ABSTRACT
Election to the Diet had been exhilarating, but Kato Shidzue found that she exercised power more successfully by working outside this male dominated, conservative institution. In the company of other women she was instrumental in forming political and social action groups, petitioning and rallying the public in support of women's causes, and using the media to publicize women's issues. During the twenties, Shidzue had met regularly with Miyamoto Yuriko in different discussion and political groups. Roger Baldwin spoke at greater length and more frequently with Shidzue, who talked freely, venting some of her frustration over political injustices she felt keenly as a member of the minority in both the Socialist Party and the Diet. The tenor of her remarks suggested that the bureaucracy was corrupt and that it, as well as all of the political parties, had not been adequately purged of fascist wartime leadership.
