३० मार्च, २०२३

"To be clear, I am not denying that Chinese LGBTQ content creators have been forced to survive... in regulatory blind spots by cleverly packaging their stories with less provocative keywords like 'youth' and 'romance'..."

"... instead of 'Boys’ Love' or 'LGBTQ.' Instead, I believe it’s important to look deeper into an ecosystem that allows Chinese queer culture to persist.... [C]reators rely on huge streaming platforms [that]... use queer content to pinkwash their reputations while pursuing younger, more liberal audiences.... Streaming media platforms’ support for queer culture is at best speculative; it can be, and often is, withdrawn when the political winds shift.... In 2020, the Chinese government [objected to] 'chaotic fandom activities' and unconventional gender presentation, a phenomenon exemplified by the so-called sissy pants idols, many of them straight, appearing on television.... [W]hile the past two years were unkind to LGBTQ content creators and platforms alike, there are reasons for optimism. Time and again, when offered a choice, Chinese audiences have proven receptive to queer content and themes...."

I was interested to see the phrase "sissy pants," but this isn't the first time. Here's a post of mine from 2021. I quote an AP report:
"China’s government banned effeminate men on TV. Broadcasters must 'resolutely put an end to sissy men and other abnormal esthetics,' the National Radio and TV Administration said..." 1 "... using an insulting slang term for effeminate men — 'niang pao,' or literally, 'girlie guns.' 2 ​ 3 That reflects official concern that Chinese pop stars, influenced by the sleek, fashionable look of some South Korean and Japanese singers and actors, are failing to encourage China’s young men to be masculine enough...."
And I found this piece from the London Times, 2019,  "CIA turned our celebrities into ‘sissy pants’, says Chinese Academy of Social Sciences" (London Times, 2019): 
Beijing’s experts compared China’s entertainment industry, which “advocates feminine male artists”, to Hollywood, where “male stars are not like this, most of them are tough guys”. 
The biggest celebrities in mainland China often are imported from the K-Pop industry in South Korea.... An editorial in the state-run Xinhua news agency derided xiao xian rou as “sissy boys” unfit for the task of “helping our nation reach its renaissance”. 
Last year, Xinhua, the state news agency, lambasted singers in a new group, New F4, as “sissy pants” and said they were “not men, but not women”. 13 ​ 14 ​ 15 “They look androgynous and wear make-up. They are slender and weak,” the influential opinion columnist using the pen name Xinshiping wrote. “The impact this sick culture will have on our young generation is immeasurable.”

१४ टिप्पण्या:

Joe Smith म्हणाले...

All of this government regulation is coming to us, even though it's mostly already here.

Except in the U.S., gay content will be mandatory.

Ampersand म्हणाले...

China sees the coming demographic collapse. Non-reproductive sexuality doesn't help. China will be increasingly hostile to gay rights.

Narr म्हणाले...

Great phrase, sissy pants.

Zorak the Evil Mantis used it to insult Space Ghost.

n.n म्हणाले...

Pedophilia in the trans/homosexual community is socially progressive. So is a revival of human rites in their ancient ethical religion.

Kay म्हणाले...

America is taking notes on censorship. I've been doing more research on the RESTRICT act and it's 100x worse than I originally thought. this makes it incredibly easy for the US government to crack down on mass communication online like never seen before. Not only that, it takes place specifically when large amounts of people are communicating. How convenient!

Rollo म्हणाले...

Mao's Cultural Revolution: women, LGBTQ+, BIPOC most affected.

robother म्हणाले...

"It wasn't the bullet that laid him to rest, 'twas the low spark of high-heeled boys."

Drago म्हणाले...

They should have used the more easily recognized "Sissy Mary's".

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=JMK6lzmSk2o

Tom T. म्हणाले...

It would be interesting to know what role US companies played in that crackdown.

Aggie म्हणाले...

How nice, a definition consisting of intentionally ambiguous, defensive labels. 'Youth', 'Boy Love'..... which of the letters in the acronym LGBTQ refers to pedophilia, one wonders....

Lurker21 म्हणाले...

Gay male themes and "sissy pants" characters in manga and anime are said to be popular with Japanese girls and young women. If LGBTQ material was popular in China, it may have been with the same demographic. I guess the characters are attractive and cute and non-threatening, and the material, even in graphic novels, isn't very graphic. Maybe the Chinese guys are heavily into lesbian themes, though that's probably less likely.

n.n म्हणाले...

which of the letters in the acronym LGBTQ refers to pedophilia

Queer, probably. Homosexual or cisgender, maybe. Pedophilia on its own merits is trans/social, but with social progress even human rites (e.g. witch burning) have been normalized. So, there is hope for change and forward-looking collateral damage in the secular model.

Michael म्हणाले...

A visitor from Mars studying our TV shows would conclude a third of the population as black and twenty percent gay. In two years a trans person will have a role in every drama. Bet on it.

PM म्हणाले...

If the Kardashians are getting rid of their big butts, any sea change in any alphabet fetish is possible.