Japanese pop culture is sexually explicit, but sex education is wanting

While sexual images are everywhere, Japanese classrooms still regard sex as an issue of biological reproduction

Originally published on Global Voices

Adult magazines are displayed outside a bookstore in Tokyo, Japan. Photo taken by Jo Carter. Used with permission.

Sexualized imagery featuring female bodies saturates Japan’s public spaces — from magazine covers in convenience stores to billboards on city streets — and has become widely normalized. 

In October 2025, a petition on Change.org...