June, which just passed, is known in many countries as "Rainbow Month" or "Pride Month".
Marches, forums, and cultural events are held around the world to discuss equality and rights for the LGBTQ community.
In recent years, such public events have continued to be held in many countries, and rainbow flags have become a common sight on the streets in June. However, in China, such public discussions are becoming increasingly rare.
How has Rainbow Month gradually disappeared in China? June, which just passed, is known as "Rainbow Month" or "Pride Month" in many countries. Around the world, marches, forums, and cultural events are held to discuss the equality and rights of the LGBTQ community. However, in China, such public discussions are becoming increasingly rare. How has China's LGBTQ public space gradually changed?
Searching for "rainbow moon" on some Chinese social media platforms yields more images of rainbows in natural landscapes than LGBTQ-related topics.
So, how have LGBTQ public spaces in China changed step by step?
Looking back, public expression of LGBTQ+ rights in China has not always been like this.
Community activities have emerged in some cities since the late 1990s.
In the 2000s, the internet provided the LGBTQ community with a relatively free and anonymous space for communication.
By the 2010s, public events on campuses and in cities were gradually increasing.
Founded in 2009, the Shanghai Pride Festival has been held for many years.
Since 2006, students at Sun Yat-sen University in Guangzhou have displayed a giant rainbow flag on campus every year to call for an end to discrimination.
The Beijing LGBT Center regularly organizes lectures, film screenings, and community events.
Although it was not large in scale, LGBTQ issues once had a certain space for public expression.
However, these public spaces subsequently began to shrink gradually.
Some observers believe that since Xi Jinping came to power, the overall space for civil society has been shrinking, and LGBTQ advocates and related organizations are facing more and more restrictions.
In 2015, authorities launched a large-scale operation against some human rights lawyers and women's rights activists.
Subsequently, the implementation of the Charity Law in 2016 and the Law on the Administration of the Activities of Overseas Non-Governmental Organizations in China in 2017 further impacted the registration and operation space of non-governmental organizations.
Starting around 2017, some platforms that were once publicly available disappeared one after another.
The long-standing rainbow flag campaign at Sun Yat-sen University in Guangzhou has been discontinued.
The Shanghai Pride Festival concluded in 2020.
In 2021, the WeChat official accounts of LGBT student associations at several universities were banned;
In 2023, the Beijing LGBT Center, which had been operating for fifteen years, announced its closure.
From the internet to campuses; from student clubs to non-profit organizations.
Over the past two decades, public expression of LGBTQ+ rights in China has evolved from its gradual emergence to its gradual contraction.
While Rainbow Month is still being celebrated in many parts of the world, LGBTQ-related public spaces in China are becoming increasingly limited.
The "rainbow moon," which once appeared online, is slowly disappearing from public view.
The rainbow hasn't disappeared. What has disappeared is the public space it once occupied.
