WARNING: The following contains spoilers for One Piece Chapter #1016 by Eiichiro Oda, Stephen Paul and Vanessa Satone, available in English now from Viz Media.
Just as the One Piece manga reveals Yamato could very well be the 11th Straw Hat after the raid on Onigashima, its anime counterpart's latest opening sequence also features the fan-favorite. Its debut even caused the 'Yamato' hashtag to briefly trend on Twitter. On top of that, the new OP comes in the middle of Pride Month, a time to celebrate and raise up members of the LGBTQIA+ community, to which Yamato -- as a transgender man -- belongs. So, whether coincidental or deliberate, it's certainly the best time of year for him to be so prominent in One Piece.
Yamato is Kaido's son but was assigned female at birth. As a child, he adored and idolized Kozuki Oden to the point that he decided to emulate everything about the samurai, from his beliefs to his appearance to even his gender. Yamato believes that the only way to fully embody Oden's ideals includes being a man, so he began identifying as such. Since then, Yamato has identified as male and uses male pronouns. Even Kaido has recently acknowledged Yamato's preferred pronouns, calling him his son. Yamato is also one of the series' most popular characters, coming in at 11th on the Global Popularity Poll.
Yamato isn't the first official transgender character introduced to One Piece. There have been many characters that appear to be genderfluid or who don't conform to gender norms in one way or another. However, most of these characters were played more for laughs and not treated with the care and respect they deserved. While these problematic depictions shouldn't be excused, the recent writing of Yamato and Kikunojo as transgender characters appear to be treated with more respect from creator Eiichiro Oda.
Kikunojo, for instance, was assigned male at birth, but when speaking to Luffy and Chopper, she says that she is a "woman at heart." This particular phrase is how Japanese people tend to identify as transgender, as "heart," in this context, refers more to the soul or spirit. Her gender has been recognized not only by other characters in the series but even Oda himself, as he didn't correct a reader when they referred to Kiku as a woman. So, while his treatment of gender non-conforming characters has been questionable up until this point, it appears he is trying to be better, though only time will tell.
While it appears that the LGBTQIA+ community and other minorities are slowly garnering support in Japan, there is still a long way to go. Even today, women still fight to be seen as equal in the workplace and to not solely be seen as caregivers. Same-sex couples, meanwhile, are not given the same protections and rights as straight couples on a federal level; though, as of 2015, some individual towns and prefectures offer some equivalent. Japan also doesn't generally recognize any form of same-sex unions but in Sapporo, the District Court ruled that this was unconstitutional in 2021. This comes despite there being documented stories of same-sex couples pre-Meiji era, even among the samurai. However, this began to change once Japan began the process of westernization once the Meiji era began.
Transgender rights are still considered progressive in Japan. In 2003, a law was passed allowing a trans person to change their legal gender on official documents, but first had to undergo sterilization, gender reassignment surgery, and couldn't have any minor children. Irreversible sterilization is a common stipulation among laws regarding transgender persons. For example, when the age of majority was lowered to 18 in 2018, it allowed those who were diagnosed with gender dysphoria to legally change their sex, but only if they underwent irreversible sterilization. The law won't go into effect until 2022, so at the time of writing, this stipulation has not been changed or removed. In 2019, the Human Rights Watch website wrote an article on these laws, calling them abusive.
So, while general acceptance is on the rise, laws and rights still have a long way to go. That's where pop culture can play an instrumental role in shaping popular opinion. The more beloved characters like Yamato in One Piece become, the better. Hopefully, his introduction to the anime will only keep him on an upward streak.
