Otsuji has been “out” for ten years and a politician for three years. As a professional and a woman it has been an arduous journey, to say the least. Particularly so, as she has not had support from outside the homosexual community. Also, it would be too naïve to believe there has been solidarity within this community, which is neither small nor silent anymore. Yet, Otsuji at age twenty-eight, became the youngest person ever elected to the Osaka prefectural assembly when she won the seat for Sakai City in 2003. The striking aspect about her is the toughness that belies her first appearance. It is striking not because it reflects her struggle to overcome both internal and external pressures and prejudices, but because it is a toughness that has emerged from a certain joy in combating these challenges.