He caught a glimpse into a future he never knew existed - a future that was perhaps within his reach too.Ī diligent student, Duan aced his gaokao - China’s national entrance exam - and moved from his secluded hometown to the city of Tianjin, studying literature at a top university. Duan was moved by one scene in particular, in which the businessman brings his lover home for the Chinese New Year to share a customary hotpot meal with his family.
When he was 17, he watched “Lan Yu,” a 2001 Chinese film about a love affair between a male college student from northern China and a businessman in Beijing, based on a novel published online by an author known only as Beijing Comrade. Online, he stumbled into a world where he finally felt he belonged, a place where gay people like himself sought kinship and connection. Even in grade school, while his male classmates talked about girls, he nursed a secret crush on a boy, a gregarious, basketball-playing class monitor.
Offline, Duan had known for a long time that he was different - and he knew no one else like him. Then he’d go to QQ, the new instant-messaging service and online forum, and type in the Chinese word for “homosexual” - tongzhi, or comrade. He would pick a desktop facing away from the wall so that nobody could look over his shoulder. After school, he would visit the newly opened internet cafe in his hometown, Xinzhou, a small city in Shanxi Province bounded by a veil of mountains.
"They said they had really wanted to reach the gay community," Mr Ma told AFP, "but they didn't have the channels and didn't know how to find them.Like many gay Chinese growing up at the turn of the millennium, Duan Shuai began his long, deliberate process of coming out online. Mr Ma said he was pleasantly surprised by the response he received after sounding out health officials to cooperate on HIV prevention campaigns.
It also works with local authorities to direct users to free testing centres.
That includes its efforts to tackle the stigma around HIV that has fuelled discrimination against gay men and prevented people from seeking medical care.īlueCity runs an online platform that sells HIV diagnostic kits and brokers consultations with doctors. It has opted for a cautious approach in raising mainstream awareness and tolerance of the LGBTQ community. Working for toleranceĭiscussion of LGBTQ issues remains contentious in China, with activists complaining of tightened restrictions on public discussion in recent years.īut despite being repeatedly shut down in the first few years of its existence, Blued has largely avoided conflict with the authorities. Like other dating apps, many Blued users are seeking hook-ups and casual dates.īut Mr Ma also keeps a stack of letters on his desk from users who have written to thank him for helping connect them to their long-term partners.
It has yet to turn a profit, but company figures show losses have narrowed since the platform began paid memberships, live streams and ads in 2016.