How does your school display Dan rank?

[Wa-No-Michi]

By the by, does anyone know why the woman's striped black belt isn't adopted outside of japan? I actually had never seen them before I went to Japan, and since have wondered why. Looking a bit online I found some heated arguments about the joshi belt with some calling them names like 'skunk stripes' (I personally thought they looked cool) and lots of stories of Western women being discriminated against and abused in the Judo world (no not in Japan, but in America).

Frankly I was a bit surprised since there is a famous photo of Kano teaching a woman's class, and even in Japan women were taught naigatanajutsu and a rare few learned jujutsu as it was seen as a way to overcome a more powerful man (Kano taught his wife and daughter, and their close friends also learned as well). Hence I didn't figure that the western world would be so non progressive on the matter. I think that many women martial artists in Japan would be surprised at the things said about their belts and perhaps even offended. Does anyone use the joshi belts in their dojo?

I came across this a couple of weeks ago and wondered why these ladies BB's had a white stripe through them. Thanks for clarifying this.

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=YXWUdvsUpm0&feature=related

[Kruczek]

NightOwl: I think the reason much of America has not adopted this is because it is cheaper not to. You can order a batch of belts and let them sit for whoever might get them. But to have special belts for female students you would have order them case by case OR you would have to spend extra money to have both belts on hand.

As for why some black belt women don't order them for themselves... I think this could be because many people don't know about it. I myself, had not heard of this until yesterday.

My third thought on why America doesn't adopt this is because it could be seen as a "women aren't good enough to have a regular black belt".

Not that I haven't made it clear but, my school doesn't have these belts lol.

[Rateh]

I would be very against wearing a white striped black belt because I was female. Having kids/teens wear a "special" black belt makes sence, they can grow into a full black belt when they are mature. To give women "special" black belts is just wrong imho. I would refuse to wear one actually.

[Tiger1962]

I would be very against wearing a white striped black belt because I was female. Having kids/teens wear a "special" black belt makes sence, they can grow into a full black belt when they are mature. To give women "special" black belts is just wrong imho. I would refuse to wear one actually.

I agree with your entire paragraph. Things like this are just plain wrong.

[bushido_man96]

I would be very against wearing a white striped black belt because I was female. Having kids/teens wear a "special" black belt makes sence, they can grow into a full black belt when they are mature. To give women "special" black belts is just wrong imho. I would refuse to wear one actually.

I agree with your entire paragraph. Things like this are just plain wrong.

I agree with your sentiments here, but we should keep in mind that some societies and cultures just do things differently. It may not be a slight at all, in their eyes.

[NightOwl]

A 'junior belt' isn't the meaning behind it at all. It is a distinction, just like girls wear shirts under their gis. Different in this case =/= wrong. Just different. Of course I think to force people to wear it would be (I've seen women not wear it at the kodokan plenty of times), but I think many female judoka would see it as a badge to be proud of, a sign that they are a female warrior, and not a symbol that they are being 'forced into submission' by society.

In fact probably the most popular judoka in Japan is a woman; Ryoko Tani. She is a national hero and during last year's Olympics her face was everywhere (her nickname is also based off a popular manga series call Yawara! with the main character being...a female judoka). However the IJF banned the jyoshi obi so you only see it in Japanese competitions and not the Olympics .

Things like this are just plain wrong.

It is a bit like me going to a traditional matsuri (festival) and berating the culture because the boy and girl yukata (think a light kimono) are traditionally different by gender, and thus are demeaning. At best people would think I was a crazy foreigner who just couldn't understand Japanese culture. Again, female japanese judoka can and do wear regular belts, and having a softer half who is a Japanese judoka I can say that for female martial artists, if you try and push the 'submissive asian girl' stereotype too far your ego isn't going to be the only thing that gets broken

Perhaps for a westerner making a distinction between being a boy or girl is 'wrong', but bowing and being submissive to a superior 'sempai' (many times abused in the western world, just as apparently the Jyoshi obi was in America) hardly fits into the western viewpoint either, yet many senseis in America would find it outrageous if lower ranks did not address them by proper titles. You can also look at making the belt into something sacred that shouldn't be washed (it isn't), overuse of the term OSU (unless you are in kyokushin), etc as all skewed western importations of another culture that is often followed without questioning.

As for me, I am always impressed by the kodokan women judoka. They are proud of their gender and not afraid to be different, and still work just as hard (and even spar!) the men. That is what the jyoshi obi means.

[Tiger1962]

I wasn't seeing it that way but like someone said, every culture is different. I would think that in the US, people automatically expect one to be more evolved when it comes to differences between men and women.

Yet, in the martial arts, I am aware that in some cases there still remains the "old school" way of differences & as bushidoman states, they think nothing wrong of it.

[Kruczek]

I wasn't seeing it that way but like someone said, every culture is different. I would think that in the US, people automatically expect one to be more evolved when it comes to differences between men and women.

I disagree with this. You can't say they aren't evolved just because they do something different. As was stated this is not a submissive act, but one of pride that is optional, but to say they shouldn't be worn because we are more "evolved" than that - I think is obscure.

[Shotokan-kez]

we may display it as we like. me personally have my name embroidered in japanese on the left and the name of my club and style on the right also in Japanese..it's down to the individual to choose.

[aefibird]

I've trained in several different schools/styles and only in one has any sort of ranking displayed upon black belts been compulsory.

It was a WTF TKD school and all Dan ranks had to have their name and school name on one side of the belt (in English & Korean) and then the Dan bars in red on the other side.

I'm a black belt in one style of Karate and just had a plain black belt when I got 1st Dan. I treated myself to one with my name embroidered on it in Japanese when I achieved 2nd Dan, 'cos I thought I'd earned it.

It wasn't compulsory to have it done and I asked my instructor if he was OK with me having an embroidered belt, or if he was gonna make me do extra push ups if I turned up one day wearing it!!

He actually liked my belt so much that he treated himself to a new one with his name on...and also his Dan bars, so as not to be outdone by one of his students I think...