Non-Geisha Tarnish Geisha Reputation
Women claiming to be geisha approached Allied occupying forces dressed in knock-off finery, hair and makeup styled like a geisha. But they were not geisha. They were s*x workers capitalizing on the American desire for new experiences. They presented themselves as geisha to attract customers, much to the irritation of actual geisha. Brothels helped muddy the name “geisha.’ Brothel operators noticed geisha didn’t fall under Japanese anti-prostitution laws because of their ‘entertainer’ status.
To retain clients, brothel owners put on a “geisha face” to the public, continuing their trade in secret. This co-opting of the title gave the west a misconception about geisha, that they were part of the sensual “adult” industry. This was the hardest hit of all, even worse than the brutal training and torture in the name of beauty. Geisha are not s*x workers, but have had to struggle against this misunderstanding for nearly eighty years.
