Divided down under
Conservative Chinese communities in Australia act to stop same-sex marriage
○ Since voting commenced on Australia’s new same-sex marriage survey, many in the Chinese community have actively and vocally campaigned to vote no
○ Many of those same activists were not involved in other issues and only became unprecedentedly united on this particular matter
○ There is division in the community, as younger Chinese tend to support same-sex marriage
Over the past couple of weeks, Liu Tingting, a Chinese PhD student attending Australia’s Queensland University, found a number of Chineselanguage leaflets advertising against same-sex marriages.
Liu, who is also a visiting scholar at West Sydney University, saw Chinese people passing out bilingual pamphlets and fliers at the entrance of Chinese supermarkets in Sydney. She even saw fliers being stuffed into people’s mailboxes.
One colorful flyer had a large cartoon drawing of two men kissing, with the Chinese words “Homosexuality is a deadly curse declared by God” at the top. The paper went on to explain other reasons for opposing same-sex marriage, such as that it will hurt women, that it is a blasphemy of marriage and that, because homosexuals can’t have children, it will bring an end to families.
The wave of Chinese advertisements campaigning against gay marriage has been rising following the Australian government’s launch of a national survey on same-sex marriage, which began collecting votes on September 12.
Many in the Chinese community down under who may not have spoken up before on other Aussie issues have united to voice their concerns on this sensitive subject. But their vocal activism has also drawn opposition from other Chinese, particularly of the younger generations.
Virtual battlefield
Liu thinks the national survey has its faults, such as it does not have any legal status as a referendum, that it is entirely voluntarily and that people can choose to take or not take part in it.
The survey only has one question: “Should Australian law be changed to allow same-sex couples to marry,” with only two options: “Yes” or “No.”
Still, the reaction from the Chinese community has been overwhelmingly strong – and divided. Besides publicizing their opinions in fliers and posters, WeChat, a popular Chinese social media platform, has become a sort of virtual battlefield between proponents on both sides of the issue.
Liu said she feels that she can’t be friends anymore with many of her WeChat Moments contacts, as those who are against gay marriage are especially annoying about constantly publicizing their beliefs, while those who support same-sex marriage mostly remain meek and silent.
A few Australia-based WeChat groups she is a member of are constantly filled with posts and messages calling for an opposition of same-sex marriage.
“Emergency, please share this with others! The fate of Australia and our next generation is in your hands! Vote against legalizing same-sex marriage because it’s a death spell that will leave you sonless, and the origin that creates and spreads AIDS,” read one post Liu shared with the Global Times.
Unprecedented participation
Besides passing out fliers, meet-ups are also being organized; a Chinese Presbyterian church in Australia hosted a sermon specifically on the matter.
Pansy Lai, a Sydney-based Chinese pediatrician and founder of Australian Chinese for Families Association, has appeared in a video advertisement paid
for by Coalition for Marriage as one