate LGBT culture and as a platform for social activism. In Japan, Tokyo Rainbow Pride has become the largest such event in recent years. This year's parade route passed through Shibuya's famous scramble crossing, setting a new record with 4,500 participants.
Attendance has been steadily increasing year after year, significantly surpassing last year's numbers. The number of participating Japanese companies continues to grow at a rate that would have been unthinkable just a few years ago.
GET! A-License!
The theme for DDL's booth, now in its second year of participation, is "GET! A-License!"
An "Ally" is someone who supports LGBT individuals by striving to understand sexual minorities, including LGBT people, considering what they can do, and taking action. The term originates from the English word "Ally" (meaning ally or comrade), originally used in the United States. It's a concept that has only recently begun to gain recognition in Japan.
Visitors answered a simple questionnaire to check their Ally status. A professional photographer then took their picture, and we issued them a DDL-certified "A-License". This certificate plays on the words "Ally" and "License" (免許), embodying our wish for more Allies to join and for this circle to grow.
2015 saw a series of impactful developments, including the implementation of same-sex partnership systems led by Shibuya and Setagaya wards, heightening attention on LGBT issues more than ever before. While these systems are driving ripples, such as the birth of new services, the presence of "Allies" is equally crucial.
Start with what you can do as an individual ally, then grow into a collective, and become an ally as an organization. What an individual can achieve and what a collective can accomplish using corporate power are on a different scale.
We believe that an increase in individuals and companies declaring their support for LGBT people will help expand spaces where LGBT individuals can live comfortably while cherishing their unique identities.
Six Rainbow Actions You Can Take as an Ally
Being an ally isn't difficult; anyone can become one if they have the desire to support the LGBT community. However, it doesn't mean "doing nothing is okay"; having the mindset to "take action" is also important.
That's why DDL created the "ALLY RAINBOW ACTION."
1: LEARN!
Gaining basic knowledge is also a form of support. Cultivate an attitude of wanting to understand.
2: THINK!
Always consider: What if the person next to me is LGBT? Reevaluate your words and assumptions.
3: LISTEN!
When someone confides in you or comes out, listen carefully. That's one thing you can do.
4: TALK!
Speak up for those who can't come out. You can be a voice for LGBT people.
5: PROTECT!
Protect LGBT people from discriminatory words and actions. Change the subject or gently correct them.
6: SPREAD!
Let others know you're an ally. Wearing rainbow gear is a good way to show support.
No matter where you start, taking action begins to shift the atmosphere.
Wearing a mark that shows you're an ally is one simple action you can take. DDL created the "I'm an ALLY." mark. Its symbol is a checkered pattern formed by intersecting lines within the six colors of the rainbow. The six-color rainbow represents diversity and is established as an LGBT symbol. It expresses a beautiful world woven not just by LGBT people, but by involving allies too.
The Ally Handbook: A Tool to Spread Allyship
ALLY RAINBOW ACTION also introduced the "ALLY HANDBOOK," which is handed out to licensed individuals. To help people understand and communicate about LGBT issues, it includes infographics that clearly visualize key points from the "LGBT Survey 2015" (※1) and the "Life Unit Survey 2016" (※2) (both published by DDL).
(※1) LGBT Survey 2015: The figure of 7.6% for the LGBT population in Japan made significant news.
(※2) Life Unit: DDL advocates for "Life Unit" as a new term for family, appropriate for an era recognizing diverse family structures.
Observing reactions at our booth, when we said, "We're about to conduct an ally test," some people hesitated, saying, "Huh?! I might fail!" But after talking with them, they'd smile and say, "Well then, I can do it!"
Even those who said, "I'm LGBT myself, so I'm not an ally," actively participated after we explained, "It also means supporting sexual minorities who are different from you."
Dentsu Inc. Diversity Lab will continue to pursue a rich, diverse future where "difference" becomes value, through solutions that embody the Dentsu spirit.
● Dentsu Inc. Diversity Lab (DDL)
To realize a diverse and prosperous future, we focus on four main themes: "Disability," "Gender," "Multicultural Coexistence," and "Generation." We provide companies and organizations with knowledge and concrete solutions related to diversity.
Contact:
URL: http://www.dentsu.co.jp/ddl/
E-mail: diversity@dentsu.co.jp
●About the Diversity Web Magazine "cococolor"
cococolor is a web magazine operated by Dentsu Inc. Diversity Lab, founded on the belief that respecting people's differences as rich "individuality" is key to building a diverse society where everyone can live happily.It covers themes related to human diversity from various perspectives—disability, gender, age, nationality, race, and more—aiming to make diversity feel more accessible and relatable.
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Author
Ayaka Asami
Dentsu Inc.
As a strategic planner, I have been involved in marketing, management strategy, business and product development, research, and planning for numerous companies. In 2010, I joined GIRL'S GOOD LAB (formerly Dentsu Inc. Gal Lab), the industry's first female-focused marketing team. I researched the ever-evolving insights of women and female consumption trends. From 2011, I participated in the Dentsu Inc. Diversity Lab. As leader of the "LGBT Unit," conducted Japan's first large-scale LGBTQ+ survey on the challenges facing Japan's LGBTQ+ community and consumption patterns centered around LGBTQ+ individuals. Utilized these research findings to provide strategic solutions and ideas for companies and executives. Official columnist for Forbes JAPAN. Author of 'The Hit-Making Research Guide: Marketing Research Techniques to Boost Your Product Sales' (PHP Institute). Her core belief is: "When the form of LOVE changes, consumption changes."
