Press Release from AIDS-FREE WORLD (12/19/12):
Only two countries in the Western Hemisphere, Belize and the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, arbitrarily ban the entry of homosexuals as a "prohibited class." AIDS-Free World is working to bring that to an end.
...
Repealing that law, and section 5 of the Belize Immigration Act, will also liberate other marginalized groups. Among the other classes of persons prohibited from entering Belize are the mentally challenged (described as "any idiot or any person who is insane or mentally deficient…") and the physically disabled (described as "deaf and dumb or deaf and blind, or dumb and blind,..."). It is noteworthy that in 2011, Belize signed and quickly ratified the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. (Bold emphasis added.)
Click here to read the entire release.
Thursday, December 20, 2012
Tuesday, December 4, 2012
Facial Recognition Technology and Privacy Issues
Two articles from The Yomiuri Shimbun Online (November 29, 2012):
Face-recognition cameras pose privacy problem / High-tech 'peepers' operating at dozens of Tokyo locations silently glean age and gender of passersby
Twenty-nine cameras with face-recognition functions have been snapping photos of unwitting passersby at commercial facilities and high-rise condominiums in the Tokyo metropolitan area without notifying the public, The Yomiuri Shimbun has learned.
The small cameras, which are mounted on advertisement displays, automatically take pictures of potential customers and determine their age and sex.
Companies that set the cameras up say the technology poses no problem because individuals remain anonymous, but legal experts say rules are needed to clarify use of the technology.
The face-recognition function identifies the sex and age of individuals who enter a camera's line of sight. Computers connected to the cameras automatically perform the identification.
The technology is used for such purposes as recording the arrival of departure of company employees and identifying personal computer users.
According to NEC Corp., which began developing such cameras in the 1980s, they had an initial accurate rate of 20 percent, but today the rate is about 99.7 percent.
One such camera is in operation in Lalaport Toyosu, a large commercial complex in Koto Ward, Tokyo. The unassuming "eye" is mounted on a two-meter-high display showing information about stores in the facility.
Though the camera is barely noticeable from its external appearance, it quietly snapped pictures of customers, its data being fed into software that determines what demographics are looking at what types of ads.
According to the Mitsui Fudosan group, which manages LaLaport facilities, 10 such cameras were introduced to the shopping complex in November 2009, and eight have been in operation in LaLaport Shin Misato in Saitama Prefecture since March 2010.
However, none of these displays notified people that cameras were in operation or stated the purpose.
According to a company that developed the camera-rigged displays, the software determines people's ages and gender based on the images and categorizes them into 10 groups, such as "boy under 10" and "teenage girl."
Though the cameras do not store the images, the valuable marketing data gleaned from them is sent to operators of LaLaport facilities and advertisers every month.
The cameras at Lalaport Toyosu generate data for 10,000 to 20,000 people a week.
The system development company operates displays with the same type of cameras at 10 computer shops in Tokyo's Akihabara district, as well as a high-rise condominium in Chuo Ward, Tokyo, but said customers and residents are not informed that the cameras are in operation.
Supermarket chain operator Seiyu GK had used six such displays at two of its stores in Kita Ward, Tokyo, and Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, since June last year but stopped using them the following August.
A guideline under the Protection of Personal Information Law stipulates that camera images identifying individuals constitute personal information.
The law stipulates that operators who use such a camera to obtain such information without announcing the purpose, and disobey a correction order from the authorities, could face up to six months in prison or a maximum 300,000 yen fine.
The system development company concerned and Mitsui Fudosan said that as the cameras do not save the pictures themselves, but rather convert them into gender and age data, privacy is not being violated.
A Seiyu official said, "The data does not constitute personal information, so there's no problem."
Hisamichi Okamura, a lawyer who is familiar with the law agreed, saying, "If the data remained anonymous, they could not be considered personal information."
However, he added, "If [the cameras] are used for crime prevention that's one thing. But many people wouldn't agree with their commercial use. Customers and passersby should be clearly told their pictures are being taken."
Masao Horibe, professor emeritus of Hitotsubashi University and a privacy issues expert, said it isn't the first time privacy issues have been raised over face-recognition technology in the country, but that rules had yet to be compiled because no ministry or agency has taken charge of privacy matters.
"A third-party organization specializing in privacy issues should be established and rules should be made quickly," Horibe said.
Link: http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/national/T121128004400.htm
Functions useful for marketing, but laws lag behind
Though face-recognition functions have been used widely in various fields, rules on use of the technology have yet to be established.
East Japan Railway Co. (JR East) has been operating automatic vending machines with it since August 2010. Currently there are about 440 such machines, which determine the age and gender of people who stand in front of them and display recommended products.
For example, if a customer is recognized as a man in his 30s, the machine will recommend a nutritious drink. If a customer is recognized as a woman in her 20s, the machine will suggest jasmine tea.
Data generated by the machines are stored and analyzed for deciding product lineups.
Initially, a firm affiliated with JR East that operates the vending machines displayed a notice that the machines were using face-recognition technology. However, the notices were removed in November last year as the company judged the fact to be widely known.
In other countries, there have been moves toward establishing rules on the use of the technology.
In the United States, for instance, the Federal Trade Commission announced late last month a guideline that stipulated if cameras are used to collect age and gender data in shopping complexes and supermarkets, the purpose of collecting the information and details about the type of information should be clearly explained to customers.
Link: http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/national/T121128004567.htm
Face-recognition cameras pose privacy problem / High-tech 'peepers' operating at dozens of Tokyo locations silently glean age and gender of passersby
Twenty-nine cameras with face-recognition functions have been snapping photos of unwitting passersby at commercial facilities and high-rise condominiums in the Tokyo metropolitan area without notifying the public, The Yomiuri Shimbun has learned.
The small cameras, which are mounted on advertisement displays, automatically take pictures of potential customers and determine their age and sex.
Companies that set the cameras up say the technology poses no problem because individuals remain anonymous, but legal experts say rules are needed to clarify use of the technology.
The face-recognition function identifies the sex and age of individuals who enter a camera's line of sight. Computers connected to the cameras automatically perform the identification.
The technology is used for such purposes as recording the arrival of departure of company employees and identifying personal computer users.
According to NEC Corp., which began developing such cameras in the 1980s, they had an initial accurate rate of 20 percent, but today the rate is about 99.7 percent.
One such camera is in operation in Lalaport Toyosu, a large commercial complex in Koto Ward, Tokyo. The unassuming "eye" is mounted on a two-meter-high display showing information about stores in the facility.
Though the camera is barely noticeable from its external appearance, it quietly snapped pictures of customers, its data being fed into software that determines what demographics are looking at what types of ads.
According to the Mitsui Fudosan group, which manages LaLaport facilities, 10 such cameras were introduced to the shopping complex in November 2009, and eight have been in operation in LaLaport Shin Misato in Saitama Prefecture since March 2010.
However, none of these displays notified people that cameras were in operation or stated the purpose.
According to a company that developed the camera-rigged displays, the software determines people's ages and gender based on the images and categorizes them into 10 groups, such as "boy under 10" and "teenage girl."
Though the cameras do not store the images, the valuable marketing data gleaned from them is sent to operators of LaLaport facilities and advertisers every month.
The cameras at Lalaport Toyosu generate data for 10,000 to 20,000 people a week.
The system development company operates displays with the same type of cameras at 10 computer shops in Tokyo's Akihabara district, as well as a high-rise condominium in Chuo Ward, Tokyo, but said customers and residents are not informed that the cameras are in operation.
Supermarket chain operator Seiyu GK had used six such displays at two of its stores in Kita Ward, Tokyo, and Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, since June last year but stopped using them the following August.
A guideline under the Protection of Personal Information Law stipulates that camera images identifying individuals constitute personal information.
The law stipulates that operators who use such a camera to obtain such information without announcing the purpose, and disobey a correction order from the authorities, could face up to six months in prison or a maximum 300,000 yen fine.
The system development company concerned and Mitsui Fudosan said that as the cameras do not save the pictures themselves, but rather convert them into gender and age data, privacy is not being violated.
A Seiyu official said, "The data does not constitute personal information, so there's no problem."
Hisamichi Okamura, a lawyer who is familiar with the law agreed, saying, "If the data remained anonymous, they could not be considered personal information."
However, he added, "If [the cameras] are used for crime prevention that's one thing. But many people wouldn't agree with their commercial use. Customers and passersby should be clearly told their pictures are being taken."
Masao Horibe, professor emeritus of Hitotsubashi University and a privacy issues expert, said it isn't the first time privacy issues have been raised over face-recognition technology in the country, but that rules had yet to be compiled because no ministry or agency has taken charge of privacy matters.
"A third-party organization specializing in privacy issues should be established and rules should be made quickly," Horibe said.
Link: http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/national/T121128004400.htm
Functions useful for marketing, but laws lag behind
Though face-recognition functions have been used widely in various fields, rules on use of the technology have yet to be established.
East Japan Railway Co. (JR East) has been operating automatic vending machines with it since August 2010. Currently there are about 440 such machines, which determine the age and gender of people who stand in front of them and display recommended products.
For example, if a customer is recognized as a man in his 30s, the machine will recommend a nutritious drink. If a customer is recognized as a woman in her 20s, the machine will suggest jasmine tea.
Data generated by the machines are stored and analyzed for deciding product lineups.
Initially, a firm affiliated with JR East that operates the vending machines displayed a notice that the machines were using face-recognition technology. However, the notices were removed in November last year as the company judged the fact to be widely known.
In other countries, there have been moves toward establishing rules on the use of the technology.
In the United States, for instance, the Federal Trade Commission announced late last month a guideline that stipulated if cameras are used to collect age and gender data in shopping complexes and supermarkets, the purpose of collecting the information and details about the type of information should be clearly explained to customers.
Link: http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/national/T121128004567.htm
Wednesday, November 28, 2012
Visual Anthropology at the AJJ
The 2012 Anthropology of Japan in Japan (AJJ) Fall Workshop@Kyoto
Doshisha University, Muromachi Campus (Imadegawa)
Doshisha University, Muromachi Campus (Imadegawa)
December 1st & 2nd, 2012
“Belonging in Japan and Beyond”
This meeting will explore what it means to feel a sense of Japanese cultural and/or national heritage within Japan or beyond its territorial borders.
***
Lots of good visual anthropology going on this week. Many thanks to my students for their efforts in creating photographs and films - both the photo exhibition and film festival were extremely successful. Thanks to all who came to both events.
In case you need another dose of visual anthro, you are in luck. The AJJ Fall Workshop is in the Kansai this year and has a lot of interesting presentations scheduled. Of particular interest to visual anthropologists will be this session:
Sunday, December 2nd, 13:30~15:30
Session 6 (Law School at the “Kambaikan,” 2F, Room KMB208)
Session 6 (Law School at the “Kambaikan,” 2F, Room KMB208)
Sights of Community: Exploring Belonging in Visual Practice
Organizer and Chair: Steven C. FEDOROWICZ (Kansai Gaidai University)
Belonging in the Work of
Japanese Contemporary Artist Fuyuko Matsui (Eva MISKELOVA, Masaryk
University / Kansai Gaidai University)
Exploring Devotees of a Sexy Cyber Green-Haired Guru (John SHULTZ, Kansai Gaidai University)
Fujoshi Between
Pleasure and Danger: Yaoi/BL Fandom and the Management of Spoiled
Identities in Japan (Jeffry T. HESTER, Kansai Gaidai University)
How to Play Deaf in Japan (Steven C. FEDOROWICZ, Kansai Gaidai University)
For more information about the AJJ Fall Workshop, check out the AJJ Blog: http://www.ajj-online.net/www.ajj-online.net/Blog/Entries/2012/11/19_Annual_Meeting_Program.html
For directions to Doshisha University: http://www.doshisha.ac.jp/english/access/ima-access.html
Tuesday, November 27, 2012
VAOJ Student Film Festival Under the Stars
Join us outside on a cool, brisk autumn evening for a screening of students films. Bring a blanket or someone to keep you warm.
Thursday, November 22, 2012
Tuesday, November 20, 2012
Film Screening: "Nuclear Nation"
Announcement from H-Japan:
Date: Wednesday, November 28th, at 18:30
Place: University of Tokyo, Collaboration Room 3 (4F), Building 18, Komaba Campus.
Film Length: 96 minutes. Subtitles: English. Trailer
Language: English | No registration required
Director: Funahashi Atsushi, Documentary Japan
Discussant: Sato Yoshiaki
Description
While the Japanese government announced that the Tohoku nuclear crisis has been "stabilized" in November of 2011, the 20 km no-entry zone around the leaking plant in Fukushima remains in effect. Today, over a year after the disaster, there are as yet no plans for the thousands of evacuated residents to return home.
Director Funahashi Atsushi's film Nuclear Nation tells the story of Futaba, a small town inside the Fukushima no-entry zone. Located just 4 km from the nuclear plant, Futaba was evacuated in the early days of the crisis, as the plant operator struggled to bring the triple meltdown under control. Over 1,400 residents were relocated to an unused high school in Saitama, where they faced an unknown future.
Nuclear Nation patiently explores the lives of the town's refugees, in their search for both justice and a way forward. Through extensive interviews with former residents and local officials, the film gives a history of the invisible nuclear economy in Japan that is both lucid and highly revealing.
In the tradition of the best of Japanese documentary cinema, Funahashi has gone to extraordinary lengths to depict the situation of the Fukushima refugees, to communicate their voices, and to interrogate the promises and contradictions of the government's energy policy at the level of everyday life.
We are pleased invite you to join us for this special screening, to be followed by a discussion and Q & A with the director.
Funahashi Atsushi is an independent filmmaker working in both dramatic and documentary modes. His first films — Echoes (2001) and Big River (2006) — were produced while Funahashi lived in the United States. After returning to Japan in 2007, he has directed Deep in the Valley (2009), Nuclear Nation (2012), and Cold Bloom (2012). Funahashi's work has received wide critical attention and screenings at numerous international film festivals.
Prof. Sato Yoshiaki has taught American Literature and Popular Music in the Department of Culture and Representation at the University of Tokyo, Komaba. His publications include The Evolution of J-POP (1999) and What Was the Beatles? (2006). A distinguished translator, Prof. Sato has translated Gregory Bateson's Mind and Nature and Steps to an Ecology of Mind into Japanese. At present, he is translating the completed novels of Thomas Pynchon.
For more information: http://utcp.c.u-tokyo.ac.jp/events/2012/11/film_screening_nuclear_nation/index_en.php
Monday, November 19, 2012
CALL FOR FILMS - AAS FILM EXPO 2013
Announcement from H-ASIA:
The Association for Asian Studies (AAS) annually hosts the premier North American conference of Asia scholars. The AAS conference is devoted to scheduled programs of scholarly papers, roundtable discussions, workshops, and panel sessions on a wide range of issues in research and teaching on Asia, and on Asian affairs in general. Their upcoming conference is scheduled for March 21-24, 2013 at the Manchester Grand Hyatt in San Diego, CA.
Since 2011, the Asian Educational Media Service (AEMS), a program of the Center for East Asian and Pacific Studies at the University of Illinois, has organized the AAS Film Expo presented at the conference. Films are projected in a dedicated screening room with a schedule running from Thursday afternoon through Saturday evening. For 2013, we are also planning for an additional "on demand" screening area, allowing greater viewing opportunities for attendees who miss scheduled screening times.
For the conference screenings, AEMS is seeking films related to Asia produced by scholars and independent filmmakers. Criteria utilized in the selection process include timeliness, broad appeal to the scholarly community, and examples of new field work. All films presented in the conference will be listed in both the AAS Annual Meeting Program Addendum and in an AAS Film Expo booklet brochure to be distributed at the conference that lists distributors and contact information for each film.
Follow the following address for more information and an application form.
http://www.aems.illinois.edu/aas/2013/submission_form_aas2013.pdf
*** DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSIONS IS NOVEMBER 30, 2012 ***
The Association for Asian Studies (AAS) annually hosts the premier North American conference of Asia scholars. The AAS conference is devoted to scheduled programs of scholarly papers, roundtable discussions, workshops, and panel sessions on a wide range of issues in research and teaching on Asia, and on Asian affairs in general. Their upcoming conference is scheduled for March 21-24, 2013 at the Manchester Grand Hyatt in San Diego, CA.
Since 2011, the Asian Educational Media Service (AEMS), a program of the Center for East Asian and Pacific Studies at the University of Illinois, has organized the AAS Film Expo presented at the conference. Films are projected in a dedicated screening room with a schedule running from Thursday afternoon through Saturday evening. For 2013, we are also planning for an additional "on demand" screening area, allowing greater viewing opportunities for attendees who miss scheduled screening times.
For the conference screenings, AEMS is seeking films related to Asia produced by scholars and independent filmmakers. Criteria utilized in the selection process include timeliness, broad appeal to the scholarly community, and examples of new field work. All films presented in the conference will be listed in both the AAS Annual Meeting Program Addendum and in an AAS Film Expo booklet brochure to be distributed at the conference that lists distributors and contact information for each film.
Follow the following address for more information and an application form.
http://www.aems.illinois.edu/aas/2013/submission_form_aas2013.pdf
*** DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSIONS IS NOVEMBER 30, 2012 ***
Wednesday, November 14, 2012
Visual Anthropology Programs Along the Pacific Rim
The American Anthropological Association begins its annual meetings on Tuesday, November 13 in San Francisco. There are hundreds and hundreds of scheduled papers, presentations, workshops, etc. VAOJ will be participating in a round table discussion about visual anthropology programs along the Pacific Rim. Discussions will address topics such as various university program's core ethos (MA or BA, theoretical vs. applied, etc.), student demographics served, any trends in student interests, any notable projects, current challenges, and future directions. Essentially, it will be a 'snapshot' of programs in the region. The round table will be on Friday, November 16, 1:45 - 5:30 PM. Check it out.
Link to AAA 2012 Conference Program: http://aaa.confex.com/aaa/2012/webprogrampreliminary/start.html
Sunday, November 11, 2012
Deaf World Japan and Deaf Support Osaka Cultural Exchange
This last weekend students from my Deaf World Japan class took a fieldtrip to NPO Deaf Support Osaka for a cultural exchange and Japanese Sign Language (JSL) practice. Deaf Support Osaka has many programs to teach and promulgate JSL, offers a place for older deaf people to work and of course has the famous Deaf Cafe and art gallary. Students from Canada, Iceland, Japan, Singapore, Thailand, United Kingdom and United States were able to meet deaf people and ask them questions about deaf culture. The deaf people also had questions for the foreign students about their own countries, reasons for coming to Japan and their thoughts on Japanese culture. The discussion was held in JSL (with only occasional English interpretation as needed). The event was a huge success - my students could practice their JSL skills with native signers and the deaf people could interact with foreigners (something many of them had not had much experience with). I hope this is only the beginning of this kind of exchange. Many deaf people told me afterwards that they hope to meet the students again. So, my students (and anyone else who is interested), please go back and practice your JSL at the Deaf Cafe!
Link to NPO Deaf Support Osaka webpage (in Japanese): http://www5d.biglobe.ne.jp/~deafnet/
Thursday, November 1, 2012
Visual Anthropology of Japan Photo Exhibition: NPO Deaf Support Osaka GALAXY
Visual Anthropology of Japan
Photo Exhibition
NPO Deaf Support
Osaka
GALAXY
Definition of GALAXY
(http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/galaxy)
1. any of the
very large groups of stars and associated matter that are found throughout the
universe
2. an
assemblage of brilliant or notable persons or things
NPO Deaf
Support Osaka has many programs and activities designed to advance deaf people
and propagate the use of Japanese Sign Language (JSL). This photo exhibition is
a part of a long-term anthropological research project; it aims to showcase the
myriad of people who participate is Deaf Support Osaka events. The galaxy is a
large place, and Deaf Support Osaka has many more activities that cannot all be
showcased in a single exhibition. This photo exhibition serves as an
introduction to the galaxy of NPO Deaf Support Osaka with the hope of further
exploration to come.
Place: NPO Deaf Support Osaka Gallery Cafe
Dates: November 1 - December 27, 2012
For more information: http://www5d.biglobe.ne.jp/~deafnet/
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