Beate Sirota Gordon, who was a young aide to Douglas McArthur after the war, helped to fashion critical parts of Japan's constitution, specifically in the areas of women's rights. Gordon writes in a recent NY Times op-ed that Japanese laws passed after the constitution was ratified restrict the heir to the throne as male. Many Japanese legal scholars believe that the constitution trumps any laws passed after it and that Princess Aiko can be a legal heir to the throne.
I don't care too much about this topic in the first place, but I do like the idea of a female monarch, if Japan has to have one. It's also interesting to get commentary from people who made history. Gordon's legacy is tremendous.
Japan's Royal Succession [nytimes.com]
See also:
Biography: Beate Sirota Gordon (1924 - )
"The Only Woman in the Room" by Beate Sirota Gordon
When I was part of the Japan-Andover Connection back in highschool we invited Beate to come speak. Smart woman she was. Lots of interesting historical stories.