Beate Sirota Gordon 1946
In Japan, she is considered a feminist icon; elsewhere, she is little known: Beate Sirota Gordon. Born in Vienna to a Jewish family, she drafted the articles of the Japanese Constitution guaranteeing women's rights. Sirota was born 100 years ago, on 25 October 1923.

In February 1946, Beate Sirota, a 22-year-old Tokyo-based translator hired by the GHQ Civil Affairs Bureau, scrutinized the constitutions of various countries determined to improve the rights of Japanese women: they had no autonomy in choosing their partners, possessing property, pursuing legal action, accessing education, or voting. They were subjugated by the old Japanese Constitution, which declared: "Women are to be considered incompetent." The Meiji-era Constitution had to be supplanted by a new one drafted by the United States and built on the pillars of democracy and equal rights.

A New Constitution

In February 1946, Japan, now under US occupation, was expected to transform into a peaceful and democratic society that respected equality and civil rights. General MacArthur, Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers, assigned a team to devise a new Japanese constitution in less than a week. Beate Sirota, one of the two women on the team, was assigned to the subcommittee responsible for drafting the section on civil rights. She was an interpreter proficient in English, French, German, Japanese, and Russian. She formulated Articles 14 and 24 of the new Constitution, stipulating newly-established rights of Japanese women in marriage, divorce, property and inheritance. Article 24 abolished the old Japanese domestic law, stating that a wedding had to be based "on the mutual consent of both partners" and "the equality of men and women."

Close ties to Japan

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Beate Sirota 1947
Beate Sirota deeply understood Japanese society, having spent her childhood and adolescence in the country. She was born in Vienna on 25 October 1923 and moved to Japan with her parents when she was five. Her father, Leo Sirota, was a renowned Russian-Jewish pianist from Kyiv, and her mother, Augustine, was related to the conductor Jascha Horenstein. Beate initially attended the German School in Yokohama but moved to California as Nazi influence at the school gradually increased. She spent the war in the United States while her parents were confined in the Japanese mountain resort of Karuizawa. After the war, Beate worked for the U.S. Army and returned to Japan to search for her parents.

In her autobiography, "The Only Woman in the Room," she recounts how she recalled the plight of Japanese families who could not afford to send their children to school or the doctor or sell children to feed the rest of the family. She also remembered the Japanese women who had to share their household with their husband's mistresses.

Beate Sirota was the only woman in the room when Americans and Japanese met to discuss the draft for the new Japanese Constitution - this later inspired the title of her autobiography. She played a vital role as a linguistic bridge between the American occupation authorities and the Japanese government. The Constitution was proclaimed on 3 November 1946 and was enacted six months later.

Decades of silence

Beate Sirota kept her involvement in Japan's post-war Constitution a secret for half a century. It was only in 1997 that she was allowed to reveal her legal contributions in her autobiography. She had concerns that her involvement might have played into the hands of Japan's political right critical of the new constitution, especially since it was a young female non-jurist who had drafted these articles.

According to the Japanese constitutional lawyer Wakao, Article 24 of the Constitution helped empower Japanese women. In 2003, Wakao had the opportunity to meet Beate Sirota during a lecture in Hiroshima and asked her if Article 24 had also inspired her personally. Sirota Gordon responded with delight, admitting that it was the first time she had been asked that question, and affirmed: "Yes! Since I have returned to the US, I have often reflected on Article 24 and endeavoured to live by its principles."

Ongoing constitutional struggle in Japan

In an interview, her son Geoffrey Paul Gordon stated, "both feminism and peace were the two causes that his mother ardently championed." She had immense pride in Article 9 of the Japanese Constitution. The so-called "peace article" forbids Japan from having an army, permits only "self-defence forces" and renounces war. Beate also participated in the - ongoing - struggle to preserve Article 9 and to resist the attempts of right-wing factions to weaken or abolish it, her son says. She gave her final interview on Article 9 to the Asahi Shimbun newspaper before she passed away.

Beate Sirota Gordon, who had married the US intelligence officer Joseph Gordon, returned to the US in 1947. She engaged in intercultural cultural exchange, advocated for performing arts from Asia in particular and led the Asia Society. "East meets West" was her life's theme, says Geoffrey Paul Gordon, as was imparting knowledge about Japan.

Beate Sirota Gordon Award

The Beate Sirota Gordon Award is a prestigious award that recognizes the accomplishments of Austrian or Austria-based artists in gender equality and women's rights. It was established in 2022 by the Austrian Cultural Forum Tokyo in memory of Beate Sirota Gordon, who passed away at 89 on 30 December 2012. The award is given to projects that reflect Sirota's spirit and vision and raise awareness of her achievements. The Cultural Forum created a manga that tells Beate Sirota's story, published in a Japanese magazine.


Links:


References:

  • Gordon, Beate, The only woman in the room: a memoir of Japan, human rights, and the arts; The University of Chicago Press 1997


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