Homosexuality became legal in mainland China in 1997. In older times, homosexuality has been considered a mental illness. Unfortunately, despite the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) community's win in the United States, in other parts of the world, the gay community still suffers from the stigma with young patients being counseled by psychiatrists. China has a long list of these treatments.
The 'cure' for same-sex attraction includes hormone therapy, exercise regimens and taking prescription drugs. The most shocking of all? Ironically, it's shock therapy.
John is a 22-year-old LGBTI activist who recently went undercover to expose 'conversion clinics' offering drugs and therapies to cure same-sex attraction. These clinics claim that treatments can successfully curb homosexual impulses. John and other LGBTI activists went undercover for a British documentary, Channel 4's "Unreported World."
When John went undercover, one clinic nurse told him in Mandarin, "Your conditioned reflex is that when you see someone of the same sex, you feel love. Now what I want to make you feel is scared."
In the documentary, John shared a quote from Confucious, "having children is the most important thing a person can do for their parents." John added that parents are the ones who send their children to these clinics for 'conversion treatments'. In the video, one of the nurses recommended jogging and talking a shower to release excess hormones in the body. The nurse suggested John do these whenever he feels homosexual urges.
In 2001, the Chinese Psychiatric Association has ceased the classification of homosexuality as a mental disease. However, many hospitals in China still offer 'cures' to treat homosexuality. The young Chinese population suffers from family pressure to produce sons and daughters. This tradition results in the desire of some of the members of the Chinese LGBTI community to alter sexual orientation.
John could be one of the 30 million gay people in China. The numbers continue to increase as more and more young people begin living with partners of their choice, despite the societal and ancestral views. While it may take more years for mainland China to fully accept homosexuality in the country, the LGBTI community hopes that in time, love ultimately wins, especially on their side of the world.
Photo: Mitch Altman | Flickr
