Teresa Xu (left) and Li Tingting share a moment outside of a beauty salon where the two were preparing for their wedding in Beijing yesterday.
(AP)
BEIJING — A prominent Chinese lesbian couple held a simple ceremony yesterday to announce their informal marriage, in their latest effort to push for legalization of same-sex unions in China.
The union of Li Tingting and Teresa Xu came six days after the US Supreme Court ruled to validate same-sex marriages in the United States, and four months after Li was detained in China for her activism on behalf of women’s rights.
Same-sex marriage is not legal in China, and there is no broad social effort to push for its legalization.
In a suburb of Beijing, the two exchanged vows and put on wedding rings at a private room in a restaurant decorated with balloons, rainbow flags and their photos. About 20 friends and an equal number of journalists attended.
“We want to take some action to advocate for same-sex marriage,” Li said. “It’s doing the impossible when you know it’s impossible, but it takes those constant efforts to make changes in history.”
Li was detained in early March with four others amid China’s crackdown on social activism, and their detention drew concern from foreign governments and rights groups.
The five were released 37 days later.
The decision to hold an informal marriage was partly prompted by the US Supreme Court decision, Li said. /AP