Women comedians, activists and feminists fighting back against sexual assault, sexism and stereotypes in China
- Feminists, activists, and comedians have been using social media to turbocharge conversations about sexual assault and harassment in China
- Women who have spoken out have faced threats, doxxing and censorship
Around Christmas, she joked about men again, “A friend told me that my jokes are challenging men’s bottom line, I was so shocked, men have bottom lines?”
Her social media pages were flooded with insults. Many accused her of vilifying men just to “attract eyeballs”, some even reported her to authorities, attempting to censor her.
Among them was Chu Yin, a Beijing-based law professor and comedian. He has recorded videos calling her “ugly without makeup.” Afterward, he published a lengthy Weibo post, warning that Yang’s “bourgeois gender politics” could threaten the unity of the working class.
The treatment Yang received is an epitome of a backlash in Chinese public opinion towards its rising feminism movement in recent years. With more and more women becoming aware of, and vocal about, their rights.
Opponents have played on the Chinese word “nuquan”, feminism, replacing it with “woman’s fist”, which is pronounced the same in Mandarin. It denigrates women expressing their concerns or pointing out gender inequalities by labelling them as “punchers”; the critics question their intentions, instead of discussing the issues they raise.
