Being LGBT (Gay) in Japan【同性愛者（日本）】日英字幕

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Jun and I asked our Japanese viewers for their opinions on what it's like to be gay (and lesbian, bisexual, and transgender) in Japan. We got 20 pages of responses from 66 different people, so I think this is a pretty good representation of the spectrum of opinions in Japan! You can read ALL of the comments on our blog: rachelandjun.bl...
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[@AarenYASS]

*"Even if someone is Lesbian/Gay, it doesnt mean they are interested in dating everyone of that gender."* Yep. -

[@bcmasur]

as long as they aren't assholes or idiots :)

[@kokichiouma1831]

Like “sorry Stephanie I’m not attracted to you. I have this thing....called standards”

[@Scones-bones]

Yeah, I dont want to be assumed to love every human near me.

[@user-yv2cz8oj1k]

True, they do get people being open about their sexuality with the polyamorous and those are two entirely different things. Some straight people are polyamorous too.

[@leilahudson9067]

IKR? Just because you like a different gender doesn’t mean that you will date anyone?? Like come on.

[@Jimbo386000]

That is one of the worst parts. If someone says they're gay, everyone immediately thinks they are interested in them and some don't want to associate with them anymore. Also, I told my straight friend that gay guys call me cute more than straight women, which is a shame because I like women, and he said "You better shut that down real quick, you don't wanna encourage them". But I actually like it. I like being called cute and/or sexy even if It's by a guy and I can't return the compliment in the same way.

[@IzumisChild]

That's very brave and empowering of you. Being confident in your own sexuality and accepting the compliments no matter the preference is rare and special in my experiences.

[@realsquidinc7428]

A few of my gay or bi friends will seem pretty flirty, and I don’t really care. They’re my friends, and even if it turns out that it’s not even just joking around, I’ll still love them, because they are my friends. I honestly can’t imagine what goes through a persons mind when they say they hate the lgbtq+ community..

[@peacefulinvasion684]

I never saw why that's an issue. I mean if somebody was interested in me but I didn't return the feeling I'd just politely decline but still be friends.

[@alli9922]

James Corcoran In my limited experience, gay guys have great taste, if I had a gay guy friend in high school I would've let him set me up (assuming he had the sterotypical good taste lol)

[@jishoumushoku5094]

James Corcoran My friend makes gay jokes around his male friends and around me (I’m female). And I personally don’t mind, I think that it’s funny (because I know he’s joking) and I would fully support him even if he was gay. I do get worried sometimes because people can be cruel and sometimes don’t take it in a joking sense. However, I can’t remember how the conversation started but I remember him telling me that he was so comfortable with his sexuality that he felt he could make gay jokes. That really eased my mind and I don’t worry for him anymore. He got a girlfriend recently and still continues to make gay jokes. What am I going to do with him? 😂

[@skypaladin8127]

"Many important generals swung their swords both ways" LMAO

[@_phanxtroyler_3918]

Pun intended??? or not?? 😂

[@sunnyysideeupp]

Sky Paladin MEEEEE

[@Maik55732]

People like you is a disgrace to America.

[@RubbiDuckiLuci]

People like "Kelly" are proof that the US has grown far away from what it was meant to be. But anyway... Kelly... Do you know that the US's anthem says, "never a boast or brag"? And bombing 2 civilian cities, and killing millions of innocent people, isn't something to be proud of.

[@boydiv]

lf 😂😂

[@wintermoons1215]

What blows my mind is how Japan can have yaoi and yuri as a recognized and popular genre of manga and anime, but then not allow real life LGBTQIA people the right to marry and protection against discrimination. To me, with that in mind the existence of yaoi and yuri as genres isn't a form of sort of representation--it's just straight up fetishizing. Especially when you consider yaoi and yuri aren't marketed towards LGBTQIA people; their main demographic is straight women.

[@chuunisoft]

+wintermoons1215 Minor correction; Yaoi is most typically made for straight women, Yuri is most typically made for straight men. But yes, that is pretty much the case. It's typically more of a fetishization of gay men and lesbians than a legitimate representation, though there are naturally some exceptions.

[@digitalchapel]

Fetishizing something doesn't mean it's accepted as a human rights thing. Yaoi and yuri are fodder, not representation... It's why we can have porn here in America and still have issues with acceptance.

[@tsubomikido8960]

I think I should note that there _is_ manga made for at least gay men, by gay men, the bara genre. I'm pretty sure that there's some girl's love series made by lesbians for lesbians too, but idk what it's called. I also should note that, even amongst the shonen ai and shoujo ai genres, while there's _plenty_ of bad stuff (believe me, I know how bad it can get in those genres), there is good stuff that appeals to actual LGBT people as well and was made by creators who _are_ trying to portray it respectfully. Just because Japanese society in general has problems with how it treats LGBT people doesn't mean every single Japanese creator is bad in that regard. Sorry for the slight rant, haha. I'm just an Asian lesbian myself, and this is kind of a topic I'm passionate about.

[@snowyyyyyyyyyyyyy]

yeah i agree. representation doesn't always mean acceptance, and bad representation hurts more than helps

[@raviolibirb8009]

So the logic is : you can be lgbt but do it only in anime or manga

[@PrometheusV2]

"swung their swords both ways" That has to be the best euphemism for bisexuality. Ever.

[@lathyrusloon]

Naruki I'm going to use it forever. XD

[@lahyte_5925]

As I bisexual, I’m using this 😂

[@Hannah_MusicBird]

Koume Gal we should both get some for one just for this purpose

[@mysticflower7795]

I’m stealing it from now on when someone asks me 😂

[@gyppygirl2021]

@Koume Gal Same... at least I can admire the phrasing. lol

[@immystiic3365]

"They swung their swords both ways" HAH

[@toroyoko]

i heard that and I was like ;)))))))))))))))))))))))))

[@miyazaki5471]

+ImMystiic LOLOLLOLOLO

[@Raydr62]

Lol.

[@BenjaminEsposti]

+ImMystiic Yah that gave me a good laugh and a smile :P

[@rqwb-]

We Japanese actually use this phrase, 両刀使い ryoto-tsukai, to refer to bisexual. Kind of strange respect who mastered two skills.

[@SapphicUnderground]

"swung their swords both ways" ... :')

[@starlite04]

I thought it was cute.

[@kerchewy2571]

Me

[@isweartoartistiamanllama8892]

༼ つ ͡° ͜ʖ ͡° ༽つ?

[@lahyte_5925]

As I bisexual, I’m going to use this from now on 😂

[@borzia]

「両刀使い」と日本語で言います。

[@jeffreycampbell8826]

Please consider the following, wherever you live: you may not "think" you know any gay people, but in reality you know more than you actually think. Someone in the video said it perfectly...They may not be out.

[@Whatlander]

I remember trying to explain this to a classmate in grade school, and he actually got mad, all "NO NO THAT'S NOT TRUE" but little did he know...I was the queer acquaintance all along! (villain laugh) I didn't realize at the time either, TBH. Though what disturbs me most is how I remember my parents coached me on dealing with homophobia, but I have NO memory of what happened that resulted in them having to teach me.

[@IamTalathia]

I remember the time a coworker was going on and on, freaking out if "we ever hired a gay person" and I'm there like, savagely eating my lunch at the breakroom table like some kind of rabid werewolf. " you already work with a gay guy, me" and he dead ass didn't believe me because I was the epitome of a werewolf gym rat and 'mean' and didn't 'act like a girl'........ Buddy.

[@sailormoon3726]

@@IamTalathia lmao, it’s honestly funny how this happens so much

[@sejalb725]

@@IamTalathia oh wow :0

[@GenetMJF]

"Gays disgust me but lesbians are ok" Facepalms hardd

[@leojozsa612]

I've heard so many people say that

[@LYO999]

✿MJF✿ or its the opposite with straight girls who like yaoi and they say they hate lesbians

[@rebeccaspearey9788]

✿MJF✿ I get it all the time. oh your a lesbian prove it... like what the hell. or like oh can I watch you do it with another girl... it's horrible but I'm used to it now.

[@user-ge2wq8hw9w]

gay means happy anyways😂

✿MJF✿ I'm a straight guy, Gays-bi-transgender is okay to me but I disgust Lesbians specially the tomboys who stealing all the cute and hot girls. Fuck all those tomboys, I cannot understand why girls think tomboys is handsome and hot. Also I hate hot and cute lesbian couples cause it's a lost for all the straight man.

[@peterzhou372]

Basically it's a "don't ask, don't tell" story of being gay in Japan. I lived in Osaka for a year and was openly gay and got tons of Japanese friends saying I m the first gay people they ve ever met in their life. Even someone asked me that how do gay people date each other....So done with that...

[@rintohsaka1928]

Yeah, so done with people asking you about something they dont know. Fuck em, let them be ignorant. Dumbass.

[@couchpotato5368]

Rin Tohsaka I cant tell if you are being sarcastic or not

[@siv449]

People asking questions is far better than people making assumptions based on your preference, don't you think?

[@steinistein8611]

If you are the first gay person they ever met... Who else would they ask?

[@maschaorsomething]

@@steinistein8611 The Internet?!

[@nickthompson7833]

Swung their sword both ways. I think my lungs have collapsed on themselves.

[@dust7962]

Nick Thompson I guess you could say they thot for both sides.

[@linkinlog8543]

QUICK SOMEONE CALL 911

[@sejcai]

@@linkinlog8543 SOMEBODY CALL 911 SHAWTY'S-

[@linkinlog8543]

Fat Man I COMPLETELY FORGOT I MADE THIS COMMENT AND I HAVE NO IDEA WHY I SAID SOMEONE CALL 911 AND IM DYING

[@miothinkscatsarecute1493]

@@linkinlog8543 thats the reason, you're dying

[@Nononnonooi]

Who else is a bisexual dual swordswinging samurai

[@notsokewlnowisit9905]

I swing it all the ways without caring.

[@jennypinkvalley4714]

Meeeee!!!!!!!!!! XD

[@mcfarofinha134]

me

[@ieatworms7919]

Ayyy over here

[@OriginalCreatorSama]

I don't really swing my sword at all, but I'll "share a dojo" with anybody as long as they're not a bad person!

[@heavenly_spears7954]

2013:no 2014:no 2015:no 2016:no 2017:no 2018:no 2019: *youtube:let's put this in this girl's recommended* 2020: let's do this again

[@n0tr1x47]

2020: Aaand maybe again

[@SuperxLuigi]

Hi Rachel and Jun, We are a GAY and Japanese-american and american couple living in the US. We also have a son who goes to Japanese school on the weekends, and I can tell you that the Japanese community here which includes Japanese-Americans and people from Japan, has been so supportive of us as a family. We have always found that Japanese tend to have a let live philosophy. Thanks for sharing this video about LGBT in Japan.

[@ItsRobinWhoTalks]

Michael & Luigi I feel so happy for you :) Have a great life, guys :)

[@balim00]

Mike brown Dude are you serious? Any two idiots can make a child, but that in no way makes them more qualified to raise a child than these two men. There are millions of couples, gay and straight, who are unable to naturally birth a child and there are millions of children abandoned or otherwise orphaned by their bio parents. To deny willing parents the opportunity to raise parent-less children on a basis that they didn't make the child themselves is beyond ridiculous.

[@ゾロロロノア-v6r]

Haha, "son"

[@btat16]

@@ゾロロロノア-v6r Even an adopted son is still a son so what's your point?

[@ゾロロロノア-v6r]

@@btat16 Yes. But you do know that child needs both mother and father right? Literally, scientifically, technically, and basically.

[@LanceDotJpeg]

I'm gay and also a military spouse. Many nations where the USA has military bases do not allow same sex sponsorship to be stationed there. Japan was one of the first to allow same sex sponsorship! My husband and I plan on visiting Yokohama (横浜市) & Okinawa (沖縄) and one day hopefully live there!

[@midoridoll2753]

That's really interesting! And I hope you have in Japan!

[@LanceDotJpeg]

Thanks! :-)

[@Soraiko]

Lance Buchanan You mean "your man", "husband" has a heterosexual ethymology.

[@midoridoll2753]

SoraikoSan False. Husband is a man who is married. He doesn't have to be married to a woman..

[@LanceDotJpeg]

.

[@joshuapeters567]

That is a funny comment to me :" I'm a straight man, and gay people make me uncomfortable. However, I don't mind lesbians."That is something pretty western.

[@ren_kitsune]

This is not western vs Asian. It's patriarchy for you

[@freerights6695]

It's true tho

[@slop599]

yeah, it's fetishization

[@Jetaimetous]

I really appreciate that you asked your viewers in Japan how they felt instead of making assumptions based on your own experiences. I've seen so many videos where people make vapid generalizations and it's extremely problematic. Thank you for not going that route and instead making something we thought out and informative!

[@Eelanos]

It's kind of bothering me how it looks like japan is all like "Oh, they're foreigners. That's ok, they can do whatever they want. They're just doing foreigner stuff." as if foreigners were just kids doing kid stuff, but when the problem is between japanese is like "Oh my, no, no, no, you can't do that. You will stand out too much." I mean, it's not so bad because they seem mostly accepting, but I really can't get my head around that way of thinking of "It's ok, as long as you're not japanese" Saying this probably sounds really mean of me, and I apologize, as I really don't want to sound mean. It's just what I ended up thinking at the end of the video.

[@pieshka4509]

They have that attitude to foreigners because they didn't grow up in their culture so they acknowledge they don't understand how things go but they'll still find things rude. Their culture (while very in your face when it comes to things like porn and bright and flashy when it comes to TV) is very big on etiquette modesty in how you behave yourself. Like in an episode of Top Gear they were talking on a cell phone while on a public transport bus and they were asked to hang it up because it's rude to talk on the phone on the bus (probably a they don't want to hear your personal business thing), and I've seen else where it's rude to be loud while riding a bus. I learned from a friend that visited that you shouldn't be surprised if you see some older women make gestures about how fat a westerner is.

[@mayanicole3886]

Eelanos I respect your opinion on "us", but there's no need to spread your hate. Not trying to be hateful or anything, but what if I went up to an American kid and said, "well yeah at least you aren't an American."

[@myfatetrulygreat2910]

Eelanos I think to put it simply, it's more like your reaction about not caring any stranger outside of your family circle do something you think it's wrong but you know it's not your business And you can't be not caring about someone in your family doing something you think it's wrong

[@aoarashi3025]

And foreigners kinda stand out already without doing anything. So..

[@greenlilac32]

A lot of cultures are like that. It's like you are taught to be tolerant of other cultures, but in your culture this is how it goes. It's not the best thing because of course Japanese people can be lgbtq too, but eventually they'll have to address it in their own culture.

[@KarrieDreammind5]

The amount of yaoi and yuri in anime&manga sure gives the impression that homosexuality is very common in japanese culture.

[@RonLarhz]

Karrie Dreammind yes thats why its a real mystery if someone like the japanese anime sub culture,how can he or she be anti lgbt?!

[@lplushie4588]

*+RonLarhz* or they. and idk :c I'm into yaoi and yuri too so I don't get why they'd be against it to be honest...

[@decorarockstar]

Karrie Dreammind Reading a lot of daily life style yuri, you get the impression that on the whole, sexuality isn't something really discussed in Japan and young people know that revealing anything about their sexuality is considered a bother so they don't reveal it. Why it is a bother is something else to be researched. The characters always seem to worry what other people will think if they find out they're gay, they think their families wont approve, they think they will be shunned by colleagues and peers, they wonder if it is wrong to love someone who is the same sex, they believe when they get older, they need to get married and have a family because this is what society expects of them. Same-sex marriage isn't a thing in Japan, nor are civil partnerships. I think this attitude within the manga themselves, portrays an accurate attitude of homosexuality in Japan on the whole. There have also been protests against yuri and yaoi being so readily available, giving the impression many people find the homosexual content to be immoral and perverted regardless that the content isn't explicit.

[@RonLarhz]

decorarockstar isnt it legal civil partnership or something recently annouced in one of the state?odaiba?tokyo?cant rmb... anyways,its really stupid.ban hentai and dick festival day(saw an article,not sure if true) first before saying yuri/yaoi or shojou ai/shonen ai is perverted...(im referring to non explicit/graphical stuff).... u know keroro?the kuoichi,seems to give off hints of loving natsumi but its like being write off as straight...they make a cute couple tho,imho...XD

[@鏡音リカ]

+Karrie Dreammind But it's not.. like any not-developed country.. surprise! xD

[@QRoberts]

My mom separated from my dad when I was in my teens and then she told me she was in a relationship with a woman, I also have a friend that I've known since high school and he had me around a few years ago to meet his boyfriend on both occasions I was "oh good for you hope you have a lasting relationship" and I accepted them both as friends, I don't understand how people get scared or worried about LGBT, it's their decision and as far as I'm concerned if they are happy then I'm happy for them and will always wish them the best

[@HANCHANs]

Here's the thing: if you are gay, trans, or nonbinary, it doesn't matter; because that's you. Who cares if you're in another country, or living there - if people don't like it, that sucks. Be you.

[@NyappyHoi]

+RevelationWolfe Except in some countries it's literally forbidden to be LGBT+ and you'll get killed if you are being yourself. So yeah it's kinda a big deal doing research on this issue if you're going somewhere.

[@NyappyHoi]

But you can't KNOW that until you do research about it, that's why this video is made?

[@jean-lucdefreynes7745]

+RevelationWolfe Don't be proud to "be you" when you are a garbage. You are so vain.

[@zoned7609]

+Jean-Luc Defreynes "When you are garbage"? And what criteria exactly are you using to determine this? You sound like an ignorant piece of shit.

[@HANCHANs]

Fancy Chubby Cat Yeah, sorry about that. I wasnt thinking.

[@soomiko]

There are loads of Bi's and Lesbians in my school. (I go to an all girls school) Anyone who is rude to them get isolated. Although if the couple's are too touchy touchy they do get judged but it's just because they do so much pda not because they are bi or lesbian

[@beembamb]

I feel like too much pda is something that all teens regardless of sexuality can agree is annoying lol.

[@RachelandJun]

+SapphireWolf1996 I can't reply to your comment! Right off the bat I want to tell you I have absolutely no knowledge about where the push for that is socially right now in Japan so I am completely guessing based on very limited information. But like some Japanese people mentioned in the comments, it's not as common to loudly protest for your rights in Japan as it is in America. I've heard there are some gay parades and marches and things, but I never heard anything in the news or anything about it where I was with Jun so I don't think it's that big of a social issue yet.

[@selfactualizer2099]

is alot of the people living in japan right now bi/gay?

[@kaizoebara]

diego gaud AFAIK, the percentage of homosexual people is relatively even throughout different cultures and even different ages: around 5%. As for bisexual people it is hard to find out, estimates go from 20-50% but one has to take into account that especially in repressive societies many bisexuals will try to suppress same sex attraction.

[@selfactualizer2099]

hrmmmm, okie

[@komitikki]

What about being an atheist in japan?

[@kaizoebara]

No problem at all. Around 70% of Japanese are non-religious.

[@Roseface1000]

I actually discovered that I was bisexual because of yuri manga. I was 15 when I discovered it. I’m 23 now and I’m still bisexual.

[@IIBRIDGETII]

I go to a Catholic school and the teachers had to sign an agreement saying they would have no gay friends, and when I tell my friends I have Lezbian aunts, they say "Oh, I'm so sorry." WTF? I just respond "They are 2 of the nicest people I have ever met, and are no different." And on top of that, My religion teacher only teaches her opinion. I could care less that the bible says that Same Sex love is wrong, it has become normal to me, as it should for everybody. I hope one day people won't have to come out, because why don't straight people have to come out then? Basically, I hate my school right now :/ They all use gay as an insult, and everyone just laughs. I have to stand up, and when I do, I'm descriminated too.

[@OnitaFreeze]

The bible does say same sex love/sex SIN. They also say living the lifestyle(OMG I CANT STYPE RIGHT NOW) A SIN. Please do not flame me, i have gay friends, i love them, i still preach the word to them, only because one of them is on the fence with FAITH (not religion, specifically christanity which is a faith). the others just ask questions cause they go to many different types of churchs. if you have questions you can ask me though.

[@yusileysierra5605]

onitai fredoza Technically speaking, word for word, the Bible says nothing against a woman being with another woman. It only states that a man shall not be with another man. So ღ☮Dıχıeđøøıšαωešøмe☮ღ aunts will be accepted into Heaven. ;)

[@IIBRIDGETII]

***** Thank you, Seraj, for sending a death threat to an 11 year old...

[@IIBRIDGETII]

***** it was the arch diocese (or however it's spelled) that made them sign it :L

[@IIBRIDGETII]

***** YUS PLZ

[@RachelandJun]

★Subtitles!★ *English* *Japanese* *Catalan* thanks to: seiichibunta *German* thanks to: Gomi Bako *Portuguese* thanks to: renann cabanez de castro souza & Thiago Azevedo *Spanish (Latin America)* thanks to: *See note below *Dutch* thanks to: TheLegendOfJenny *Indonesian* *Italian* thanks to: Scri *Turkish* *French* *Finnish* Want to help subtitle our videos? kzbin.info_video?v=fxQYu4MOFCY

[@capricious8929]

+Rachel & Jun what about being asexual in Japan?

[@tomasdominguez4512]

+Rachel & Jun I can be your 1st gay friend!!!!

[@RachelandJun]

+Vika Miranda I have instructions on how to edit subtitles here! rachelandjun.blogspot.jp/2014/01/r-video-transcripts.html Basically just click the gear button, subtitles, Add subtitles/CC, and then search for the language you want to fix!

[@beyzacanbek1170]

+Rachel & Jun seems like whoever put the turkish subtitles has used google translate and its awful :(

[@lebocharp]

+Rachel & Jun just wanted to say thank you (Rachel and Jun) and all the contributors for the effort behind this video :)

[@maurifumikawa8246]

バイの高校生（女子）です。私は、わざわざ自分から言うようなこと（例えば自己紹介に含めるとか）はしないですが、普通に友達との会話で「彼女ほしい〜」って言ったりしています。「レズなの？」って聞かれれば、「いや、バイだよ！」と答えるけど、何も聞かれ無いことの方が多いです。「そんなもんか」って思っているか、「聞いちゃいけない」と思っているのかは、わからないです笑 親しい友達にはカミングアウトしていますが、「ふーん」くらいの反応でした。私自身は、私自身のセクシュアリティについての理解不足や苦しみを感じたことはありません。ただ、それは私の性自認と生まれた性が同じだからだと思います。 私の親しい友人の1人に、トランスジェンダーの子がいます。彼女は男として生まれたけどずっと自分の性に違和感を感じていて、高校に入って「トランスジェンダー」という言葉を知って救われた1人です。私たちはお互いにお互いがLGBTだと知らずに友達になって、「あ、そうだったんだ！」って感じです。彼女はトランスジェンダーであることは隠していないので、クラスの人は彼女がトランスジェンダーであることを知っています。女子は割と気にせずに彼女と女友達として接しているし、ファッションや恋愛の話をしています。しかし、男子はまだまだ理解が進んでおらず、彼女のことを「女子にかわいいかわいい言われて勘違いしちゃってるだけでしょw」なんて言う人もいます。 彼女がもう男子の制服を着て、男子の体育に参加するのが辛くなり、学校に相談した時も担任から「学校では対応できない」と言われたそうです。彼女が女であることを知っているにも関わらず、彼女の髪が伸びると「髪を切りなさい」と担任は言います。（女子の基準だったら大丈夫な長さなのに、です） こういうところで、日本の学校の融通の利かなさ、柔軟性のなさが顕著に出ているな、と感じます。 「オネエ」という言葉も誤解を生む表現だし、それをあたかも「イジっていい対象」のようにする言葉だと思います。 Twitterの「セクマイ」という言葉はセクシャルマイノリティの略語です。一度検索すれば、普通の学生や社会人にLGBTの方がいることが、よくわかると思います。 まとまらない文章で長々とすみません。日本のLGBTの現状の一端として知ってもらえればな、と思います。

[@QuangTran27]

lol...swung their swords both ways. I see you what you did thurrr

[@Huni-do2oe]

I don't get it

[@kava6109]

it means bisexual

[@shanecamastro2008]

LGBT doesn't just mean gay - it would be nice to know how Transgender and non-binary folks experience life in Japan. My partner is Japanese and genderqueer and it's important not to amalgamate all these identities into a monolith notion of identity.

[@RachelandJun]

When we created this video we had a lot of questions about what "LGBT" means so I added gay to the title so they would understand the subject. When we asked Japanese people about it, we asked about all parts. The responses you see here plus the rest on our blog are what they gave.

[@tamaraeva3019]

Rachel & Jun I think it's because there is a lot less transgender people than gay people. And if there is so little gay people, imagine how many trans people there would be in Japan. I don't know about anybody. Even here in Czech Republic people sometimes transition and keep it a secret.

[@Kxd5160x]

In addition to Rachel's response, if you actually watch the video you would know that she talks about all the differences.

[@RachelandJun]

***** "When we asked Japanese people about it, we asked about all parts. The responses you see here plus the rest on our blog are what they gave. "

[@ravengrey8891]

Rachel & Jun Jun you are so hott

[@adamyasmeen]

What really upsets me is the fact that some people say that 'If gay people didn't stop shouting out about it, we wouldn't care!'. First of all this isn't just about gay people but all sexualities, however, for simplicity, I'll be using gay as the collective term. ...The only reason we shout out about it is because we are still oppressed. You may think that it's okay now and 'practically everyone is fine' but, whilst that is true, there are still people who want attack us because we are attracted to the same sex! 'Straight people don't have to come out so why should gay people? It's annoying and that's why I hate gays!' ...What? We have to come out because according to society (and people like you, it's unnatural!). We DON'T want to come out, we DON'T want to have to shout to be heard, we DON'T want to parade for rights! We have to. We have a right to be treated equally so we can just be who we are without having to announce it. But for us to be able to do that, we have to shout. And until it's done, we wont stop.

[@mcgoo721]

Also pride parades are no longer exclusively gay. They and similar events are about celebrating sexuality in general, a natural part of anyone's life. Youre right too about gay people only coming out to show that they are normal. I like how when an nfl athlete came out the same people complaining about it being newsworthy were the same people viewing him differently.

[@nikkfrostt]

The people who hate those coming out as gay will not be swayed by logic. To be angry because something exists is not a logical position.

[@aurourus6894]

Woah great how about you stop bothering us and get the fuck out of my recommended.

[@aurourus6894]

You have to accept the fact that other people will be uncomfortable with your abnormalities, part of being accepted is understanding that you're not normal and not rubbing the topic into people's faces because you feel "oppressed", this is how you get people to hate you, by constantly bringing up the topic.

[@aurourus6894]

You just proved me right.

[@andriup]

I got a gay dating app ad before this video. XD

[@Marco.91]

me too

[@andriup]

#nohomo tho

[@cocoapixels]

Children of God If be cant accept that Im gay, then he doesnt really love me can go fuck himself. But I believe that he does!

[@tylhsvll]

andriup ii

[@indigobeah]

andriup I think you #fullhomo we're discriminating over here

[@laurenmac1999]

To answer that one guy's question about Catholics: you either suppress your feelings or leave the Church for a more accepting community.

[@gisellecastro5409]

Lauren McIntyre not really it depends cause my friend is gay and he comes to church and is still loved by everyone in our community (were catholic)

[@PatManDX]

You have to admit though, that sort of welcoming environment is generally rare.

[@beepot2764]

Lauren McIntyre not true everywhere. I went to catholic school and church for 18 years and there were several out couples, gay singles, and 3 couples who were married and had adopted children. Very much accepted by the church and valued members of the community. I know that the other churches in my deanery, were the same. American catholics are fairly liberal.

[@starry_lis]

The Cathlic Church's official stance is that it's okay to be gay, but not to do gay.

[@merro2867]

There is nothing wrong with being gay , but doing the gay r18 isn't encouraged . You don't necessarily leave the church but you'd be identified as a secular Catholic , like there are the liberal and ritualistic . They won't kick anyone out and in the case of Catholics that support gay rights , there's nothing wrong with supporting marriage and protection rights because it's for the benefit of other humans. I'm considered a straight ally because I , technically am straight by preference and also Catholic , but there's nothing wrong. Merely the idea of sin is about intent of the action . If you're doing the r18 out of lust , then it's a sin but to me , being gay isn't a sin because if you love the person and not lust after them , then there's nothing wrong.

[@mcostagirl123]

I laughed at the comment "I'm straight and gay people make me uncomfortable, but I'm fine with lesbians".

[@Nitro_GamePlay]

XD sounds like a straight guy

[@mcostagirl123]

***** gay ass video wtf?

[@iamraynbow]

You really have to respect the quality and sheer amount of work yourself and Jun have put into this video. Many other people would have made educated guesses on this topic based on their personal perception of Japanese culture rather than asking their subscribers. I truly, truly admire and respect your approach. With regard to the content, my hope is that some day LGBT Japanese people have the confidence and self awareness to live their lives as they see fit. Not necessarily loudly "proclaiming" their sexuality to everyone, which very few gay people ever do. I know I didn't.

[@CartelSaide]

I really, really appreciate that you and Jun would make this video and take the time to translate all those comments. I'm a pansexual transman (female to male) and I've always had a dream of living in Japan, but the way they treat LGBT people has always been a concern for me. I'm not super loud and proud about it, but if it ever came up in conversation I wouldn't deny it either and I didn't want to feel like I had to deny myself just to live my dream. I still have to do more research and actually visit Japan, but what was said here really relieves me. If all I have to do is explain I was born female but I'm actually a male and avoid bringing it up at work (psh, like I would anyway) then I'm a pretty happy camper. Thank you so much again for making this video! Many well wishes both of your ways :D

[@azjeffs]

It sounds like it's not horrible for gay men, except they probably get treated a bit like a joke by some people... For lesbians and trans people it would probably be even harder to come out.

[@azjeffs]

+Ash Phthalo It was interesting to hear a lot of diverse and respectful opinions from straight people but it would be good to hear more perspectives from Japanese LGBT people.

[@ReptilianTeaDrinker]

+Chris Lin This is completely true. It's best just to care about the ones who are accepting and nice, instead of the ones who are prejudice.

[@azjeffs]

+HardcoreHamster33 It's easier said than done when it's your family who are the prejudice ones. I'm lucky my family accepts me but all my Japanese gay and lesbian friends have problems with their parents because of their sexualities.

[@ReptilianTeaDrinker]

Ash Phthalo Good point. Me too. My family have been very supportive of me, but sadly, not everyone has an accepting family. :( It's a shame, and sad to hear that it's that way for them.

[@ReptilianTeaDrinker]

Chris Lin :( That's a shame.

[@mtber75]

How about the family's reactions? I know that in China and Korea LGBT are strongly discourage because it goes against the family unit.

[@Raydr62]

Yup.

[@Raydr62]

Not family unit it's family honor.

[@haelotny6523]

The thing is, I'm gay and I've always wanted to have kids. Biological kids who are related to me. So I'm somewhat bothered when people think your child being gay automatically means you won't have grandchildren. I plan on marrying the man I love and then having children via surrogacy. And then raising our kids with my husband (in my opinion, the surrogate mother can have a maternal/parental relationship with our kids too if she wants to). I wish more straight people realised that wanting to enjoy sex with women and wanting to reproduce are not the same things. You can be straight and not want to reproduce. And you can be gay and have the will to reproduce. You don't need to find a lady attractive or sexually enjoy the act of coitus with her to impregnate her (and the lady doesn't have to be straight either). You just need to ejaculate while inside her. Heck, these days you don't even need to engage in actual coitus; a surrogate lady can become pregnant by your sperm via artificial insemination.

[@markigirl2757]

Hael Otny i was adopted and before I was brought home my grandparents were against me Bc I wasn’t their grandchild by blood but as soon as my parents brought me back they completely changed their minds and accepted me as their own family. Your parents might be against it at first but as soon as they see the baby they most likely will change for the better

[@luismacias3146]

@@haelotny6523 surrogacy is not as easy as looks on tv tried to get into it it's expensive and not very guarantee

[@LovelyLies16]

I have a question. If you cannot answer or find someone who can answer, then it's okay. I read online about how while LGBT marriage isn't legally recognized in Japan, a same-sex couple CAN be legally married overseas. But, what if that couple returns to Japan? Is their marriage still considered valid or no?

[@LovelyLies16]

***** Really? Because when I looked it up, I read that Japan doesn't legally recognize gay marriage. Even in my anime that is recent, released in past December that is in the yaoi genre, the main couple mentions how getting married just isn't possible. So, I am almost sure that Tokyo doesn't allow LGBT couples to marry. Unless I missed something recently, that is.

[@LovelyLies16]

+4A3232562157566 Junjou Romantica. The latest OVA.

[@TheTruth-xp2of]

+LovelyLies16 The laws as written, state marriage as being between man and woman. So no, same sex marriages are not accepted at city hall. The municipal district of Shibuya, Tokyo however has their own same gender partnership decrees, and recognize same sex unions even though they can't get legally married. Changing the laws is a hard affair. While Tokyo is fairly liberal and progressive about LGBT rights, rural Japan can be quite conservative, and prone to rejecting change for the sake of rejecting change.

[@humimeyra8346]

Nope, but they could be in a partnership and approve of some rights of married people. So far I know, Japan supports partnership.

[@justinedautelle7737]

Well I've heard Japanese gay couples getting married overseas. I don't know if they are legally recognized though. I'm not too sure about this but something similar to marriage is adoption like that they will share the family registry so if they want to have a similar legal relationship one of them adopts the other. i have no idea if it's widespread but some ppl do it. (sorry if this doesn't make sense)

[@Aria_9653]

I'm a 15 year old girl who lives in Australia. I'm bi and I'm completely open about it, and although I've never actually had any girlfriends I have kissed and have had crushes on numerous girls. Quite a few of my friends are gay, lesbian and bi, and I completely support every single one of them and so do all my other friends who are straight. When I was around 11 or 12 I asked my mum at dinner "Is it ok for me to like a girl?" My parents were completely fine with it, or were just being nice because I was so young, but they accept me all my friends do too. If your gay, lesbian, bi, trans or anything else, don't be scared to come out. I know it's hard but it's worth it, to not be curled up behind a shield and pretend your not. So if your scared to come out or you know someone who is, just remember and tell yourself this... I can choose my friends and I can choose my family, If they won't except me then others will have me.

[@dannybritzman8155]

Word. I totally agree. And also props to you for being brave enough!

[@강민-e3w]

@@tatulirawrr1297 omg we have the same story lol

[@ktpetals]

FYI: transgender is not a noun. It is correct to say "transgender person" or "transgender man/woman".

[@KD-ou2np]

Yeah I'm sure a transman would blow these peoples minds since it seems like their only understanding of gender non-conformity is drag.

[@cryyuni]

I will be that person lmao

[@meribor]

Correct. Transgender is an adjective. No one is "a transgender," nor can anyone be "transgendered"

[@extra_cheesy]

oh stfu

[@Yullenator]

I've been living in Japan or about a year now, and the heteronormativity is frankly disgusting. People often make inherently/casual queerphobic remarks. The equivalation of gay = trans is also extremely annoying. I'm pansexual myself, and I feel pressured to go along with people's assumptions that I'm straight much more than in Canada. By the way, I can't believe this vid left out the most important part: in Japan, being gay is seen as a huge inconvenience because people assume that homosexuals cannot have children (they should import turkey basters, lol P: ). There's huge pressure in Japan to get married to the opposite gender and have kids because of the low birth rate. Pederastry was rampant in Japanese history, but that was likely more because women weren't seen as equals, just belongings. Also, in smaller town, homosexuality is much more looked down upon. But on the other hand, Boys' Love subculture is a huge widespread phenomena. I'm a fujoshi, and fujoshi are pretty common. In N. America, finding fudanshi (the male equivalent) is nigh impossible, but they exist here (few, but much more). Free! (heavy gay subtext, or rather just text) And DRAMAtical Murder (homoge, or homoerotic BL visual novel) are extremely popular, and even with Attack on Titan there's a lot of shipping and even a canon lesbian couple in that. There are also a ton of live-action BL movies, but in N. America, gay movies usually just end up about being gay.

[@astridcrewel7678]

My fujoshi friend, come give me a hug for that awesome comment! :)

[@tejhayyy3901]

***** I wish you would get off KZbin because you need to pick up a book and learn proper sentence structures. The insults might actually hurt if they were at least typed correctly, troll or not.

[@tejhayyy3901]

***** But it doesn't forbids you from wishing death upon others? Maybe it forbids you from saying such words because it wants you to think before you go around saying things? Which do you think would be worse, cursing at someone and pissing them off for a moment or telling someone to off themself?

[@tejhayyy3901]

***** And who gave you that right to judge who deserves to die? Any religion I know of says to leave the judging to their God. Are you calling yourself a God?

[@tejhayyy3901]

***** Hmm. You know what? You're right. It's not right to judge anyone, but people are going to judge regardless. In the case of Nazis, I say a simple death is too good for them. But what I don't get is why you are wishing death on someone just because they don't have the same sexuality or opinion as you? If they actively harm or abuse others, that's one thing. But if behind closed doors they are with someone of the same sex, what does it matter to you? As long as they aren't all in your face about it, anyway.

[@RavynSkye617]

"I hear a lot of stories about gay people attacking other people" That sounds like a yaoi cliche, with the seme/uke dynamics often portrayed in yaoi stories. That doesn't sound like real life to me at all. Speaking as a bisexual woman, who lived in Japan, Japanese seem to believe that I wasn't a sexual orientation, so much as sex with both genders was just something I did, that didn't define me as a person, the same way the label 'bisexual' defines a person in the west. I was EXTREMELY picky about who I told, and never had a relationship with another woman while in Japan, although there were certainly lesbian women around, and I could tell they were lesbians, I never brought it up to them, because I didn't want to seem rude.

[@raychumon]

RavynSkye1 i said please. not sure why you're feeling the need to rant but whatever makes you feel better. oh please. if you can't handle someone typing bluntly on the internet that's really not my problem nor does it contribute in any way to any sort of injustice going on in the real world. me not saying "oh please please dont use these words please im so sorry to correct you uuuuuu" doesn't mean i'm being rude. chill. did you really just write 5 paragraphs because you don't like the way i type. sigh.

[@RavynSkye617]

k- hitman - Probably the snarky, bitchy-seeming attitude of 'it's hurting my eyes' to see a single instance of inappropriate vocabulary usage. I'm a linguist and inappropriate vocabulary usage, especially for vocabulary from what is considered a subculture is not uncommon for someone who has been out of the country for a decade. It really annoys me how annoyed you seemed, especially given how many non-native English speakers I've dealt with in my life... If I had that kind of reaction to a single misuse of terminology, I'd have probably started punching people by this stage in my life and career. You... MAY not want to travel overseas, especially to a country like Japan, where almost NO ONE speaks English, but MANY will want to practice their English with you. It will drive you insane if you can't handle mistakes or have no patience for lexicography related mistakes, grammar errors, misspellings, misunderstandings, or just plain gibberish coming from someone's mouth on occasion.

[@RavynSkye617]

Trans, yes. But when I was growing up in the 1990s, it was a scandal to have Rosanne give a tiny kiss to another woman on her show, Rosie hadn't come out yet, and Ellen's sitcom was cancelled when she came out. YOU DON'T KNOW HOW FAR WE'VE COME IN SUCH A SHORT TIME, and when I was 14, I was thrown out of my school for kissing another girl, do you REALLY think, when I was 18, four short years later, when I left for Japan, it was like it is NOW...? You have NO IDEA... So YOU fuck off, because YOU don't know what it was like when people like ME were fighting school boards just to be let in to school, taking punches from kids, and marching on my state capital while still in high school, all in a social climate where I didn't have a Macklemore telling me that I was 'okay', and didn't have didn't have a Gaga telling me I was 'born that way'. FUCK OFF.

[@raychumon]

RavynSkye1 you're telling me your little life stories and getting so extremely defensive for the simple reason of the fact you made a mistake and now refuse to admit it was due to your ignorance on a community you previously claimed to be a part of. i don't give a shit what happened when you were younger. your personal experiences don't fucking excuse you. if a white man cries about being bullied in school, does that mean he's excused to make racist jokes? get over yourself, drama queen.

[@Zorbelth]

k- hitman I'm sorry to tell you, but you're definitely in the wrong here. In your comment where you said that your eyes hurt when Raven misused the terminology, your word "please" didn't count for anything, because by that point your tone was already condescending and it only came off rude and counterproductive. You are so full of your own attitude, that you cannot see past it. You have a bad attitude, and it's not a question of your typing. Even through text you can deliver many things, and so far you've delivered intolerance and short temper. Certainly things have been hard for the sexual minorities, no one is denying that. But responding to past abuse and violence with abuse and violence does not solve a thing. What we need is more mutual understanding. A person to whom it is not of immediate concern will be unlikely use their time to learn things about sexual minorities or their terminology by themselves. But we want even such people to have some education on this front as well. Being spiky, bad tempered and foul mouthed will not make anyone listen to you. Talking only inside the groups of sexual minorities will not solve a thing. Just like the problems of women with men will never be solved by not talking to men about it. To solve the problems women have with men, you need to talk with men. And you need for the men to listen. This is the same thing, expect now you want for the sexual majority to hear you out on sexual minorities. For a person that is well enough acquainted to the subject of sexual minorities to even know what trans means and attempting to use the more specific terms of transman and transwoman, it is obvious that they are TRYING. Shooting people down for trying their best is the opposite of attempting to gain and spread mutual understanding. And I'm sure that any reasonable transperson would be able to see this, and calmly explain the difference. Not all sexual minorities know other sexual minorities very well. Also, even without the straight people, people in sexual minorities can be terrible to each other without outside help. They can be equally bigoted as the most bigoted straight person, they are just excluding different people, picking on different people. That's why not only straight people need education on sexual minorities, everyone does. Everyone needs education on mutual understanding and tolerance. You also made yourself a shield with "people are out there killing themselves over this". That is certainly true, and that is very sad. It makes me sad that you would make it your shield to excuse your terrible attitude and behaviour. Just as you claimed that Raven's past doesn't excuse her, neither does your past or experiences excuse your attitude. Furthermore, adopting a bad attitude on behalf of others is also counterproductive. Raven is also correct that all terminology regarding sexual minorities is linguistics. Any labeling is linguistics, and sexual minorities are full of labels. Transwoman and transman are also labels. So misusing a single word is a matter of linguistics. The problems concerning sexual minorities will be solved with mutual understanding, which can be achieved without a bucketful of specific terminology. You want to be understood and heard, but you are not willing to understand or hear others.

[@pmg2590]

"Before we started to import Western Ideology". Western ideology bases are in the ancient roman and greek culture which both accepted homosexuality as natural as probably ancient and medieval japanese culture did. Catholicism evilized homosexuality, not Western Ideology.

[@guitarstorm91]

the Roman empire also practiced pedophelia so is not a good example of tolerance

[@aerach5040]

Roberto Alejandro León Correa Wow, I honestly didn't know this and now I feel uncomfortable haha... :c

[@pmg2590]

Ezekiel Morris Inaccurate - Christianity and catholicism are NOT the same thing, in a first place. Ancient roman culture was wiped out way before the 10th century, but it doesn't matter anyway. Westernism has roots in the ancient roman culture, and both of them have little less to do with homophobia. What I wanted to say is that homophobia is more of a religion-related problem.

[@pmg2590]

that's My point!

[@wild-radio7373]

And!♡! ...as far as my reading of it, 'the book' is referring to prostitution, without consent, which jurks twisted into the book saying that gay was bad... Dang book and its different versions that noone reads for themselves. Makes me sad. People I love are gay, and it just makes it sadder...

[@Makkis]

So in short: christianity kinda messed up

[@bea.of.ameadow8029]

Actually it was the people the bible doesnt say it was a sin. Many people twist the words to form there ideas and make it sound ok. People did it with slavery, sexism, and such.

[@OriginalCreatorSama]

No, radical Christians who don't actually follow God's teachings fucked up. Jesus hung out with lgbt folks and accepted them, even if he didn't approve of their lifestyle, he still treated them well and told others not to judge/condemn them because that wasn't their job, it was God's. I am asexual, agender, and biromantic. I am also Christian and often embarrassed to be in the same group as westboro and other radicals using the name of my belief system to spread hate.

[@ghosty8187]

Creator Sama As a pansexual non-binary person who is also Christian it also embarrasses me how some of the Christians act. And I hate westboro too. I hope some people will understand how not all Christians are bad, but a majority of them make us look bad.

[@Jimadaraa]

@@OriginalCreatorSama THANK YOU FOR POINTING THAT OUT LIKE I DON'T WANNA SOUDN SELFISH BUT JESUS CHRIST

[@swietosawagromowadna7957]

@@OriginalCreatorSama Can u tell me where in the Bible Jesus hung out with LGBT people.

[@aetherdemigod]

imma use the expression "I swing my sword both ways" to express my bisexuality~

[@ASMRJapan]

Excellent video!

[@lilyjade3450]

"however, I don't mind lesbians" That. Is gross.

[@LikaLaruku]

"Japanese pressure puts a lot of pressure on assimilating." Makes me want to see "Japanese People React to The Borg from Star Trek."

[@g1ng3rsn4ps]

Hopefully one day the whole world will understand that LGBTQ is natural and just as 'normal and okay' as heterosexuality and anything else :)

[@playercero]

Probably not.

[@mysticalcarter]

before a certain western religion and a certain demograpic it was common and not made a big deal of

[@cooljazzyjazz]

mysticalcarter Thank God for Christianity.

[@mysticalcarter]

***** lol no biggest mistake in history

[@cooljazzyjazz]

mysticalcarter Lol, I'm serious thank God for Christianity

[@TransGuyShane]

I wonder if this has changed over the last few years. I'm a transgender male and Im learning Japanese as i wanna live in Japan one day :)

[@ms.anthropia]

Apparently, they have, at least from what I've been reading. I'm the same, trans girl, wanting to learn Japanese.

[@kateraprohaski]

i hope over time they change! i'm a lesbian, i would really love to move to Japan someday and have kids, but I feel like I wouldn't fit in and be out of place. But honestly in America (where I live), some people will still judge me anyways

[@starrynight669]

I'm a bisexual girl who is also learning Japanese to go live in or at least visit Japan one day. It's a dream that will probably never happen though

[@LnPPersonified]

I had a suspicion that Japanese would be pretty relaxed about homosexuality. It's not a social norm, and they're all about social norms, so I can understand if they're a little bit uncomfortable about it, but without any religious prohibitions there's really no reason to reject it. Good on them!

[@pickled_sausage]

I think it's mainly the younger generation rather than the country. The older folks tend to be the least accepting, no matter what country.

[@MCistheOG]

I am a transgender man and I plan to study abroad in Japan, this video made me less scared about going to Japan.

[@CutoDracon]

Damn Western culture and Christianity. lol

[@Joyzyii]

+CutoDracon Never like Islam...Bruce Jenner would have lost his head as soon as he thought about coming out if he lived in the Middle East.

[@MrDirtBaggins]

+Joyzyii Quite literally

[@ericken]

+CutoDracon Damn leftists!

[@foodham3277]

+CutoDracon that why i hate how closed mined western people are

[@MrDirtBaggins]

***** Chill out friend it was a joke.

[@2Ensta]

Do they not come out because Japan has very repressed sexuality and rigid social structure?

[@DieRuhe]

+BUILD THE WALL Yes.

[@KazukiP]

HOW GREAT IS THAT THOUGH YOU DONT EVEN HAVE TO COME OUT YOU CAN JUST BE LIKE "Oh hey mum btw I forgot to tell you, I'm gay, anyway I'm gonna go find something to eat in the fridge"

[@ZoraPancake]

+Dreamer-P ボーカロイド it's not great at all. it means people are forced to not express or be themselves openly for fear of prejudice/being treated differently etc. 'not feeling comfortable to come out' and 'not wanting to come out because you don't feel you need to' are two very different things. if you don't want to come out because you don't feel the need to label yourself or don't feel it's important or whatever reason you have, then great. but what's being described here are people who likely would want to come out and be themselves openly but, rather, are uncomfortable doing so due to society and its social structures. (also, what you described in your comment is quite literally coming out)

[@cutelenne01]

Im ok with not being able to express ones self than expressing them and other people act like you're OK the way you are when they're spreading crap about you and ruin you, You think u can be happy being you but soon or later you'll snap back to reality w/c is sad....

[@mikeyizquierdo6239]

I think that coming out is more of a choice, a lot of people don't actually want to do it, and the are/should be free to make that decision, is not like you have to tell them in order to feel adequate or valid, but homo phobia and the like kind of perpetuate the idea that coming out, or not doing so is bad in some way

[@realmofthemisunderstood166]

I want nothing more than to live in a place where homosexuality isn't a big deal either way. It's a little annoying when people push homosexuality and make a big deal out of it and I can't stand people who are hateful towards gay people or have illogical prejudices. Same goes with transgenders and transvestites, I don't believe it should be a big deal either way.

[@smaske]

+justine schmitt I get where you're coming from, but a lot of the "loudness" about LGBT is from the movement towards rights for LGBT (mostly gays and lesbians) in the west. Remember that the world is changed because of the education to the general public on these issues. I feel the same way about you today, being a gay man living in Denmark - mostly because it really isn't a big deal (remember, that is my experience). The trans community still doesn't have the same ground to stand on as LGB persons. So what my point comes down to is that yes, you and I may feel like its being blown up when it doesn't need to be, but there is still resistance in the general public towards LGB and especially Transgender, so the fight isn't over - depending on where in the world your from; some places they're not even started yet.

[@toroyoko]

I'm gay and I see where you're coming from about the lgbt community making a big deal. I honestly don't care if someone comes out. Like, great. now move on with ur life! I've seen multiple coming out videos and I don't know why people want to put that out there? I wish that claiming that you were gay wasn't something out of the social norm and that no one really cared about who you liked

[@foodham3277]

TheOinache why should people HAVE to come out, being gay is not different from not being gay, why must we have to "come out"

[@toroyoko]

coollolkid on youtube I don't know. when I came out to some of my close friends, I didn't make a big deal out of it and they were like "okay, cool". the way I see it, the more big of a deal you make coming out to others, the more you'll be bullied. I say this because people who make such a big deal out of coming out are usually passionate about it and are usually easy to target. but if people don't make a big deal out of coming out, others will know that the person doesn't really care, thus, they can't get much of a reaction from them if they throw homophobic slurs at the person. all that bullies want are reactions. I don't know if this will make any sense, but it was just my 2 cents

[@foodham3277]

TheOinache i don't really come out i just talk about chicks like how girls talk about guys and i also get asked a lot by girls "oh do you think his hot" and i always say "i don't know, cuz i only find girls hot" but i don't run around saying i'm gay (well lesbian) i just act like any normal girl, only think she is cute not he, plus worry about bully about some thing you change change sucks, i mean when ever people look at me i wonder (am i so gay that they can tell) but in the end there just being bitches

[@sala509]

👏👏👏 to the courtneyriottt person, I am a lesbian and I HATE when people assume you are attractive to all females you meet. If you are hetero you aren't attracted to every male or female... Right?

[@Evanandrachel]

Wow, great work Rachel and Jun! You guys obviously worked hard to translate and gather all the comments. Korean society is similar as far as LGBT goes. Really interesting!

[@rebeccaspearey9788]

that's really sad. I'm a lesbian and I love Japan but to think that there might people be who want to come out but can't or don't want to in fear. it was hard for me to come out I wasn't expected I was kicked out of my house and lived on the street until a friend took me in but after I talked to my family and explained to them what I was feeling they understood and that was very hard for me :/ but I still did it, I wish I could help people that are feeling the same way I did. I Also get the fact that it makes some people uncomfortable like how different things will make me uncomfortable, but I'm so glad someone said about that even tho you may be gay or lesbian you don't like every person the same sex as you. I think the understanding comes with time. at first it's a surprise but you get used to it. that's my opinion. great video BTW :)

[@tSp289]

I prefer this system, in principle. I have no problem with people being gay, but I am deeply annoyed by campness (whether it's men or women doing it), and so I tend to avoid gay men who are obviously gay, making me look a little homophobic. I think if someone is gay/bi/etc. that's fine, but it's not something to be either proud or ashamed of. It's just a thing you are. So no 'out and proud'; just be what you are without being obnoxious about it.

[@LordVader1094]

Same here.

[@Magikalic]

We shouldn't have to hid ourselves just because of your discomfort.

[@tSp289]

MagicEve Did you read my comment? I don't care if someone is gay, openly or otherwise. I'm annoyed by campness and the kind of obnoxious "Look at me, I'm gay!" thing that some people do. I suppose it's because I grew up with one of my best friends having two mothers it's just normal to me. Both of them were just nice calm, normal people. I didn't encounter one of the screamy/bitchy flamboyant type until much later and found it really off-putting. And yes, everyone's different and people can express themselves and identify with their groups, I think it just feels insecure and a bit hostile when someone gets that caught up in one aspect of their identity, much like when someone's and extreme flag-waving nationalist or something. Hah, maybe it's because I'm British. We just don't do that sort of thing on the whole: I've never waved a flag in my life. The only people I've seen displaying a british flag on their clothing, wall or whatever (except at sporting/national events) were from Hong Kong and Vietnam. I suppose Brits just go for a quieter, more self-deprecating kind of pride.

[@governmentscheisse]

Sorry to break it to you, but you're a homophobe. You're basically saying, "I don't care if they're gay as long as they're not gay". And it's easy for you to say this because you're straight. You're not told that you are wrong by millions of people in the world. You're not oppressed as a straight person, beat up, bullied for your sexuality, or anything of the like. The reason "out and proud" is a thing within the LGBT community is because we're told that we should be ashamed. I'm sick of you homophobes hiding behind this bullshit about how you "support gays but not if they're stereotypical". Believe it or not, camp gay men aren't camp on purpose, it's just how they are, it's how they express themselves. To tell a gay man you only support him when he's not "acting gay" isn't supporting that gay man.

[@tSp289]

governmentscheisse I also don't like people who are louts. Does that make me a heterophobe too? As I've said, I grew up next door to a lesbian couple who I am still on good terms with. 3 of my school friends ended up coming out as gay and you know what? Still friends. They didn't change, I still like them. There was one though, one really annoying one who was in my circle of friends and was alright most of the time except for outbursts of extreme dramatic campness that put my teeth on edge. She was a girl. And she was straight. My point? I don't care what sexual orientation someone has, only how they act. I am perfectly happy to go out drinking with my friend and his boyfriend. Yes, I'd get uncomfortable when they start making out, but then I get like that when heterosexual couples do it too, at least out in public. Campness is not an orientation, it's a behaviour. It's deliberate and affected and I find it deeply, deeply annoying. Arguing that that makes me homophobic is like arguing that my dislike of anime makes me racist, or that because I don't like high heels on women I'm misogynistic. You're just wrong.

[@sticksthunder]

Since you did a video on gay Japanese, could you do one on deaf Japanese people? Since I'd be really interested in learning about that.

[@draconicfeline6177]

Seconded

[@free4everinmyworld]

There’s a anime movie you might want to see The shape of voice, or “聲の形“ Just a moderate warning, it’s about a guy who considers suicide

[@Jonkiyu]

It was a really good video ! I am gay and I was asking myself a lot of questions about that. I'm really happy to have seen your video. I dream to go to Japan and have seen and heard all these great comments really warmed up my heart. Thank you for doing this video ! And I don't forget to subscribe (　＾∇＾) ! And thank you for all the japanese people who have wrote these comments on your video !

[@kenichi24o1]

hope your dream come true^^

[@Jonkiyu]

Ahh thank you ! ^o^ I hope so ! I will fight for my dreams. .o/ !

[@Over9000Skittles]

When you go to Japan, I hope you have a great time. Follow your dreams! ^_^

[@Jonkiyu]

I will do my best to fulfill all of my dreams *o* Thank you for all being so nice with me ! :D

[@Jonkiyu]

I am Sam Ahh Thank you ^___^ We still can become friends :D !

[@ikevinstar21]

Very nicely done! I love how you guys put up different opinions of native Japanese people. Even though I don't live in Japan I do feel much better for every LGBT person now, including myself, b/c I would've thought Japanese people would be really against them considering that Japan is a pretty traditional/conservative country

[@Jesses001]

It is a shame to hear that Japan has picked up a bit of the bad parts of Western Civilization as well as the good parts.

[@goblindonor69]

6:50 ugHHHH

[@arikazuma6472]

YES! I was wondering if anyone else commented about that. That made me sooooo angry. I need to calm down.

[@raviolibirb8009]

Basically yuri is winning over yaoi

[@bvelioglu7865]

Personally I rolled my eyes so much at that comment and I could see the inside of my head.

[@tubularLeah]

As a person who identifies as the last, and most often forgotten letter of LGBT, I must thank you for this video and from what I could infer, you actually did take the time to not only sift through the comments, but to learn that there is nuances. Really, thank you for this video! c:

[@syn010110]

Like most Japanese people, they're being indirect, vague, unclear and culturally deceptive. Well, to an American, we'd call that lying through their teeth. I am a lesbian; my partner is a Japanese woman who grew up in south Japan. Her take on this subject is far, far, far more bleak and depressing than these relatively upbeat comments. It seems to me that these people are trying to avoid casting Japan in a negative light.

[@WeiYinChan]

Corinn Heathers Most of them are referring to history, and those are all historical facts. The others are drawing on personal experience, just like your girlfriend. Just one person's experience doesn't represent the whole of Japan. It seems like most of these people are from more metropolitan parts of Japan like Tokyo which may be more accepting. You can say they are not holistic but to accuse they of lying through their teeth is just ridiculous.

[@PaperClipFlip]

Is this what they call "tatemae"?

[@indecentthinking]

So it seems that Japan is basically a more subtle version of the western view of LGBT (and other sexualities and genders) ? Eh. The U.S. certainly has a knack for getting in other countries affairs and shifting points of view.

[@devilscub08]

"Eh. The U.S. certainly has a knack for getting in other countries affairs and shifting points of view." Also England, a country that heavily influenced Japan in the 19th C., and one that used to have laws criminalizing homosexuality.

[@shoulders-of-giants]

"I don't think LGBT people are discriminated against in Japan" L O L

[@kunaiXfighter]

I'm English and i feel the same way! sometimes i see girls on my facebook, posting photos of them kissing their new girlfriend saying 'Yeah I'm a lesbian get over it' and its like, no one is bothered anyway...?

[@BoDiJyPz]

its all for attention

[@FantasyJimenez123]

When I was in middle school there were a LOT of girls who claimed they were bisexual or lesbian and it was so irritating because it was so obvious they did it for attention. The guys in my class would always be telling them to kiss and they would; it was really annoying.

[@FantasyJimenez123]

I know, but it's obnoxious when they do.

[@10RexTheWolf01]

Based on their anime, manga, hentai, yuri, yaoi I would've been shocked if they hated it there

[@Kleineganz]

But Anime and Manga isn't really any more popular in Japan than it is anywhere else (learning that surprised me).

[@ghostlyfieldclub2930]

LGBT usage in porn for fetishes does not equal representation...

[@yersiniapestis3846]

Rachel, I was wondering what are you views on the LGBTQ community?

[@RachelandJun]

+Kalma Turner Who people love or how they feel or view themselves is no one's business but their own (unless they're hurting someone). You only get one life. I wish people could live freely being themselves, and I'm glad the world is slowly moving in that direction. The world needs more love. ♥ :)

[@foodham3277]

Rachel & Jun i see, thanx for the reply XD

[@yersiniapestis3846]

Rachel & Jun I couldn't agree more.

[@yersiniapestis3846]

***** No it's not. I met god. She's cool with it.

[@kisakisakura6663]

+Kalma Turner I love that She. I agree btw. You look gorgeous ;)

[@ikathiggs13]

I love how you approached this subject. So much respect for you.

[@JiggyPepper8D]

religion is always the oppressor in these situations. ugh. :/

[@Soraiko]

***** Serious or not, take care of what you say, man.

[@BritishCyborgCats]

***** You bring bad connotation to Top Gear UK with that username. You are clearly filled with ignorance- Which isn't bad, however. Just inform yourself that no matter what religion someone is, it doesn't mean they are going to hate you. Yes there are bad apples, prejudice and ignorance in every type of group. Religion, school cliques, fanboy/fangirls/fans of certain people, even the LGBT community itself prejudice and ignorance. Point is that you need to focus less about the bad apples of a community and focus on what is good. Such as an openly gay Mormon. You just gotta look.

[@Soraiko]

BritishCyborgCats I think you're right.

[@spinemelter2000]

My religion was founded by Jesus. Jesus didn't say anything bad about gay people, and there's nothing wrong with being gay. There are plenty of atheists are homophobic. I had an atheist friend who not only used homophobic slurs, but he would get furious about any religious statement, even the most innocent ones, like "I went to church today." He would say "Don't talk about religion in front of me!" We aren't friends anymore.

[@BritishCyborgCats]

spinemelter2000 I'm no one of religion, but I am glad you aren't friends anymore. He is a real dick.

[@CorvusBruxo]

I didn't know you, a friend of mine recommended me this video, I'm a Spanish gay guy starting to be interested in Japanese culture, and I just loved this video, it's informative, and also interesting. Thanks for the info!

[@PlatypusGuitar]

LGBT rights is a cause that is important to me so learning how it is in another country is quite intersting

[@margiejcupcakeprincess4711]

I am from USA and personally have never been uncomfortable around my gay friends I will never understand how people can claim to be Christian and have so much hatred.

[@theedguardian]

"I'm a straight man, and gay people make me feel uncomfortable. However, I don't mind lesbians." lol! An answer some my male peers tend to give.

[@Aphroditexx]

As someone who lives in Tokyo and has for a while now, I have my own views on the topic. I actually work close to Shinjuku 2-chome and I go out there quite a lot. In Tokyo there is a booming gay culture. But dont be surprised to see a lot of married men there or closeted gay men. Most of my gay Japanese friends are either married or not open. As for foreigners, Japanese dont care at all about you, what you do, or who you like. So if youre a gay foreigner moving here, dont be scared or reluctant. Just, try not to parade it around in the workplace. As for long term relationships here as a gay male or female.. From what I understand it is extremely hard and absolutely not open. Those onsens Rachel mentions in this video in 2-chome, are usually used for sexual purposes. As are most so called gay spots. It wont be hard to find a partner, but it will be hard to find love, as most Japanese LBGT are, even though very much gay, still looking for a normal marriage with a person of the opposite sex. Its more accepted to be out if you are in the entertainment business. Most of my fashion designer friends here are openly gay, since they feel that is an advantage to their image. However, if it is not an advantage to your image (Most career paths here) most LBGTs will not be open. Transgender people are usually more accepted here than other sexual minorites. This is because of the crazy amount of transgender entertainers. One foreigner friend said something I will never forget about life in Japan and that is that this is a culture of shame. You will be shamed into not breaking the rules. That also means social rules. I pride myself in being a very tolerant, open and somewhat rebellious person (in all the right ways, I hope.) yet I feel extremely at home here. You get used to the stares as a foreigner and the millionth time you get asked the same three questions you will still smile, because Japan isnt a cruel country. Its a simple, somewhat naive country in some ways, but compared to our western cultures, a little naivity is sometimes very nice. LGBT people, Japanese or not will ofcourse run into some trouble.. But they will be simpler problems than you have to face at home. You get used to being an outsider. No matter where you are, outsiders flock together. I have a huge variety of "outsider" friends here, foreign and Japanese and to be honest.. I wouldnt have it any other way. Because in the end.. who really wants to be normal anyway!?

[@nzushie]

this was a really interesting video

[@nervouslaughter]

To the person who asked what super-catholic gay people do: I'm bisexual, baptized as a catholic. I was never really that into the religion, though. So when I first liked a girl, I was very shocked. I did all kinds of research. I also found many people who were scared of coming out to their religious family and such. There were questions like, "Does God hate gays?" and "Should I come out?". I think that most super-catholic people who are LGBT tend to stay in the closet, because it could be very dangerous for them to come out. This is especially prevalent in the south (Texas, Alabama, etc), but in some places in the west/east as well. However, I think that a lot of LGBT people eventually come out, even if the people around them aren't as accepting.

[@NamelessVkeiShadow]

Annnd now I just wanna go to Shinjuku ni-chome

[@vempriex]

Me 2

[@RastaRider]

+ひで hide 💛 haha

[@crazyyunicorns5369]

If there's lesbians I sure want :3

[@swish043]

Me too! I can't believe I never heard about it the past two times I was in Japan.

[@sclair2854]

Very informative, it was nice to see a wide array of experiences and opinions on the subject.

[@Flonnechan22]

I am a Catholic female, and I am a Mexican-American. In my family, we don't see being gay as a bad thing. We think it's alright. I could honestly care less who anyone likes, just as long as you're happy! :) (I HATE IT when people try to make a big deal about finding out someone is gay. I swear, it doesn't matter! JUST LET THE PERSON BE! Why do people need to make such a big fart out of one bean?!)

[@valkerymillenia]

As a westerner, what I've gathered is that Japanese society is very accepting of LGBTQ so long as they remain as polite and decent as everyone else but what saddens me as an LGBTQ person is not the culture or the people, it's the law- as you said, people clamoring for equal rights are likely to be looked down on but at the same time that submissive behavior ensures that there is low awareness about any LGBTQ topic and by law gay people cannot marry or adopt and have no spousal rights and while that does not affect me directly, it does make me feel sad for fellow Japanese LGBTQ folks that cannot have their lifelong relationships validated, among other things. Perhaps it's that lack of civil rights and validation that is exactly why many of them they don't see the point in coming or spreading awareness. (I also remember reading somewhere that transgender medical support, transition medication and surgery was also not readily available in Japan but that data is likely SEVERELY outdated so I can't really claim any knowledge about it but IF this is still the case then it's even more heartbreaking).

[@dpmiller1000]

+ valkerymillenia I was thinking the same thing as I was watching the video. It's great that in general people don't discriminate against LGBT people, but it means very little if you can't get married, or live openly as a gay person. Frankly it's almost better to have the same rights as heterosexual couples, but be subjected some discrimination. Really what this tells me is they don't care if you're gay, just as long as they don't see it, and that kind of sucks.

[@valkerymillenia]

My point exactly. Though I guess for people who don't care about marriage it might be nice to live in a place where they don't have to handle abject hate and disrespect.

[@JaybBritts]

Thank u so much for this Rachel & Jun I will be moving to Japan in August and this information has made me feel so much better. I never been the of guy tell the world about my sexuality. But be gay this does come as a concern when you travel or move to new places and always good to know in advance how people act round this in different cultures. This had made me feel even more happier about moving to Japan.

[@doyouzgot2knw]

I think that Japan is fair in their views on the LGBT community. I watched your video on "4 things Japanese husbands do" or something like that, and I remember you and your friend stated that Japanese don't tend to flaunt their personal dating life or anything of the sort to everyone like the way things are done here in Western culture. So perhaps it is the same for LGBT Japanese individuals? Maybe that is why they are not "common" because no one flaunts their sexual preferences to their bosses or friends. I'm just brainstorming here, just a friendly opinion :) I still love Japanese people and their culture, it is beautiful and they are polite and reserved individuals, and i like that about them. They're just full of awesomeness! But thank you for making this video, it is still very informative on the views of people in Japan! They are still good people :) There is bad in every place in the world, like there is good :)

[@FlowerEmblem]

It's late, but, I heard a very interesting outlook on LGBT, or at least the word "gay." That the word "gay" as we use it in English tends to come with connotations, it is more viewed as an identity, if that makes sense. A rebellion against Christianity, "coming out" stories, etc. There are always been homosexuals throughout history, no doubt about that. But being "gay" as part of your identity is a very recent idea.

[@bubbleonfire6488]

I suppose my girlfriend and I would be alright in Japan. I know we would be met with some prejudice and stereotyping directed at us, but I don't think that would make us hide ourselves. Living in Norway, we're not normally met with that. When we visited my grandmother in America, I kissed my girlfriend on the cheek when she fell and hit her head, a woman started yelling at us. She yelled that we were unnatural and wrong. It was very scary and my girlfriend started crying. I hadn't seen my girlfriend cry in years, she is a very happy and positive person and pain doesn't really bother her. For a while, we stayed away from America, we were afraid it would happen again. But then we realised that everyone wasn't like that and we were fearing nothing. Words that are so hateful mean little to nothing.

[@red1549]

America can be a very scary place. There are so many videos on people's fear of religion even. And that's just one topic.

[@AidanXavier1]

"We have cross dressing, transgender, and *even sailor uniforming wearing* old men." I love how that's the craziest one.

[@Kiwi_Tea]

Why can't the world take the Japanese view of LBGT people?! The acceptance almost made me cry happy tears!

[@Kiwi_Tea]

***** Still better than stoning to death or jail time

[@adelehammond1621]

in places like japan its aceptance its just ignoring lgbt people who dont fit into their views of what a true japense person is

[@Ash_Yu]

Japan ISNT accepting. Did you miss all the parts where people say they don't know anyone who is gay because they don't feel comfortable coming out? It's polite to SAY you don't judge, but gay people are being judged and discriminated against silently. It's very much a "Don't Ask Don't Tell" situation.

[@Kiwi_Tea]

@@Ash_Yu It's been 7 years. I have learnt since then. Let it go.

[@loser123258]

Wait so big boss masamune was gay along with oda Nobunaga and lord shingen well ya learn something new everyday

[@KY-bl7mb]

SEIKAIICHI HATSUKOI AM I RIGHT

[@SuperMadumadu]

or maybe sengoku basara.

[@lplushie4588]

*+Kelly Yan* YAASSSSS

[@chacha_zemisei]

Or maybe Fate Grand Order, or Touken Ranbu

[@Bulgdoom]

"swung their swords both ways" haha

[@itsgray4210]

The fact that lesbians are so rare there proves that there are more equality issues in Japan.

[@Xelann]

I love Japan because it's different than the west, and the more we westernize them the more their culture will disappear. So as much as I wish Japan could embrace individuality more, I'd rather not disturb their unique culture.

[@anintellectualpotato8704]

Hi. Just a few questions. Can homosexual people hold hands in public in Japan? And, I am androgynous female, so, if I visit Japan, will I be able to dress up the way I prefer? Thanks in advance. ^^

[@Tsukiyu0]

+TomBoyX R If you are young and female, I think you can hold hands in public without problems. But that's not because gay people get away here. It's because high school or college girls often hold hands with their friends. Most gay people don't come out here, so you'd probably never see gay male couples hold their hands because straight guys don't hold hands and they stand out. As for the clothes, wear whatever you want!! :D A lot of Japanese people think androgynous looks are cool.

[@anintellectualpotato8704]

Tsukiyu0 Thank you a lot! :)

[@milkjamjuice]

+TomBoyX R Should be mostly no problem. I'm cis female and dress in men's' suits for work, and the worst I get are under the breath comments from old men on the street...but that can be expected anywhere. :\

[@Raydr62]

Lol old men on the steet. Creepy but best line ever

[@anintellectualpotato8704]

Cordelia Enid H Whoa! So, there could be a chance of stalking?

[@WrenHuang]

I feel like Lesbians aren't represented enough either here in America....

[@lealified]

I think this was the right approach for this video; opening it up to the community and using your platform for their voices to be heard.

[@fanofthemoon]

While I was living in Japan, I had a gay friend. After leaving late from a party at a park, some girls started yelling things towards my gay friend. Since my Japanese is not good, I did not understood. An Australian friend that was with us did understood. He got very mad and aggressive towards the yelling girl (he was a little drunk). I asked him what was going on, he told me that they yelling "you are gay, go and die" "weirdo" "you disgust me". Later I asked my Australian friend, what was the deal with gay Japanese. From what he learned he said that "Gay Japanese people are not hated because of religion, since Buddhism or Shintoism does not forbid gay practices, some people don't like them because of the traditional structure of the Japanese household (mom, dad, children), since a homosexual couple can't achieve this, they are rejected."

[@kalpic11]

The acceptance for different gender gays is the reverse in the U.S., I think. I think here lesbians are more accepted than gay men. I also think we have a lot more education on what specific types of LGBTQ people there are. But we have more discrimination, since our discrimination is rooted in religion.

[@zephyrsky__]

Gay men are definitely more accepted and far more visible than lesbians

[@kalpic11]

***** Well maybe it's the idea of two girls kissing in a bar that made me say that. Which usually doesn't even mean they are lesbian, but that they are doing it for the straight guys.

[@zephyrsky__]

right, that's misguided straight women/bi women performing for straight men because lesbians are fetishised by straight men but ACTUAL lesbians don't give two fucks about men. this is why they're made invisible in the media, other than to be potrayed as exotic fuck toys that will entertain straight mens pornographic fantasies.

[@kalpic11]

Shelby McCoy Right.

[@shelbymccoy7570]

***** no. They are far more accepted than male homosexuals. Men are considered as predators. Women are considered as nurturers. Just because you're bitter about people reacting normally to attractive imagery doesn't mean you can disregard the social statistics on acceptance of gender.

[@elenieXQ]

Just like in China, homosexuality was common and people did not discriminate LGBT group until western thoughts kicked in...

[@spacefoo-zh6ph]

It really warms and breaks my heart that Japan was so accepting in the past, but the fact that people from my homeland had such a negative effect on Japan, I really I could move there, but I don’t have the funds to move there anytime soon... or maybe ever, but at least I can enjoy your videos.

[@Imnotallergictopeanuts]

Is Gay In Tortilla me too, it’s really saddening seeing samurai would have gay relations. Ancient Greece too, that’s why I’m not religious. Seeing how religion can destroy history almost to the brink of people not being aware of the history of homosexuality. Knowing they must’ve killed off people while forcing their religion is disgusting.