Arahata Kanson (August 14, 1887 - March 6, 1981) was a 20th-century Japanese labour leader, politician and writer, serving as a major figure in many of the left-wing movements of the era. Starting his political life as a socialist, Arahata moved on to become an anarcho-syndicalist, before evolving into a communist. Arahata was born in Yokohama, and joined the socialist association Heiminsha in 1904, before being arrested during the Red Flag Incident of 1908. He would eventually join and become a member of the first Central Committee of the Japan Communist Party. After the war however, Arahata left and joined the Japan Socialist Party, serving in the Central Executive Committee and the National Diet from 1946 to 1949. Arahata spent his time after that devoted to his writing, and eventually passed away in 1981.