For years, Chinese state media have commemorated International Women’s Day with effusive praise for women in the country, thanking them for their contribution and sacrifices to their family, society and nation.
But this year, a video that asked pointed questions about deeply rooted gender bias came out of the usual acclaim – dominating Chinese social media.
The video was a collaboration between Chinese skin care brand Proya and China Women’s Daily, the official publication of the Women’s Association of All China, to mark International Women’s Day on Monday.
What’s in the video?
The video starts with the presenter speaking to the camera and asking a question that is repeated throughout the clip: “Under what circumstances do you judge something based on the genre?”
“Seeing a traffic accident, we say, ‘Oh, a female driver.’ We say, ‘You really have courage, you are nothing like a girl.’ We say, ‘You are so quiet, you are not manly,’ “she says.
The video continues to highlight a series of gender norms and prejudices against women, from being lousy in mathematics to the expectation of “marrying well” and focusing on family life.
“We asked women, ‘How do you balance family and career?’ But we never ask the same question of men, “says the presenter.” We asked, ‘What does it mean to be an independent woman?’ But nobody ever discusses what it means to be an independent man. ”
The video also questions gender norms and the roles that Chinese men must fulfill. For example, the presenter asks why “a real man” should not cry, such as pink or learn ballet.
“Why don’t men have a right to be fragile? Why is it derogatory, not praise, to say ‘you are like a woman’ to a man? Why good qualities like being kind, caring, family oriented, or pure exclusively for women? Is it true that only men can be independent, courageous, strong and career-focused? “a group of voices – women and men – asks at the end of the clip.
In contrast – and according to tradition – other state-owned media marked International Women’s Day by praising Chinese women for their contributions to society.
The People’s Daily, an official spokesman for the Communist Party, on Tuesday asked the public to honor “His strength.”
Make Chinese youth more “manly”?
The campaign is a response to the suggestion of a delegate from China’s main political advisory body that the country needed to prevent the “feminization” of teenagers, who he said had become “weak, shy and with low self-esteem”.
The Ministry of Education’s appeal is not the first official effort to tackle what the state media has called the “crisis of masculinity” among Chinese youth.
Under Xi, China’s nationalist leader, the government has turned against male celebrities, from movie stars to boyband members, who are considered to be very effeminate. In 2019, China’s leading video streaming platforms began censoring male actors’ earrings, blurring their earlobes.
But, in the eyes of the Chinese authorities, the lack of “masculinity” is not just a matter of taste, but a big risk for the country.
In 2018, the state news agency Xinhua published a widely quoted comment that said: “Whether a country accepts or rejects (effeminate men) is … a serious issue that affects the nation’s future.”
Focusing his anger on wildly popular male idols, the article criticized the “sick aesthetics” that had propelled “gender ambiguous, heavily made-up, tall and delicate young men” to television and online stardom.
“The phenomenon of ‘sissy men’ has caused a public reaction because the impact of this unhealthy culture on youth cannot be underestimated,” the document said. “When critics say ‘young sissies become a nation’s sissies’, they can sound a bit playful,” he added. “(But) nurturing a new generation that could rejuvenate the nation requires the resistance of a culture detrimental to erosive health.”
In response, an increasing number of so-called “masculinity programs” aimed at instilling traditional gender roles in young boys and men through outdoor sports and classroom training have become popular in recent years. In 2018, one of these clubs in Beijing attracted attention – and some criticism – for having their students running shirtless in the dead of winter.
On Weibo, many users applauded Proya’s video and China Women’s Daily for speaking out against the trend.
“This is the best promotional material for International Women’s Day that I have seen in 24 years,” said one comment. Another said, “There is no ‘what should I become’. I will always have the right to choose my own life. “