Being Gay in China

同性恋在中国

With the rapid development of LGBT （lesbian， gay， bisexual， and transgender） movement， homosexuals in many countries like Netherland， Norway， Sweden， Demark， Finland， Iceland， Australia， New Zealand， Argentina， South Africa， the U.S. and Canada have obtained social and civil rights like marriage and adoption as their heterosexual counterparts.

Following up with a report of the United Nations Human Rights Council （UNHRC） documented violations of the rights of LGBT people， including hate crime， criminalization of homosexuality， and discrimination， the UNHRC adopted its first resolution on LGBT rights in 2011 and urged all countries to enact laws to protect LGBT rights.

Although China has a history of being tolerant to homosexuality， the LGBT movement is developing relatively slowly. So far， no civil rights law is in place to protect from discrimination or harassment on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity and LGBT people are still facing social discrimination and pressures from different aspects， including the traditional culture and family.

随着LGBT运动的迅速发展，同性恋者在许多国家诸如荷兰、挪威、瑞典、丹麦、芬兰、冰岛、澳大利亚、新西兰、阿根廷、南非、美国和加拿大已经在社会权利和民权方面，如婚姻和收养，获得了和异性恋者相同的权利。

联合国人权理事会（UNHRC）的一份报告记录了包括仇视性犯罪、对同性恋行为的刑事定罪和歧视在内违反LGBT权利的行为，随后联合国人权理事会在2011年通过首项LGBT权利决议并要求所有国家制定法律保护LGBT权利。

尽管中国历史上对同性恋采取宽容态度，LGBT运动却相对发展缓慢。目前为止，并没有适当的民权法保护他们免受基于性取向和性别认同的歧视和骚扰，LGBT仍然面临来自包括传统文化和家庭在内的不同方面的社会歧视和压力。

Social Pressure to Marry

and to Reproduce

婚姻和生育的社会压力

The continuation of the family lineage is considered as a very important family duty. As a result， the opposite sex marriage and begetting children become a moral duty and an inescapable obligation to each Chinese. As a Chinese saying goes， "Of all who lack filial piety， the worst is he who has no children”. Under this tradition， homosexuals are definitely under pressure to marry and to produce offsprings. In that sense， it is considered that homosexuality interferes with the bloodline preservation.

In addition， like in many cultures， the Chinese family structure is based on the heterosexual partnership. Therefore， homosexuality is often regarded as “unusual” and even considered shameful to the family. "Traditional Chinese culture defines a marriage as being between a man and a woman. When two men marry， it is regarded as immoral，" Professor Zhang Beichuan （张北川） at Qingdao University said. Therefore， many homosexuals are not willing to disclose their sexual orientation to their parents and feel guilty coming out to their parents. And many parents with homosexual children never speak with anyone， especially other family members， about what puts them in shame.

With the one-child policy， a further pressure is added to Chinese homosexuals as the child becomes the vessel of all of the hopes and dreams of two people. Many homosexual’s parents still hold out hopes that one day their children will marry the opposite sex or pressure their children to marry the opposite sex， because they want to have grandsons and granddaughters. Therefore， it is uncommon to hear questions and comments like “what about marriage？” and “it is just not right to end up with the same sex” in the family.

家族血脉的延续被视为一项重要的家庭责任，因此异性婚姻和生儿育女成为每个中国人的一项道德义务和不可逃避的责任。中国有句古话：不孝有三，无后为大。在这种传统下，同性恋无疑要迫于压力去结婚生子。在这个意义上，人们认为同性恋妨碍香火的延续。

此外，和许多文化一样，中国的家庭结构是建立在异关系基础之上的。因此同性恋通常被视为“不正常的”，甚至是家庭的耻辱。中国传统文化对婚姻的定义是异性婚姻。青岛大学张北川教授说：“人们认为两个男人结婚是不道德的。”因此，许多同性恋不愿意向他们的父母透露他们的性取向并觉得向父母表明性取向有一种负罪感。许多同性恋者的家长从未向任何人尤其是其他家庭成员说起过这件让他们感到羞耻的事情。

独生子女政策加剧了中国同性恋的压力，因为他们承载了父母全部的希望和梦想。许多同性恋者的家长对他们的孩子仍然抱有希望，希望他们有一天会和异性结婚或者迫于压力与异性结婚，因为他们想抱孙子，孙女。在他们的家庭中总是会有这样的声音：“结婚吧？”以及“和同性在一起生活是不应该的。”

Chinese society does not offer a harmonious environment for homosexuals to live freely. Many of them have to conform to the social expectations. As a result， a great number of homosexuals are forced to get married somebody from the opposed sex. " Traditionally， gay men will marry women to hide their sexual orientation， which in many cases brings a lot of pain to the family，" said Xiao Tie （小铁）， a program director at the Beijing LGBT Center， an organization that provides social services and advocacy programs for local lesbian， gay， bisexual and transgender communities.

In the end， many homosexuals are living a double life. According to Professor Wei Wei （魏伟）， a sociologist from Shanghai’s East China Normal University， as many as 90% of Chinese gays marry the opposite sex， but in western nations very few homosexuals would enter into a heterosexual marriage， as many would remain single or live together or marry other homosexuals.

These “forced” marriages create a “tong qi phenomenon”. “Tong qi” or “homo wives” means the wife of any gay man. It is a unique social phenomenon， which is hardly found outside of China. Professor Li Yinhe estimated that 16 million women are stuck in fake marriages to gay men. In many cases， “tong qi” are unaware of their partner’s true sexual orientation before getting married. “They have either become a tool for carrying on the family line， or become the protective umbrella to conceal their husbands' identity." Professor Zhang Beichuan explained.

中国社会并没有为同性恋提供一个自由生活的和谐环境。许多同性恋不得不遵从社会期望，他们不得不迫于压力和异性结婚。北京同志中心项目主管小铁说：“一般男同性恋会和女性结婚以此来掩盖他们的性取向，在很多情况下这给家庭带来了极大的痛苦。”

结果，许多同性恋者过着双重人格生活。上海华东师范大学教授社会学家魏伟说，中国90%的男同性恋会和女性结婚，但在西方国家极少有同性恋者会和异性结婚，他们大多保持单身或者与同性同居或结婚。

这种强迫婚姻造成了“同妻现象”。“同妻”是指男同性恋者的妻子。这是一个中国特有的社会现象，在国外几乎是不存在的。李银河教授估计有1600万女性陷入了与男同性恋的虚假婚姻。大多数“同妻”在婚前不知道她们伴侣的真实性取向。张北川教授解释说：“她们变成了传宗接代的工具或者是掩盖其丈夫身份的保护伞。”

Many “tongqi” are living in a loveless and sexless marriage. Many feel treated and humiliated after taking many years to discover the true sexual orientation of their partner. Some are even subjected to violence， as some gay men vent their frustrations on their wives due to being unable to live openly with their true sexual identity. "While gay husbands cannot satisfy their wives sexually， some can still be good fathers and care for their families，" said Professor Zhang Beichuan. "But to these wives， the hardest thing is mental or emotional abuse rather than physical abuse. Their husbands don't love them， some are even disgusted by any physical contact， and this is the hardest thing for any woman.”

Even though many tongqi are subject to physical and emotional abuse， they are reluctant to divorce， especially if they have a child. "Even if they’re no longer having sex with their husbands， they’re still attached to the family. If they get divorced， they lose their husband and are risk to loss their child， their money， their house，" Professor Zhang Beichuan explained.

To avoid heterosexual unions， fake-marriage markets flourish in China. Lesbians and gay men get married to hide the fact that they are homosexual. These marriages can be considered as a way to appease their parents and to have children. In response to the need of these marriages， Shanghai’s biggest gay Web site， ， has started to hold marriage markets once a month since 2010. Another website like also helps gay men meet lesbian women for matrimonial purposes.

许多“同妻”生活在无爱无性的婚姻之中。多年之后当发现丈夫的真正性取向时她们觉得被欺骗了而且蒙受了耻辱。有些人甚至遭受暴力，因为一些男同性恋由于不能公开自己真实的性别认同而把他们的妻子当作出气筒。张北川教授说：“尽管男同性恋者作为丈夫不能满足妻子的‘’，但其中一些人仍然是好父亲而且照顾家庭。”但对于这些“同妻”来说，最难接受的远不是身体虐待而是精神和情感上的虐待。她们的丈夫不爱她们，一些人甚至对于身体接触感到厌恶，这对任何一名女性来说都是最难接受的事情。

尽管许多“同妻”遭受着身体和情感的双重虐待，她们却不愿意离婚，尤其是在她们孕育了后代的情况下。张北川教授解释说：“即使她们和丈夫之间不再有，她们仍然被家庭所束缚。如果她们离婚，她们将失去丈夫并且承担着失去孩子、金钱和房子的风险。”

为了避免异性婚姻假结婚市场在中国大行其道。女同性恋和男同性恋通过结婚来掩盖他们是同性恋的事实。这种婚姻被视为是一种安抚父母、传宗接代的方式。针对这种婚姻需求，上海最大的同性恋网站自2010年起就举办每月一次的相亲会。另一个网站也帮助安排男同性恋和女同性恋以结婚为目的的相亲。

Myths about Gay： Immoral， Mental Illness and HIV

对同性恋的误解：不道德，

精神疾病和HIV

In addition to the social pressure of marriage， there are a lot of misunderstandings about homosexuality， causing many gay people in China have low self-acceptance of their sexual orientation.

For years， homosexuality has been dubbed as “immoral and wrong”， so many homosexuals grow up with self-loathing. Professor Li Yinhe conducted a survey in 2007 and found that 70 percent of Chinese people think homosexuality is either "a little" or "completely" wrong， and only 7.5 percent of respondents said they knew a gay person.

Homosexuality is considered as immoral and wrong because many people considered that it is unnatural and a twisted contemporary social phenomenon. However， in fact， homosexuality can be found frequently in many species like dolphins， and occurs in all societies throughout the history. In China， homosexuality has been documented since ancient times. Scholar Pan Guangdan （潘光旦） said that many emperors in the Han Dynasty had one or more male sex partners. Many were recorded in Memoirs of the Historian （史记） by Sima Qian （司马迁） and the Records of the Han （汉书） by Ban Gu （班固）.

Also， scientific evidence shows that， in many cases， people don't choose their sexual orientations. Homosexuality is caused， at least， in part by genes. Sexual orientation is a combination of genetic， hormonal， and environmental influences， according to Dr. Barbara L. Frankowski. Sexual orientation can be in place possibly even before birth. Therefore， it is in people natures to prefer sexual relations with members of the same sex， members of the opposite sex， or both.

除了来自结婚压力，社会上还有许多对同性恋的误解，这些因素的共同作用造成了中国同性恋者对自身性倾向的自我接纳程度低的现状。

在很长一段时间里，同性恋被认为是“不道德”和“错误”的，因此很多同性恋长大以后对自己感觉厌恶。李银河教授在2007年进行的一项研究发现70%的中国人认为同性恋不太应该或者完全是不应该的，只有7.5%的受访者说他们认识同性恋者。

人们认为同性恋是不道德和错误的，原因是许多人认为这是不自然的而且是一种扭曲的社会现象。但事实上同性恋在许多物种中普遍存在，例如海豚，而且在历史上它在所有社会中都发生过。在中国古代就有对同性恋的记载。学者潘光旦说在汉代许多皇有一个或多个男嬖，司马迁的《史记》和班固的《汉书》中对此都有记载。

科学证据表明许多情况下人们并不选择自己的性倾向。同性恋至少部分是由基因决定的。芭芭拉・L・弗兰科夫斯基博士认为性倾向是基因、荷尔蒙和环境影响共同作用的结果。性倾向很可能在一个人出生之前就已经存在了。因此，无论同性恋、异性恋或双性恋倾向都是人的天性。

In the 1990s， homosexuality was considered a mental illness in China. And many people from older generations still associate the homosexuality with a mental illness. However， homosexuality is simply the way a minority of our population expresses human love and sexuality. Study after study has documented about the mental health of gay men and lesbians. All Studies show that gay men and lesbians function as well as heterosexuals in their judgment， stability， reliability， and social and vocational adaptiveness. In fact， homosexuality was removed from the Ministry of Health's list of mental illnesses in China in 2001.

Another myth is that many Chinese tend to associate gay people with HIV/AIDS patients. It is true that MSM （men who have sex with men） have a high risk of HIV acquisition and transmission in China. According to the official statistics released by China’s Ministry of Health in 2011， MSM group were account for one in every three new cases of HIV in China. HIV prevalence amongst MSM was at 6.3%.

The ministry of health said that risky sexual behavior was the biggest single factor behind the spread of HIV in mainland China and that men who had sex with men were now the group most likely to become infected with the virus due to their high level of unprotected sexual behavior， not because of their sexual orientation.

In reality， HIV does not discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation. It can infect male or female， heterosexual or homosexual， young or old. Therefore， it is incorrect to portray HIV/AIDs as a "gay plague" or a punishment for homosexual activity.

20世纪90年代，同性恋在中国被认为是一种心理疾病。老一代的许多人仍然把同性恋者看成患有精神疾病。然而，同性恋只是少数人对人类爱和性的表达方式。对男同性恋者和女同性恋者的心理健康进行了多项研究。研究表明，“男同”和“女同”在判断力、稳定性、可靠性，以及社会和职业的适应能力方面与异性恋者相同。事实上中国卫生部在2001年就把同性恋从心理疾病中删除了。

另一种说法是，许多中国人往往会把同性恋人群与艾滋病毒及艾滋病（HIV/ AIDS）患者联系起来。在中国，男男人群（MSM）确实容易感染和传播艾滋病病毒。根据中国卫生部在2011年的官方统计数据，中国新发的艾滋病病例中，每三个中就有一个来自MSM。男男性接触者的艾滋病病毒感染率是6.3%。

卫生部称，危险的是艾滋病毒在中国大陆传播最大的单一因素，由于无保护的而非性取向的原因，现在MSM是最有可能感染该病毒的群体。

事实上，艾滋病患者并不受性取向的影响。无论是男性还是女性、异性恋者或同性恋者、年轻人或老年人都可能感染该病毒。因此，把艾滋病毒及艾滋病患者看成是“同性恋瘟疫”或同性恋行为的惩罚是不正确的。

Lacking Civil Rights Protection Measures

缺乏民事权利保护措施

Since homosexuality was decriminalized in 1997 and removed from the official list of mental disorders in 2001， the Chinese government has adopted “3 nots” policy --- not encouraging， not discouraging and not promoting ― toward homosexuality. Therefore， the legislation does not keep up with social developments and no laws have introduced to bar discrimination based on sexual orientation. "Other disadvantaged groups like ethnic minorities， the disabled， and women and children， all have protective legal measures， but there is no clear assistance for gays， " commented Professor Zhang Beichuan.

Until now， China does not recognize same sex- marriage， civil union or domestic partnership. In many respects， the same legal protections of heterosexual married couples do not extend to their same-sex counterparts. Firstly， Same-sex couples do not have an automatic right of inheritance. Secondly， the partners cannot be defined each other as next-of-kin （近亲）. Thirdly， a partner cannot obtain a hukou based on their partner’s place of residence in the way that a heterosexual married couple can. Fourthly， LGBT people can only adopt as a single person， their partner cannot obtain any rights as a co-parent of the child.

Under Chinese Labour Law， no anti-discrimination provision is applicable for LGBT people at work. A survey by Professor Zhang Beichuan of 1，259 homosexuals showed that 8.7 percent were fired or forced to resign after revealing their sexual orientation， and 4.7 percent felt their salary and career advancement were affected. The Labour Law specifically protects workers against discrimination on the basis of a person’s ethnicity， gender or religion. However there are no applicable provisions against discrimination on the basis of sexuality or gender identity.

Many LGBT’s social gatherings are blocked and interfered by authorities. In 2009， several events of Shanghai Pride were intervened by the Shanghai Industry & Commercial Administration Bureau from taking place. Most of these were stopped on reasons such as not having a license to show a film. In 2010， police shut down the China's first gay pageant an hour before it was set to begin. Many LGBT venues were raided by police. In 2011， police raided Q Bar， a new gay bar on the Bund， in Shanghai， and detained at least 50 people. These incidents demonstrated that LGBT people face serious barriers in trying to meet each other and organize activities for the community.

1997年，中国将同性恋非刑事化，并于2001年将其从精神疾病名单中剔除，中国政府对同性恋采取了“三不”政策――不支持，不反对，不提倡。很显然立法没有跟上社会发展的脚步，而且没有任何法律禁止基于性倾向的歧视。张北川教授评论说，“其他少数民族、残疾人、妇女和儿童等弱势群体，都有法律保护措施，但目前还没有明确针对同性恋的法律援助”。

到目前为止，中国不承认同性婚姻、同性恋的民事结合或同性同居伴侣关系。在许多方面，同享受不到异性恋夫妇所有的法律保护。首先，同没有自动继承的权利。其次，同不能被定义为彼此的近亲。第三，同的一方不能在另一方居住的地方获得户口，而异性恋夫妇则可以。第四，LGBT人群只能单方来领养孩子，他们的伴侣无权作为孩子的共同家长。

根据中国劳动法，没有适用于LGBT人群工作的反歧视规定。张北川教授对1，259名同性恋者的一项调查显示，在透露了自己性取向后，8.7%的LGBT被解雇或被迫辞职，4.7%的人认为他们的薪酬和职业发展受到了影响。劳动法明确规定保护工人免受基于种族、性别或宗教的歧视，然而却没有基于性倾向的反歧视条款。

许多LGBT人群的社交聚会受到当局的封锁与干扰。2009年，“上海骄傲周”的系列活动受到上海工商局干预。由于没有电影放映许可证，大部分活动被迫取消。2010年，中国首次同性恋选美比赛在赛前一小时被警方取消。许多LGBT场地受警方突袭。2011年警方突袭了上海外滩一个新成立的同性恋酒吧（酷优酒吧），并拘留了至少50人。这些事件表明，LGBT人群在社交和举办活动方面面临严重障碍。