((PKG)) LGBTQ CHINESE STUDENTS
((Banner: Open Communities))
((Reporter: Mengyu Dong))
((Camera: Yiyi Yang))
((Adapted by: Ailin Li))
((Map: San Francisco, California))
((NATS))
((Lang, Student))
I came out to my parents when I was 14. The most memorable thing is kneeling in the living room for a whole night and my mom hitting me with a belt.
((NATS))
((Lang, Student))
My name is Lang. I’m from Chengdu (China). My major is biology, and I work in San Diego now. I did my undergraduate study in Manhattan, Kansas. So….
((Wang, Student))
A very conservative state?
((Lang, Student))
Yes. It’s a very conservative state. It’s a little depressive compared to Chengdu, which is a very open city.
((NATS))
((Wang, Student))
I’m Lang’s boyfriend. My name is Wang. I’m from Shandong (China).
I came here for my Master’s program in Human-Computer Interaction in Michigan. I haven’t come out to my parents yet. They actually know quite a bit, but we never talked about it.
((NATS))
((Lang, Student))
He feels like family.
((Wang, Student))
It was natural. We get along very well. We just fell in love.
((Lang, Student))
We got engaged on September 1. We were so happy when same-sex marriage was legalized in the U.S. because if our relationship wasn’t recognized, we would have only been able to shine in private. That’s why we were so happy when it was legalized. It felt like I was recognized by the whole world.
((NATS))
((Lang, Student))
The LGBT groups in the U.S. and China live in different situations. In the U.S., you can discuss your problems with your friends and colleagues. Once I go back to Chengdu, even though people acknowledge me, they don’t want to touch on the topic or talk too much about it. You can’t talk about your problems with your family members too much either. It’s somewhat depressing.
((NATS))
((Wang, Student))
But I come across problems (in the U.S.) too. For example, my professor and classmates pay too much attention to my identity once they know about it. During class discussion sometimes, they would try to agree with my opinion because I’m an LGBT person. I also don’t want to mention my LGBT identity when applying for jobs, because some companies do give preference to LGBT people. So, while I do wish to be recognized in the U.S., I don’t want people to look at me just as an LGBT person. Because I am who I am. It’s only one aspect of me. If everybody knows about it and can respect me, then I’ll be happy.
((NATS))
((Lang, Student))
Of course we hope the environment for LGBT groups in China can be improved. Because in China, even if we get married in the U.S., it’s illegal in China because same-sex marriage hasn’t been legalized in China. But many regions in Asia have started to recognize same-sex marriage and to talk about its legalization.
((Wang, Student))
Many people are starting to learn about this topic. People in our community are also coming out. I think these are the first step leading to legalizing same-sex marriage.
