Karate Women
a mostly unknown history
Welcome back to another week of history class. Today’s topic is a very cool one: karate. This won’t be about karate in general, because that would take up shows and shows. Instead, I’m talking specifically about women in karate. It isn’t necessarily a small group, but it’s one people almost never talk about. I’m going to walk you through the era of karate women, which essentially starts in the 1970s, so sit down because the bell is about to ring.
Karate came to America because of World War II, but not in the way you might think. Okinawans were not allowed to own weapons as decided by the Japanese to prevent natives from fighting back. Karate was the Okinawans’ form of self defense, and even that was banned. Inevitably, Okinawans brought karate to Japan which in turn was taught to American soldiers who brought it back home. It did not become popular until decades later. Martial arts movies were all the rage. While they primarily did not use karate as the main fighting style, karate benefitted from these portrayals. It’s unfortunate but true that the Americans watching these films had little interest in if what they were watching was karate or kung fu or jiu jitsu or taekwondo. What’s even more unfortunate is that in all of these portrayals, women were ignored if they were even mentioned.
There are hundreds if not thousands of karate magazines and books out there. Only two have women as the dedicated audience: Black Belt Woman and Fighting Woman News. I was lucky enough to get some original copies of Fighting Woman News leant to me for a project, but they are notoriously hard to find. I found additional copies of Fighting Woman News and Black Belt Woman through Gale which I could access with my UCSD library account. Finding old print copies for sale is impossible. In some ways that demonstrates how inaccessible these magazines are. More on that later. What was really special about these magazines was that they had lists of female dojos, calendars for competitions, and articles on topics men’s magazines would never touch. They also included submissions from readers. Here’s an example of a poem I found (I have it hanging on my wall) by Suan Hansen (I think it’s supposed to be Susan based on other poetry in the magazine but Suan is what’s printed):
Karate Workout
blister break rip
slip slide stick
legs of rubber
arms of lead
hair wet with sweat
trickles to your belt
brain numb
breath ragged eyes blurred
sink lower
relate to the floor
(lay on the floor?)
One more time
with speed
with spirit
then it’s over… odd
how good you feel
don’t want to leave
I think you can get the point of the poem without having done any karate. If someone were reading it to me, I could visualize everything happening. I could feel her power. Many of the articles in these magazines carried this same feeling. Without knowing anything, it’s pretty easy to imagine the strength of these women.
My favorite part of Black Belt Woman and Fighting Woman News is that they did not shy away from talking about the serious stuff. In an issue of Black Belt Woman, an author openly discusses her rap. She mentions that despite her karate training, she did not fight back. She felt she could not practice karate again. Eventually she returned to the dojo and felt a part of a community of women working toward control and dignity. One issue of Fighting Woman News from the 1970s has a piece on abortion. The author calls on fertile women, pregnant women, sterile women, gay women, menopausal women, and even men to fight for abortion to be a protected right. These were just two of many articles tackling serious women’s issues.
In some ways it feels weird that this issue would be in a karate magazine, but the women who maintained their practice of karate were radical. Most dojos were extremely sexist. There used to be a specific way women had to stand to show respect to men, with their feet together as opposed to just their heels, demonstrating inferiority. Women had to tie their belts in the opposite way to men. One dojo knocked down the women’s locker room to make a bigger men’s room in order to get more men to sign up. The general view of karate women in the outside world wasn’t any better. Playboy wrote that women, implied to be masculine, used karate to “put men in their place” in a derogatory kind of war. Men were angered by female rage, of which karate seemed to be a demonstration.
Feminism was negatively associated with karate, but karate women were definitely feminists and community minded. Fliers made for women’s karate groups often simultaneously condemned anti-LGBTQ+ rhetoric. LGBTQ+ community centers in turn hosted female karate clubs. Outside of these fliers, the work done by karate women is rarely discussed.
Women led dojos were vastly different from existing coed dojos. Instead of belt and rank, these dojos prioritized personal growth. Karate was meant to fit in with a woman’s existing schedule and many provided childcare. All were welcome. There was no age, skill, or time requirement. In some instances, men could join these dojos as well. It’s pretty big that men were welcomed into women’s spaces when women have been denied access to men’s spaces for centuries. That is a testament to how inclusive these communities really were.
Women no longer tie their belts or stand differently, but disparities still exist. I competed in a karate tournament in May of 2024. OF the 30 or so referees, maybe five were women. I’m lucky to train under many amazing female black belts, but I know others do not get this same experience. In this way, not much has changed. That being said, karate women are real fighters. I have never been more scared than when I was an example in class; Shihan just had me stand there while she went in with the punch as an example of what we would be doing. I knew she wouldn’t actually hit me, but I also knew how much power she has.
I know firsthand how hard it is to get started. I signed up randomly one Wednesday in November of 2023 when I was severely depressed and needed something to do. After the first class I did not want to go back. I was lost the entire time and felt like I was doing everything wrong, yet something brought me back the next week, and the next, and the next. It’s been a year since I started. I’m a blue belt (eighth kyu). I competed in a tournament that I signed myself up for. I didn’t medal but it didn’t matter: I did my best and I felt good about it. It’s cliche, but karate has taught me more than how to punch and kick. It’s taught confidence and determination and dedication and emotional strength. One thing Shihan says most classes is that all you need to do is show up and you’ll improve. It’s true. You need absolutely no physical strength or speed or athletic skill to make it in karate, you just have to show up. If you’ve ever been thinking about trying martial arts this is your sign to do it. It doesn’t matter how old you are. There’s no time like the present!
As a final note, outside of the little literature created for karate women, most stories have been passed down orally through generations. If you know a female black belt, you should ask about their experiences. They are meaningful and deserve to be spread.
“Mulan’s Decision” from the Mulan soundtrack
“Eye of the Tiger” by Survivor
“Black Steel in the Hour of Chaos” by Public Enemy
“Telephone” by Lady Gaga ft. Beyoncé
“What You Waiting For” by Gwen Stefani
“Boogie Wonderland” by Earth, Wind, & Fire and The Emotions
“You Don’t Own Me” by Leslie Gore
“Blackmail” by The Runaways
“Cherry” by Rina Sawayama
“Heart of Stone” by Europe