On September 25, join us in an act of solidarity with the women accusers. At any time during the morning, post a photo of yourself or the attached photo to any of your social media accounts with #BELIEVESURVIVORS. Include the message "I Stand in solidarity with Christine Blasey Ford and all women around the world who speak up against sexual assault." Please also include the hashtag #democratsabroadjapan.

The GOP did what they could to discredit Christine Blasey Ford. She stood strong, and though there is not yet an investigation into her allegations, she will get to testify at a hearing.

Now there are two more women who have come forward with their stories. There is a former girlfriend of Mike Judge's who has verified the wild parties attended during the time they were in high school. There is a Yale colleague who claims she was told that Kavanaugh likes women who look like models to clerk for him.

We don't know what happened. But we stand with those who have gone public with their stories, and at the minimum, demand an investigation into these allegations before the man is put in a position to rule on cases that affect our futures.

I have a daughter. She is 20 and just about to enter the world as an adult. What kind of world will she be engaging in?

America has a president who has bragged about sexual assault.

Republican men are pushing to vote to approve a man to the Supreme Court without investigating the allegations of sexual assault against him.

Republican women constituents are saying things like, “What boy hasn’t done this in high school?”

Why are they so adamantly supporting this man? So they can achieve their decades long push to finally rescind a woman’s right to control her own life.

If there is one mistake we women, democrats, liberals, feminists have made, it is that we mistook winning a battle for winning the war.

Sixty percent of Americans support a woman’s right to choose, so we thought the courts would never overturn it. If Kavanaugh is approved, Roe v Wade will be overturned.

We railed at the states that systematically made it difficult to impossible to retain access to health clinics for health care and abortions, but we never believed it would pass beyond a state’s rights issue. If Kavanaugh is approved, Roe v Wade will be overturned.

We didn’t understand that our fight needed to not only continue despite the gains we made in reproductive rights, it needed to expand.

By the time Phyllis Schlafley stopped passage of the Equal Rights Amendment, women had already begun to reap the benefits of the battles they had won, so work to pass the ERA virtually stopped. Brett Kavanaugh has sided with corporations over regular people on environmental, consumer protection and financial reform issues. If Kavanaugh is approved, many advances we have made—better pay, access to health care, family leave—are at risk of being overturned.

The republicans are hiding the advice Kavanaugh gave to the Bush administration on torture, spying on Americans, court nominees and lobbying. They are likely hiding the fact that the man supported the very policies that stained America’s reputation in the world.

We don’t know what will happen with this nomination. But it isn’t lost on women across the nation that it is a woman who has stepped up to challenge the man who is likely to be the deciding vote on Roe v Wade.

A record number of women are running for office. It isn’t lost on women across the nation that it is other women who are stepping up to challenge the policies that our male politicians have implemented.

Again, it is women who will step up with new ideas to remedy the issues that not only affect them, but all Americans. Because the policies women are striving for—equal pay, justice, better schools, access to reach our potential as individuals—will benefit everyone, even those who are willing to make excuses for men who behave badly.

There are many more battles to come. Unfortunately, we will be fighting some of the same battles we fought decades ago and though we had won.

The only thing you need to do is vote. Vote for democrats. Vote for Democratic women. And encourage your friends and family to vote, too.

You, me, a new batch of Democratic women in office have the power to make the world better for all of our daughters.

Every Thursday, DAJ members meet at the Algate British Pub to talk politics and write our Representatives on the issues important to us. Each Thursday we write them on a different issue. Join us every Thursday or just sometimes. 

Democrats are worked up over the tactics being used by Republicans in the Brett Kavanaugh nomination hearing. So, it was of great interest to attend a dinner on September 11th where we were able to discuss the Supreme Court and election tactics with Keio Law Professor David Litt at the Cheese Kitchen Racler. 

Half of the attendees were women, and much of the conversation entered around the likelihood of Roe vs Wade being overturned should Kavanaugh be confirmed. But we also discussed the Mueller investigation and the impeachment of Donald Trump. The Republicans are campaigning on the idea that Democratic wins in November will mean that Trump will be impeached, but in actuality, the ones discussing impeachment are primarily the Republicans. It is yet another attempt to scare voters to the polls, because, in fact, the Democrats are waiting for the results of the Mueller investigation before jumping to conclusions. While many of us at the dinner, and probably throughout the US, are personally appalled by Trump and want him gone, we confirmed that we are a country of laws and will wait to see what Mueller presents.

 As expected, the food was delicious, the conversation was interesting--and sometimes heated--but it confirmed what I knew all along: we can disagree on so much, but you can sit moderates and progressives and conservative Democrats at the same table, and they will have a reasonable, respectful, and diverse discussion.

With the Brett Kavanaugh hearings underway, this interview with Keio university Professor David Litt is timely and helps put the issues at stake in context. 

Sherry showed up at a DAJ meeting this past January. She was quiet, respectfully listened to the speakers, softly spoke to those around her, then kicked into gear and showed the rest of us how its done. She was crucial to the success of the DA Global Meeting, has volunteered for various GOTV events, and is now ranked #16 among DA members (yeah, that's worldwide) for phone banking, even though it is something she dreaded doing. 

Why did she step up now to volunteer? 

 Why I phone bank

I hate making phone calls. I guess that’s why my husband was incredulous when I said I would start phone banking.

I often recall the words of Julia Bryan, Chair of Democrats Abroad, who mentioned at the DA Global Meeting  that the millions of votes of those of us who live abroad can be the margin of victory for the Democratic Party. Statistics show that only a small percentage of eligible voters abroad actually vote in midterm elections. I feel that I can make a real difference in the upcoming election if I can motivate enough voters who live abroad to register to vote, request a ballot, and then vote. 

While we may not live in the US right now, every single one of us is affected by US policy. Whether we intend to return to the US or just care about our family and friends, or just love our country for its ideals that so many around the world aspire to, we need to make our voices heard. Whether we live in the US or abroad, since the US has influence around the world, we need to make our voices heard for the benefit of US citizens and even non-citizens whose very lives may depend on US policy even though they have no say in making that policy.

In an age where women are making their voices heard, a few Democrats Abroad Japan members gathered at the Pink Cow in Akasaka to discuss the role of feminism in our current political climate. A majority of Americans--men and women-- support equality for women in the voting booth, the workplace and the community,  yet the fact that conservatives have been able to vilify the words feminism and feminist is testament to the difficulty Democrats have at framing their arguments. By focusing on criticising women for how they fight for their rights--too aggressively, too militantly, too much emphasis on minor details--conservatives have been able to dilute the arguments that bind people in solidarity.

The DAJ members were encouraged with the increasing number of women running for political office. More women in political leadership roles will not only offer a diversity of voices and opinions on the matters affecting women, they will address issues that are relevant to the lives of all Americans because there is an intersectionality between women's issues and all the major issues facing our country.

Environmental issues ARE women's issues: environments with clean air and water are fundamental to raising healthy families and overall health.

Class issues ARE women's issues: those in poverty are more likely to be women and children, live in communities with polluted water and air, and have less access to quality education.

Health care issues ARE women's issues: better access to health care affects every member of a family, and since women are often the health care workers and carers, it affects them in the workplace as well as their own access to care.

Race issues ARE women's issues: whether as mothers who have to worry about their children in an increasingly violent country, access to birth control, quality education, and access to higher education and employment, women of colour are far more likely to be adversely affected by local, state and federal government policies.

More women may be stepping up to run for office, but equally important is motivating women to get out to the polls to vote. The majority of women identify with Democratic policies, but if they don't vote, policies that are harmful to their families and themselves will keep them powerless. 

As members of Democrats Abroad Japan, our job will be contact voters in Japan and remind them to request their ballots, to inform them of the amazing candidates the Democratic Party is supporting, and urge them to vote.

We could use your help. In coming weeks, visit this website to learn about more activities and events where you can help Get Out The Vote.

Linda Gould, DAJ Kanto Chair

On August 22nd, Japan will join Country Committees across the world in working to advance the rights of women when DAJ launches its Democrats Abroad Women's Caucus event. 

Women are taking a beating under this administration. But we will not sit back and take it. Democrats Abroad Japan is joining the Democrats Abroad Global Women's Caucus to show our strength, strategize about how to make our issues and concerns a priority to politicians, to identify politicians who help us for our fight for equality and how to motivate people to vote in the midterm elections.

Join us for our first meeting. Our discussion will be "Is feminism a bad label? What does feminism mean in today's environment?" "How do young feminists differ from middle-aged or older feminists?" "Can you be a feminist and NOT support a women's right to choose?" "What issues are important to today's feminists?" 

For more information and to RSVP, go to our events page at https://www.democratsabroad.org/jp-kanto_events

On August 22nd, Japan will join Country Committees across the world in working to advance the rights of women when DAJ launches its Democrats Abroad Women's Caucus event. 

Women are taking a beating under this administration. But we will not sit back and take it. Democrats Abroad Japan is joining the Democrats Abroad Global Women's Caucus to show our strength, strategize about how to make our issues and concerns a priority to politicians, to identify politicians who help us for our fight for equality and how to motivate people to vote in the midterm elections.

Join us for our first meeting. Our discussion will be "Is feminism a bad label? What does feminism mean in today's environment?" "How do young feminists differ from middle-aged or older feminists?" "Can you be a feminist and NOT support a women's right to choose?" "What issues are important to today's feminists?" 

For more information and to RSVP, go to our events page at https://www.democratsabroad.org/jp-kanto_events