![]() ![]() So with the world’s attention on the nation of 126 million, activists threw their weight behind pushing the government to enact a law banning discrimination against LGBTQ people-and for awhile, it looked like they might have success. However, there are no publicly out LGBTQ Olympic athletes representing Japan. Dozens of LGBTQ athletes from around the world will be competing in the Games starting July 23, including New Zealand weightlifter Laurel Hubbard, who will make history as the first openly transgender athlete. Many LGBTQ people in Japan hoped that the 2020 Olympics would force changes that would allow them to have a better future. Japanese law also requires transgender people to be surgically sterilized if they want legal recognition of their gender identity. Same-sex marriage has not been legalized, there is limited legal recognition for same-sex couples and few protections against discrimination in the workplace or in public. Japan lags far behind its rich-world peers in LGBTQ rights. “She was imagining this future for herself, but I had never imagined that I would have such a future,” 26-year-old Shimoyamada tells TIME. Shimoyamada, who is also gay but not out publicly at the time, says she was swept with a feeling of envy.
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