Internet Divided over this Celebrity Son’s Gender Bending Selfie

A gender bending photoshoot currently has China’s internet in a stir.

The son of Taiwanese singer Annie Yi — who solidified her fame on China’s Got Talent and Sisters Who Make Waves — recently posted a string of selfies on Instagram. All of the account’s posts have since been deleted, but not before the photos were captured and shared on Chinese social media.

In the photos, Harrison Yu — a freshman at New York University — stuns in a sheer pink tutu and dramatic eye shadow, a look that has prompted online discussion over gender expression.

“The cutest people are the ones who are really living their lives the way they want,” reads the top-rated comment on Weibo.

“I really like this peach blossom make-up,” reads another. “He looks beautiful, and he’s enjoying himself […] why would I be up in arms?”

Image from Weibo

The majority of commenters expressed support for Yu’s look, but with public discussion around gender identity still rare in China, some objected to the glamorous shoot while others tied the issue to questions of mental health.

“Personally, I feel uncomfortable […] burning eyes, nausea,” writes one user. “Not all diversity is good, and boys dressing like girls is a mental illness,” another wrote flatly. “Whenever possible, no one wants to have a son who wears women’s clothing.”

It was only in 2001 that same-gender love was removed from China’s official list of mental illnesses. Now, conversations around gender identity and sexuality are beginning to enter China’s mainstream, though not without regular pushback.

An official report blamed the rise of “little fresh meat” (a slang term in Chinese for young, beautiful men with delicate features) on American CIA interference, and only last year, men were barred from appearing on TV with earrings.

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