LGBTQ in China

A marginalised community fights for acceptance
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LGBTQ issues are still a taboo topic in China, and the community faces harsh consequences like ostracization, unemployment and even jail. However, the LGBTQ community is also fighting to be seen and heard, and many LGBTQ people are living openly and loudly amid growing acceptance from society.

Latest News
News
Politics
China’s new regulations on gender affirmation surgery are a “huge step” for transgender people in the country, according to one LGBT community worker. Photo: AFP
Politics
Family approval still biggest hurdle for China’s trans youths seeking surgery
While policy changes make it easier for LGBT youth to access gender affirmation surgery, many still struggle with getting their parents’ consent.
Legendary space ranger Buzz Lightyear is voiced by Chris Evans. Image: Disney/Pxiar
United States & Canada
Lightyear won’t show in some countries over same-sex kiss, China also unlikely
Disney was unable to get permission in 14 Asian and Middle Eastern nations to screen the prequel to Pixar’s Toy Story films.
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Illustration: Henry Wong
Politics
China’s gay youth seek a different path to LGBT campaigners in the West
For many of the estimated 70 million people in mainland China who identify as LGBT, acceptance rather than individualism may be their main goal.
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Patrick Sun Kai-yit, Asia’s leading collector of works by LGBTQ artists. Photo: courtesy of Sunpride
Arts & Music
How a Chinese paper cutting artwork changed this LGBT art collector’s life
A Chinese paper cutting, depicting two men having oral sex behind a door while a woman nurses her baby in another room, is a striking symbol of gay men’s struggle for acceptance, says LGBT art collector Patrick Sun.
Promotional shot of “We Are Gay”, a new play by Candice Chong Mui-ngam that will make its debut during the 50th Hong Kong Arts Festival in 2022
Arts & Culture
Ménage à trois and murder: Hong Kong dramatist on her new play We Are Gay
Candice Chong talks about her dark LGBT tale of three gay men in Hong Kong, self-censoring for the first time and why she’d tell her children to leave her home city.
Activists protesting in Taipei on Monday called on the government to approve gay marriage with foreign partners. Photo: AFP
China
Taiwan LGBT activists protest against same-sex marriage rules
Taiwanese can legally wed foreigners, but only those from places that also recognise marriage equality.
Friends fans in mainland China were not happy with the censorship of important recurring character, Carol Willick. Photo: Handout
Big Tech
China’s censorship of Carol, LGBT references in sitcom Friends sparks debate
The censorship of Friends comes amid Beijing’s tightened grip on online content, especially those from foreign markets.
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News
Lunar Newsletter|Camel beauty contest, being LGBTQ+ and Chinese, and more
US Consul General Hanscom Smith has praised the courage of Hong Kong’s LGBT community. Photo: Felix Wong
Politics
US consul general to Hong Kong, husband thank well-wishers after son’s birth
The happy couple say thanks for Hongkongers’ support after their son’s birth, hope to bring him to the city in the future.
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Taiwan is at the vanguard of the burgeoning LGBT rights movement in Asia. Photo: EPA-EFE
China
Taiwanese activists buoyed by court ruling allowing same-sex adoption
Decision enables 34-year-old man to become legal guardian of his spouse’s daughter, who his husband adopted before they married.
1
US consul general Hanscom Smith and his husband Ying-tsung Lu have announce the birth of a son, Julian Hanscom Lu Smith. Photo: Facebook
Society
US consul general to Hong Kong and his husband announce birth of son
The couple’s announcement drew congratulations online, and renewed calls from the city’s LGBT community for the government to implement policies friendlier towards ‘rainbow families’.
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Economy
Global Impact Newsletter|China’s LGBT community joins big tech, education and celebrities in the spotlight
In this issue of Global Impact, we look at how the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community in China has been caught up in a recent round of repression that targeted various sectors, including education and online platforms.
Transgender models in the June 2021 issue of Vogue Thailand. Photography: Nat Prakobsantisuk
Fashion & Beauty
Vogue magazine cover gives ‘trans people the recognition they deserve’
Fashion is embracing trans rights, notably in Asia – where the cover of the June 2021 issue of Vogue Thailand features three models, all of them trans women.
Delegates celebrate after Hong Kong secured the 2022 Gay Games on November 3, 2017. Hong Kong’s successful bid is the first time the event will come to Asia. Photo: AFP
Opinion
Opinion|Why Gay Games give Hong Kong a chance to bolster its fading reputation
Hosting the Gay Games has the potential for a large economic windfall and a morale boost after several difficult years. Also, while most Hongkongers support legalising same-sex marriage, hosting the Games does not amount to an endorsement of marriage equality.
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Participants enjoy Hong Kong’s gay pride parade on November 17, 2018. Photo: Edward Wong.
Opinion
Opinion|Gay Games: prejudice, hatred in Legco only hurt Beijing’s wish for harmony
A city that brings different people together through sports, arts and culture – a city that unites people – is exactly the sort of public relations we need, not divisive slurs that damage social cohesion.
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News
Lunar Newsletter|Indonesia’s heavy metal girl band, egg freezing debate and defining couples
A symbolic rainbow flag for the LGBT community flutters in Hong Kong. Photo: AFP
Politics
Hong Kong Gay Games: lawmakers against event ‘out of touch’, Regina Ip says
Row erupted in Legco on Wednesday after veteran legislator called for more support from authorities, with Junius Ho saying he did not want ‘dirty money’ from economic benefits of the Games.
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News
Lunar Newsletter|Celebrity divorces, Karen v Kamala, and Hong Kong’s buffalo mama
Legal protections that would normally apply to married couples often do not apply to the LGBT community in China. Photo: EPA
Gender & Diversity
Lawsuit between lesbian couple shows gaps in China’s LGBT protections
A lawsuit between an elderly lesbian couple highlighted the fact that, in China, it is possible to be a couple for decades but have no legal recourse for disputes.
1
A dancer competesin the category of Voguing Open To All at a voguing ball at a bar in Beijing. Photo: Jade Gao/AFP
Fashion & Beauty
Strike a pose: voguing takes root in China’s LGBT scene
Made famous by Madonna in 1990, voguing came from the LGBT ballroom culture of 1960s Harlem. Now it has landed in China, allowing members of its LGBT community, who lead mostly low-key lives, a chance to shine.
United States & Canada
LGBT Chinese shine at voguing balls
A couple walk through the People’s Park in Shanghai, China, on August 9, 2020. Photo: EPA-EFE
Tech Trends
Dating apps with Chinese characteristics draw Gen Z and millennials
Young romance seekers in China flock to a new breed of dating services designed to fill the gaps left by existing apps like Tinder and Grindr.
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Society
Inkstone|Bullied and sexually assaulted for months, school tells gay high school student to ‘deal with it’
A gay high school student in Beijing attempted suicide after schoolmates bullied him in incidents that included sexual assaults. Experts say the case showed that Chinese schools urgently need to introduce anti-bullying education and support.  
A shocking case of abuse that was ignored by school authorities and resulted in a suicide attempt is likely to become subject to legal action. Photo: Getty
People & Culture
‘Deal with it’: gay teen attempts suicide after school ignores sexual assault
A gay high school student in Beijing attempted suicide after students bullied him in incidents that included sexual assaults. Experts say the case showed that Chinese schools urgently need to introduce anti-bullying education and support.
1
News
Lunar Newsletter|Asia’s Golden Globes moment, egg-freezing inequality and more
Society
Inkstone|China LGBT: court says homosexuality can be called a ‘mental disorder’
China’s LGBT community ‘disappointed’ over court decision to uphold a ruling that okays university textbook calling homosexuality a ‘mental disorder.’
Society
Inkstone|Being gay in China: One man is shedding light on the plight of homosexual teachers
Cui Le was a lecturer in China, but had to move to New Zealand after he came out as gay in 2015. Now Cui is finishing an in-depth report about the struggles faced by gay university teachers in China. 
A Chinese court has upheld a ruling that a textbook that described homosexuality as a mental disorder was not incorrect. The Hong Kong social worker who brought the case said it was a pity, and that she considered the judgment ‘baseless’. Photo: Getty Images
Gender & Diversity
Chinese court ruled textbook can call homosexuality a mental disorder
A Chinese court upheld a ruling that a textbook calling homosexuality a mental disorder was not incorrect. The Hong Kong social worker who brought the case calls its judgment ‘baseless’.
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Society
Inkstone|China LGBT groups squeezed as China tightens rules on internet publishing
China recently issued strict new guidelines on who can publish stories online. The new rules have sent a chill through the country’s LGTB community.
Society
Inkstone|Love killer: How the Covid-19 pandemic has left the world a more violent place for the LGBTQ community
In a world battling a lethal global pandemic with a mounting death toll, there are still countries that will kill you for consensual same-sex activity.
Opinion
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