Death in Tokyo; The Fate of Lucie Blackman
Details
“People Who Eat Darkness: Love, Grief and a Journey into Japan's Shadows.”
A true crime book by Richard Lloyd Parry
Join us online via Zoom Sunday 18th September
“Lucie Blackman tall, blonde, and 21 years-old stepped out into the vastness of Tokyo in the summer of 2000, and disappeared forever….”
Lucie Blackman, from Kent, England, was working as a bar hostess in Roppongi, Tokyo, when she disappeared in July 2000.
Her disappearance brought to light a string of rapes and druggings carried out against girls working as hostesses in the night time economy of the city’s club scene, also known as “the water trade”.
This international case would call into question our Western perception of Japanese culture, exposing an underworld of fantasy relationships, sexual indiscretions, hard edge BDSM enthusiasts, and wealth and sadism in what was considered one of the safest destinations for young women travellers.
The media narrative surrounding Lucie’s disappearance has all the hallmarks of what we now call Missing White Woman Syndrome. The case of Joji Obara became synonymous with Lucie Blackman because the international media had a tendency to focus on Lucie’s attractiveness, her physical appearance, blonde hair, and middle class education.
In the club where Lucie worked her male Japanese customers would pay a lot of money to spend time with her because these traits made her exotic and desirable.
These same traits made her a desirable victim for tabloid news stories.
While the death of Lucie Blackman is a tragedy, there is the wider story of a hidden Japan, an obscure and unfathomable justice system, and an enigmatic psychopath who had spent years getting away with hundreds of rapes.
We will also discuss the topic of why some missing people receive more media attention than others, and what makes a “perfect” victim in the eyes of tabloid media.
Background to the story:
Casefile podcast
https://casefilepodcast.com/case-107-lucie-blackman-carita-ridgway/
Daily Mail article: Lucie Blackman “lured” to her death
Evidence Locker Podcast: The Hostess Murders
Wikipedia, the crimes of Joji Obara
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joji_Obara
Book reviews
Toby Ball (of Crime Writers On…) discusses People who Eat Darkness
People who Eat Darkness Guardian review by Geoff Dyer
https://amp.theguardian.com/books/2011/feb/27/people-who-eat-darkness-lucie-blackman-review
Highly recommended documentary: Death of a Hostess (You Tube in 5 parts)
Death in Tokyo; The Fate of Lucie Blackman