[LINK] "Li Yinhe, sexologist in China, reveals relationship with transgender man"

[rfmcdonald]

CBC carries an Associated Press report. I've been seeing lots of news of this kind coming from China, suggesting to me that China might be on the verge of a GLBT rights revolution.

A leading Chinese sexologist's revelation that she's been living with a transgender man for 17 years has sparked a rare public discussion about China's largely invisible and marginalized transgender community.

Li Yinhe made the relationship public Thursday on her blog, which was read more than 200,000 times within 24 hours. The blog became a hot topic on China's Twitter-like site Weibo, getting nearly 3 million hits as it spurred spirited discussions on social media not only about Li's nonconventional relationship, but also about transgender Chinese in general.

Chinese are increasingly liberal with heterosexual relationships, but still hold deep prejudices against sexual minorities despite government efforts to achieve equality. As an obscure group in the already socially marginal gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender community, transgender Chinese get even less attention and understanding from the public.

[. . .]

Li, a sociologist who is retired from the China Academy of Social Sciences, is known not only as a leading expert on homosexuality, but also as the widow of well-known Chinese author Wang Xiaobo, adding to the huge reaction her disclosure received.

Li said she met her current partner shortly after Wang died in 1997. "He is an angel sent by God to save me from the bitter sea of losing Xiaobo," she wrote on her blog.