If the woman was obviously pregnant, and there was not a frail older person that needed it more, then yes I would give her my seat. Otherwise, let her stand. And no, being pregnant is definitely not the same as being infirm.

The earlier parts of pregnancy, when you're not showing, are the parts where women tend to be the most nauseous. Sometimes that nausea can be even more uncomfortable than carrying a 7 or 8 month old fetus, so being able to sit down on a bus is important.

I agree with awombofherown. The nauseousness can be really bad at the beginning and the train/el/subway can make it worse because of the motion. I wonder if this will work though. Even when I was visibly pregnant I was only offered a seat once on public transportation, and I used it a lot.

The other point of these badges (I think), would be to shame people into giving up their seats. The bade can be (metaphorically, I hope) waved in people's faces. And maybe when people see the badges being handed out, they will be reminded to give their seats to those who need them.

And at the risk of being un-PC, there's the whole fat/pregnant problem. If I offer this woman a seat, that mean I think she's pregnant - but maybe she's just fat? You don't want to offend the fat woman, and you don't want to be rude to the pregnant one. The badge would solve that problem. I'm not saying this is a major point, but it does happen.

Ok, my feeling about it is that even if the woman isn't showing you should give her the seat on the simple principle that she is going to be working her ass off for the next 18+ years just raising the kid she's carrying--this might be the last rest she gets for a while. Take advantage of it while you can, pregnant ladies, cuz it's about to end.

Although I appreciate Japan's motion to recognize the difficulties of pregnancy and providing support for pregnant womyn, there are a couple of things wrong with these badges. From a pro-choice standpoint, let's not count our chickens before they hatch. They don't have a baby in their belly, they have a fetus.

Second of all, I am bothered by the pink and blue badges that simply enforce gender-based stereotypes. Are they also handing out Barbie dolls that squeal, "Math is hard!" when you push their stomachs? Do the boys get toy guns? We are so concerned with delineating the differences between our little girls and little boys that we never let them decide for themselves how they identify. For more information on raising kids to be themselves, not the shell of a person that the patriarchy has designed for them, check out GenderPAC. GenderPAC has a program called Children As They Are, which operates off the principle that Children have the fundamental right to be authentically who they are and that every child is unique and deserves an environment at home and school that supports their growth, learning and well-being. Go to http://www.gpac.org/parenting/index.html.

Well, you don't usually find out sex until 16 weeks. So I imagine the pink/blue isn't linked to the sex of the baby if they're giving them out earlier.

They get a seat on the subway because they might be nauseous? I need a "Hung-Over" badge.

I was pregnant in NYC in the nineties, and I was fine standing between 4.5 and 8 months. It was the 1.5-4 months period of extreme nausea, fatigue, and weakness, and those last few weeks, that were really bad. I remember telling my friends, "Everyone's willing to give you a seat when you are out to here, but in those early months, when you REALLY need it, no one can tell how desperately you need to sit down!"

As with "Pregnant Woman/Woman With Small Children" parking spots, it's fine as long as those who don't need it don't use it. That is, if you're pregnant and feel great, stand.
My second pregnancy was exhausting even when I wasn't nauseated, and had I been regularly taking the subway I would have appreciated being able to sit. With my first pregnancy, I wasn't obviously pregnant to those who don't know me until I was pretty far along, but I was on every-three-hours medication and restricted activity from twenty weeks on (and had morning sickness, all day, for five months or so). You simply can't tell the need from the appearance.

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The "Baby On Board" badges look like they come from the London Tube system...same font and logo. Japanese ones typically won't have English.

I honestly think that the worst part of pregnancy is the beginning stages, and then right before you pop. I even knew women who had fainted spells during their first few weeks of pregnancy. When i was about 38 weeks pregnant I had to stand for about an hour waiting for a table at a restaurant because no one would give up their seat in the waiting area. these badges are a bit over the top, but it couln't hurt for people to be a little more courteous. not just to pregnant women, but to anyone who might have special needs for whatever reason.

I've never been pregnant, but I do have a chronic condition that causes severe balance problems, nausea (because I'm motion-sick from my balance system running amok), and fatigue. And I guess I do sort of wonder why pregnant women are being singled out, when the problem they face is one faced by anyone whose physical challenges aren't immediately apparent. Maybe it would be better to issue a badge to anyone who had a temporary or permanent medical condition that made it difficult for him or her to stand on public transit?

Having said that, I doubt people would adhere to it. I once requested to be seated first on an airplane, and the only other pre-boarders, a family with little kids, were really, really rude about it. The mother stood like three feet from me and stage whispered to her husband "I thought this was only for families and handicapped people! Why is she here?" As if I was so desperate to get to my assigned seat five minutes early that I was going to cheat them out of their exclusive right to get on the plane first. I think a lot of people resent any accomodation made for disabled or physically challenged people (awkward phrase, but I'm loathe to categorize pregnancy as a disability) and feel entitled to vent that resentment if they can't actually see anything wrong with you.

The other thing to keep in mind are the Tokyo subways. It's not nearly as crowded as the NYC subways, even in rush hour. From what I've heard, they actually have conductors stand on the platform and push more people in. If feeling naseated is an issue, then I'm definitely in favor of those buttons (only if you want them, of course).

Interesting perspective Sally.I've never been pregnant, but in order to issue these badges wouldn't that mean you would have to take a pregnancy test first in order to prove your pregnant?If not, that would mean people could abuse the badges, for example: using them to gain seating after a hard days work.Commuters would become suspicious of the women who wear these badges and eventually the whole moral would be lost.Shouldn't we be aiming in a different direction, like creating awareness through other means; such as advertisements sponsored by pregnancy centers, ect., instead of an obnozious badge.I also feel the badges 'pink' color signifies something gender stereotypical, as well as childish for an adult women to be wearing.

I can't imagine wearing a black business suit talking on a cell phone (to some stockbroker(?) and donning one of these bright pink 'badges.'

That's assuming that pink is a childish colour. I think it's just aquired that reputation from being associated with "femininity".

L-boog,
The conductors pushing people in on Tokyo subways do so because the people won't fit otherwise. It's like sitting on your suitcase to make it shut. They cram them in there so tightly nobody can move. I saw a video of it once. I think they have it on You Tube.

I think the reason pink was chosen was to identify mothers as fragile. The use of the color pink unlocks the old stereotype of pink as fragile and therefore only fit for pregnant females. Even baby blue would look out of place on a businesswoman. She's not running for office, and I think it looks a little obnoxious. Women should not have to wear a funny looking badge so fellow commuters will offer her a seat. Most people can tell when a woman is pregnant in the later stages, so it would only be used for women in the early stages of pregnancy. The act of donning a badge to alert commuters that you're pregnant seems like silencing the real issue which is the wrong of people not respecting pregnant women's needs. She won't be able to wear it all day. What if she wants to sit on a bench; does she have to pull out her little badge in order to be given a seating preference. I think that is childish. A button speaking for a woman! I don't agree with the concept, but maybe white would be a better color.