After years of fighting for marriage equality in the United States, LGBTQ+ activists everywhere celebrated when a nationwide bill was passed on June 26, 2015 allowing gay marriage. Now China is in the limelight in the fight for equality. Although homosexuality is not illegal in China, same-sex couples have no legal protection or rights. And just this December a Chinese man, Sun Wenlin a 26-year-old male from China’s Hunan province, filed a lawsuit against the civil affairs bureau in Furong for denying his right to be married to his partner.
Sun’s basis of his case is this, “Our marriage law says there is the freedom to marry and gender equality. These words can be applied to same-sex marriage.”On January 5, 2015, the court accepted to hear Sun Wenlin’s case. Sun and other activists see this acceptance as a huge win for marriage equality and gay rights in China. Maya Wang, Specialist in China at the New York-based group Human Rights Watch, reports to the New York Times, “In China, courts often reject politically sensitive cases, so the fact that the lawsuit is accepted signals some official willingness to address discrimination against LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) people, which is encouraging.”
China has progressed over the years with equal rights, but there are still many deficits. In 2014, CNN reported about LGBTQ+ discrimination in China. One citizen named To told CNN, “the job discrimination is very subtle and you might not get a promotion because you are single. You might get fired because of all kinds of reasons.” And The Wall Street Journal reports that “Until 1997, homosexuality was a crime in the Middle Kingdom, and it was classified as a mental illness until 2001.” Still in October of 2015, a man was committed to a psychiatric facility after he came out and attempted to divorce his wife. This pressure to conform to the norm is not new for Chinese citizens.
While Sun’s case has LGBTQ+ activists rejoicing over its publicity, Sun is still struggling with prejudice and discrimination in China. Sun reports that the local police came to his home to suggest that what he was doing was wrong. He told the Global Times, “The officer kept emphasizing that it is important to have a child to carry on one's family name, but I can't abide by people imposing their values on me.” Sun’s attorney is saying that it will be another six months until Sun Wenlin’s case is heard in court, but the feeling about the outcome is optimistic. "From the standpoint of improving visibility, this case is no doubt a victory.”
Furthermore because of Sun’s popularity on social media, many believe that his case will create a domino effect for marriage equality and gay rights. Lu Jun a co-founder of an anti-discrimination group, Yirenping, stated that no matter the result of Sun’s case, it will lead to more legal action and she also said, "More people will know that marriage registration is a right." Which is all it takes to start a revolution for equality.
