I gave an interview last week with Emily Chang from CNN, just before the first ever Mr Gay China pageant was due to be held in Beijing. Surprising the event was shut down at the last minute due to the organiser’s ‘paperwork’ not being in order.
Last summer I wrote about Shanghai’s Gay Pride event, which was allowed to go ahead albeit without any public events. At the end of last year a Government funded gay bar opened in Dali in Yunnan Province. And then only a few weeks ago, a gay couple held the first ever gay marriage ceremony in China. Despite the fact that same sex marriages are not recognised in the country.
“The reality in China: it’s still hard to be gay,” says Ray Ally, a social commentator with Landor Associates in Beijing. “It’s still very hard to be openly gay with your friends, with your work colleagues and there’s still a stigma or taboo about being gay.”
It would appear the issue is still a confusing one for authorities, as they try to figure out a consistent approach to the subject.
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I agree China has a long way to before it become a gay friendly place to live.