Before the pandemic, about 75 million people identified themselves as belonging to the LGBTQ community in the Far Eastern country.
While pride month celebrations have been and are being held around the world, there have been no major LGBTQ events in China. The country's largest pride event has been suspended in 2021.
The organizing group, ShanghaiPride, said in 2021 that they would "cancel all their upcoming events and take a break."
The BBC explained that people participating in political protests in China can often expect to be punished, so instead of marches, ShanghaiPride organized dance parties, community runs and film screenings in the city.
Now, there are only a few low-profile events available to the LGBTQ community, such as "voguing balls," where dancers perform moves inspired by model poses.
However, not only ShanghaiPride's activities have been reduced in recent years. Other LGBTQ organizations have completely disappeared in the country, and the government is trying to "get rid of the community" on all fronts.
The WeChat application is one of the most used communication apps and social media platforms in China. User accounts dealing with the LGBTQ topic suddenly disappeared from this application two years ago, and Grindr, one of the most well-known homosexual dating sites, became unavailable in the country last year.
Because of this, the leaders of several organizations fled abroad to avoid arrest. However, the police are not only harassing them, but also their family members and friends.
According to an activist, before the Covid epidemic, the situation of the LGBTQ community in China was surprisingly good, they could freely organize events, express their opinions and even win lawsuits.
“I think we were too loud,” the informant remarked. In 2019, according to a survey, five percent of the Chinese population, around 75 million people, identified themselves as belonging to the LGBTQ community, the newspaper pointed out.
The process was interrupted by the coronavirus epidemic. In 2021, the Ministry of Education issued a statement instructing schools to organize more "masculine" physical education practices for boys because Chinese men have become "feminized."
