MCLC: feminist battles sexual violence

[Denton, Kirk]

MCLC LIST
From: Wang, Zhuoyi <zwang at hamilton.edu>
Subject: feminist battles sexual violence
***********************************************************

Source: Time (1/24/14):
http://world.time.com/2014/01/24/in-china-a-young-feminist-battles-sexual-v
iolence-step-by-step/

In China, a Young Feminist Battles Sexual Violence Step by Step
Xiao Meili is attempting the 2,000-km walk from Beijing to Guangzhou
to raise awareness of sexual abuse
By Emily Rauhala

A hundred days. That's how long it took Xiao Meili to walk from
Beijing, in the arid north, to the humid, central city of Changsha.
Since September, the 24-year-old has been trekking south and west
across the Chinese heartland, along rumbling highways, around
construction sites, down dusty streets. She stops along the way to
send letters to local officials. Her plea: China must change the way
it handles sex abuse.

That request is bolder than it might seem. In China, as elsewhere, it
is difficult to talk about sexualized violence, particularly against
kids -- it's awkward, for one, and nobody wants to think they or their
children are at risk. Over the last year, a string of high-profile
incidents have started to change that. In one case, a 62-year-old
primary school teacher was charged with sexually assaulting seven
girls. His actions came to light when six of his victims developed
genital warts. In another, 11 villagers were convicted of sexually
abusing an 11-year-old girl "left behind" by migrant parents.

All too often, though, the issue goes unaddressed. Fear and stigma
keep survivors and their families from coming forward, and those that
do speak up are often shamed, not supported. Though the country last
year vowed to crack down, laws remain weak. "In China, we blame
victims, not abusers," says Xiao Meili over tea and sunflower seeds in
Changsha, the capital city of Hunan province, in south-central China.
"That's what we're trying to change."

A 2,000-km walk from Beijing to Guangzhou is not a bad way to capture
attention. The sight of a young, female backpacker is relatively rare
on China's freeways, so people stop to ask questions and offer rides
(which she declines). "They ask, 'Why would you travel on foot? It
would be so much easier to drive!'" she says. "Some say, 'You're
crazy,' but many express support."

In a video about her journey, Xiao Meili (who uses her nickname for
her activism) explains that walking is a way to reclaim a space -- the
street -- where girls and women are sometimes at risk. It's an idea
that resonated online, where her writing, videos and drawings have
earned a steady following on a popular Chinese microblog. Some of her
readers offer money for accommodation, or a place to crash en route.
Others, like Jia Wen, a 23-year-old art student, and Yuan Hang, a
24-year-old filmmaker, picked up sticks and joined her on the road.
"Artists use form to change reality," says Jia. "I want to see if we
can use feminism to do the same thing."

Xiao Meili and her friends are, in some ways, unexpected activists.
Born in Sichuan province in 1989, Xiao Meili is part of a generation
Chinese call post-'80s. Among older folks, the conventional wisdom is
that these (mostly) only children of China's economic boom are
spoiled, apolitical bunch, more interested in designer fripperies than
in social movements.

Raised by doting, aspirational parents many do indeed feel burdened by
the pressure to succeed in a world where success is defined as a good
education, a lucrative job, an apartment, marriage (to someone of the
opposite sex), then a kid. For most families, cross-country protest
walks are not part of the deal.

That, of course, is part of the appeal. Growing up, Xiao Meili cared
little for politics. She was too busy studying. At university in
Beijing, she started to read more, including feminist writing from the
U.S. and Taiwan. Spending a semester in Taiwan gave her a glimpse of a
"more equal" society. "China is more authoritarian and patriarchal,
and this inequality leads to abuse," she says.

In Beijing, where she lives when not on the road, Xiao Meili connected
with feminists who are active, in different ways, in their
communities. The ruling Chinese Communist Party sees collective action
as a threat to social stability and often shuts down group
demonstrations. Yet there is room for creative resistance. Xiao Meili
starred in a Chinese adaptation of The Vagina Monologues, and on
Valentine's Day 2012, she dressed up in a blood-drenched gown to
protest domestic violence.

When it comes to her family, she's more reserved. "My parents don't
know I'm here. If I told them, they would try to oppose me," she says.
Besides, "they wouldn't understand what I am doing here." Jia's
parents wanted her to take the civil-service exam and get a steady
job. "I don't want that way of life," she says. "I want to be freer."

Being on the road offers that sense of freedom, though most days
unfold in much the same way. Xiao Meili and her supporters wake up
around 8 a.m. and start walking around 9 a.m. When they reach a new
town or city, they stop by the post office to send letters asking
local officials to improve sexual education, screen teachers and
better investigate abuse claims.

And so it was on Day 101. On the cool, smoggy morning of Jan. 17, Xiao
Meili, Yuan and Jia gathered around 9:15 a.m. to resume their journey
south. For the next few weeks, as they make their way through Hunan
province, they'll be joined by three fresh recruits, all students, who
read about the project online and joined up. First stop: the post
office.

After mailing some letters, they set out. They walk slowly toward the
edge of the city, where high-rise buildings are rapidly sprouting.
Momentarily lost at the edge of a half-demolished street, they pause
to consult their phones. "That way," someone gestures, pointing the
way through the mud. They hope to reach Guangzhou by spring.

-- With reporting by Gu Yongqiang / Changsha