Sunday, December 17, 2006

Caution: Angry feminist text

Good morning. Another Sunday with cleaning and studying!
Only one week left until my mother’s coming. My friend Taku has offered to drive me to the airport on Saturday and I accepted. So I won’t have any trouble finding the airport and getting of at the wright terminal etc!
The week that’s coming up I have two final exams in Japanese. I have to study a lot. My teacher wanted to take away my tutor because she thinks I don’t need her anymore but I really like my tutor, Tadokoro-san, so I said that I still have trouble reading…I hope they let me keep her. I passed two exams last week, biologi and Japanese. Biology went okay and I think I did quite well in Japanese too.
I had lunch with my old friend’s father, Daniel’s father Mats, on Friday. I hadn’t seen him since I was 16 but we had a nice time eating and talking. He works in Tokyo so I thought I might contact him, and I’m very glad that I did! It was very interesting talking to him, he seems to have done so much. We’ll probably meet again, I really hope so! I hope I’ll get the chance to meet Daniel here too.
Yesterday, I was walking home from the store and this man ran up to me and shouted: “Excuse me miss, could I talk to you?”. I stopped and he began telling me that he was learning English but that he didn’t have any international friends to speak with. I thought it was a little bit strange because he spoke English very well. He continued asking me if I wanted to meet with him and just talk and become friends. I was honest to him and told him that I had to much to do that I didn’t even have the time for the friends I already had. But I asked him if he wanted me to ask at my dorm if someone else wanted to be his language exchange partner. He told me that he preferred if I could try to find time to talk to him but that if I had any other girlfriends he would be happy. “but” he said, “I want them to be beautiful girls like you”. I asked if it was okay with beautiful boys and he said “No”. Hmmm…strange. He also had a very fancy car so I asked myself why he just didn’t find an English teacher. I really wanted to help him even if he seemed a bit weird but he did one mistake and that was to give me his business card. When I came home I googled his work place, Seventh Heaven, and I found out that it is one of Tokyo’s biggest strip clubs! They’re everywhere, the men trying to make you take nude photos or work as a hostess. I already have one other guy that gave me his card. This is the downside of a big city. You can’t trust people because there is always someone wanting to exploit you. Specially as a girl. They know that we are students and that we often need money and as a stripper it’s said that you can make a lots of money. Probably some do but many don’t. The sex industry is very dangerous in Japan, and other countries too. As a stripper you don’t only have to dance you also have to sell drinks which means that you have to consume a lot of alcohol. There are many girls that get raped etc. You also pay the club for dancing so if you don’t sell any drinks or table dances you end up owing the club money. And just stripping is, what I believe, bad for you because you make yourself become an object. And even if an individual is okay with that, women all over the world lose. The costumers that visit these clubs don’t have a good view of women and all they want is to consume you. But as a young girl you’re not always aware of this, and some girls maybe just don’t care. I believe this is one proof of why the sex industry is so negative for women, because wherever we go we are always seen as merchandise, not people. Our body’s are not our own, it doesn’t matter who you are or where you are. I will never have the right to my own body and even if I I try to do something else with my life I will always be seen as something that can be used and sold. People tell me to take it as a compliment but I don’t. It’s actually exactly the opposite, it’s an insult. And then people ask why some feminists are angry! Damn sure I get angry! I told one of the guys in the dorm and he seriously asked me if I was going to call the guy. And he’s maybe right, some girls would probably call him. I’m so happy I don’t have to take my cloth off to make my way through life. I just wish people around me could realize that.

4 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hey Indra--

Your entry isn't necessarily angry, rather, it should be an indication that you're aware of the bigger picture of things going on around you. It is sad to see women exploited, but at the same time I wondering if, in some cases, the women who are approached like you were don't bring it upon themselves? Don't get me wrong, I'm not supporting what happened, nor am I supporting the exotic dancing industry, but I can't help but think that the women who call that number on the card are voluntarily subjecting themselves to the treatment that's in store for them...

Anyways, despite what happened, how else are things going in Tokyo? I just finished final exams as well so I understand how you wouldn't have time to spend with friends. Well, I have to get back to work. Keep the blogs up! Be safe, and have a happy holiday!!

Chi

12:23 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Merry christmas and happy new year!
I'm so happy to hear from you every time!
Yes, you are wright when you say that women that call the number on the card bring it upon themselves. Women are the ones who could put a stop to the sex industry, but the problem is money...as always.
Are you working in New York now? I want to go there soon again, then I'll visit you! Take good care of you! Thinking about you guys all the time!

12:14 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hej Indra!

Jag tror att Jag kan förstå hur illa du kände. Tyvärr stämde det mycket väl som du skrev när det gäller negativ sida av stora städer. Men jag tycker att du har skött dig fint och har kommit så här långt. Fortsätt med din stil på ditt sätt så kommer du att klara av livet.

Snart är det jul igen. Kommer du att få jul ledighet eller full fart med studiet? Jag vill bara önska dig en riktig God Jul och ett Gott Nytt År.

Ha det gott och studera smart.
Kram//Achara

6:38 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hej Achara! Jag hade tänkt maila dig snrt för jag ska träffa din kompis! Men det har skjutits upp några gånger för hon har inte kunnat. Ska träffa henne i nästa vecka! Då ska jag ge henne din present!
Hur mår du? Har du slutat på Octapharma?
Jag önskar dig en riktigt god jul och ett gott nytt år!!!
Kramar

6:18 PM  

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