Global InformationLGBT culture in Hong Kong information
Despite the history of colonisation and the resulting process of Westernisation since 1842, Hong Kong still embodies many aspects of Chinese traditional values towards sexuality.[1] It is traditionally believed that heterosexuality is the nature, coherent, and privileged sexuality.[2] Popular media marginalises and discriminates against LGBT members of Hong Kong in an attempt to maintain "traditional lifestyles".[1]
In 1991, the government of Hong Kong legalised male-male same sex relations. Since then LGBT activism has increased, asking for legal protections.[3] A wave of political activism began in the 2000s.[4]
In 2005, the government of Hong Kong conducted a telephone survey with over 2000 persons responding. Of them, 39% indicated that homosexuality "contradicts the morals of the community."[5] 42% of those surveyed in 2005 stated that homosexuals were not "psychologically normal".[6]
A 2012 survey by Community Business had 1,002 respondents chosen at random and 626 persons who identified as LGBT. Of the respondents, chosen randomly, 50% stated that they accepted LGBT individuals while 25% stated they did not; 3% stated that they believed LGBT individuals were not "psychologically normal". Of the LGBT employees, 53% stated that they had to "pretend to be someone they are not" and therefore felt exhaustion, while 26% stated that the work environment did not accept them, so they, at times, had to stay home to work.[6]
According to a survey titled 'The Hong Kong LGBT Climate', conducted by The University of Hong Kong, 25.6% of the respondents stated that they believed LGBT persons are the way they are due to their upbringing and socialisation, while 24.2% of the respondents believed they are 'born that way', and 14.3% believed it is caused by both factors. While nearly half of the respondents personally knew a person from the LGBT community, most of the respondents also stated that they 'would not mind' and 'would not have special feeling' towards LGBT individuals. Most respondents were aware of the discrimination and humiliation which LGBT individuals face in their daily lives; 85% of the respondents supported the idea of promoting inclusiveness of the LGBT community. The survey also included the experiences of Hong Kong LGBT individuals and it is noted that most of them had not fully 'come out' to their family, mostly due to the fear of not being accepted, being shamed, or being rejected by family members.[7] For the same reason, LGBT individuals tended to seek help and support from various social media platforms instead of family members.[8]
By 2012 many individuals who originated from mainland China became a part of Hong Kong's LGBT culture. LGBT marches are legal in Hong Kong, while they are not permitted in many areas in the Mainland. Joanna Chiu and Christy Choi of the South China Morning Post stated that in Hong Kong lesbians stated that conservative lawmakers and Christian groups in Hong Kong make lesbianism less accepted in Hong Kong compared to mainland China, but that Hong Kong lesbians are better able to resist pressures to marry men.[9]
For an extensive (600-page) online bibliography of Hong Kong LGBTQ issues across many subjects, consult [1] Towards Full Citizenship: A Preliminary Checklist of Hong Kong Gay/Lesbian-related Works = 向光明 : 香港同志情形的參考書/片目. Latest edition is the 5th edition (2024), a digital PDF document with link in the previous sentence. (For some earlier editions, variously in print or digital format, check the Library and Archives Canada catalogue, the Internet Archive, or OCLC WorldCat. Some earlier editions are also in print at Hong Kong Public Library, Chinese University of Hong Kong Library and the University of Hong Kong Library).
- ^ a b Yau, Ching (2010). As Normal As Possible. HKU: Hong Kong University Press. pp. 133–149.
- ^ Kong, Travis SK (26 November 2012). "A fading Tongzhi heterotopia: Hong Kong older gay men's use of spaces". Sexualities. 15 (8): 896–916. doi:10.1177/1363460712459308. S2CID 143355606.
- ^ Wehbi, Samantha. Community Organizing Against Homophobia and Heterosexism: The World Through Rainbow-Colored Glasses. Routledge, 13 September 2013. ISBN 1317992490, 9781317992493. p. 66.
- ^ Tang, Denise, p. 90-91.
- ^ Chen, Te-Ping. "Pop Star's Stadium-Style Coming Out." The Wall Street Journal. 25 April 2012. Retrieved on 27 September 2014.
- ^ a b Steger, Isabella. "How Gay-Friendly is Hong Kong? It Depends." The Wall Street Journal. 18 May 2012. Retrieved on 27 May 2014.
- ^ Robert Ting-Yiu CHUNG; Karie Ka-Lai PANG; Winnie Wing-Yi LEE; Joyce Wai-Man CHAN (2012). "The Hong Kong LGBT Climate Study 2011-12" (PDF). HKU Pop Site. Retrieved 22 February 2018.
- ^ Chong, E. S.; Zhang, Y.; Mak, W. W.; Pang, I. H. (2015). "Social Media as Social Capital of LGB Individuals in Hong Kong: Its Relations with Group Membership, Stigma, and Mental Well-Being". American Journal of Community Psychology. 55 (1–2): 228–238. doi:10.1007/s10464-014-9699-2. PMID 25576016. S2CID 3479322.
- ^ Chiu, Joanna and Christy Choi. "Lesbians from mainland China revel in Hong Kong's freedom." South China Morning Post. Sunday, 11 November 2012. Updated Saturday, 17 November 2012. Print: "More mainlanders join gay pride on parade" Retrieved on 27 September 2014.