Homo Sapiens: Painter, 91, still fights for Minamata patients

[LostInTime]

Asahi dot com {In English}
BY AYAKO TSUKIDATE
THE ASAHI SHIMBUN

The revelry never seemed to end at a unique bar in Tokyo's Shinjuku. The loyal patrons included writers and artists, even cross-dressers, who flocked to the joint to share good times and a boisterous laugh with the statuesque "mama-san."

But behind all the gaiety, a dark memory lurked--the anguished cries of bed-ridden patients of Minamata disease.