THE NORTH RIDING PROJECT

Fusaku Shigenobu was born on September 20, 1945. Despite owning a shop, her family struggled to make ends meet. Shigenobu hated the way people treated her simply because she was poor. At school, teachers and students alike would mock Shigenobu, who never had money for lunch. Communism, a political philosophy that promised to eliminate poverty and make everyone equal, was attractive to the young Shigenobu. Like so many other young people of her day, she became involved with a student organization in college and participated in the violent student demonstrations of 1968. Through such activity she eventually became involved with the JLA. As a twenty-four years old student, Shigenobu worked as a hostess in a bar. Her boss said she “never looked like an extremist”. But when the manager suggested Shigenobu get married, she said she would never do so. “The revolution is my lover!” she vowed.

Baudelaire/Anabasis, 2014