May 24, 2019 was the day Taiwan made history by becoming the first country in Asia to legalize same-sex marriage. This was proof that Taiwan is one of the most progressive countries in Asia, and also proof that same-sex marriage has broad support with the citizens.

However, does this mean that people in Taiwan are all completely respectful of LGBTQ+ people? Not entirely. Because people see Taiwan as a progressive place, they often shrug off the fact that many Taiwanese are still homophobic, even if they claim to support gay people. The truth is that there is still casual homophobia in Taiwan.

To illustrate the difficulties still faced by LGBTQ+ people in Taiwan, I have interviewed a number of individuals and asked for their personal stories. I have changed the names of the people in question to protect their identities.

Homophobia at school and the immaturity of children

As someone in high school, I am surrounded by immature high-schoolers. As I’ve made more friends, I’ve realized many of them are deeply homophobic. Sometimes it’s not about whether you support gay people, but rather how do your actions and words speak for you.

For example, two common insults on Taiwanese school grounds (and even society in general) is “死gay” (si gay) and “娘娘腔” (niang niang qiang), which mean “a fucking gay” or “sissy”. Both of these terms are often targeted towards boys or men who appear to be effeminate, or even just shy and timid. These terms are harmful because, first of all, they are extremely offensive, but they also project unnecessary stereotypes on gay people. I see these terms being thrown around all the time at school.

Another typical thing in school is that boys tend to distance themselves from classmates they suspect are not heterosexual. Because of this, some boys in school can’t make many guy friends, so they seek companionship with girls. Then, kids in class will call these boys gay for only spending time with girls when it’s because not many boys are willing to get close with them. It’s weird.

There is a little boy “Jack”, who is still in elementary school, and he has long hair. Not long hair that covers his eyebrows, but long hair over the shoulders. He likes it because it’s his style. A few years ago, when the legalization of gay marriage was all over the news, his classmates started to ignore him. They called him gay because of his hair and started bullying him as well. This is heartbreaking but also shows that many people are still homophobic, and it starts in elementary school.

Coming out as gay and rejection from your family

Coming out may be one of the hardest processes, and while some people are lucky and have supportive people around them, many others don’t. They often have to choose between family and the truth of their sexuality.

“Ben” is a dermatologist. Before coming out, his dad was extremely proud of him. Becoming a doctor is not easy, so his father worked hard to support him on the path towards success.

When he grew up, he finally gathered the courage to come out to his father. They have not spoken since. The father loved his son and had high hopes for his future. However, solely because he’s gay, his father refuses to speak to him anymore.

“Michael” was gay, but because he was from Taichung, which was still a traditional place a decade or so ago, he knew he couldn’t come out because the people around him would never accept him. To add to the pressure, his family always had this dream of him marrying a woman and having babies and carrying on the family name.

So that’s what he did. In order to make his parents proud of him, he did what they wanted. However, the pressure of being someone he just isn’t was too much for him. A year after the wedding, he killed himself.

Discrimination in the workplace

“John” is an Olympic-level athlete. He stated that many athletes are homophobic, and many of his teammates don’t like the fact that someone on their team is gay. Because of this, they refuse to sleep in the same room as him when they go to competitions, and they often exclude him from team activities.

Homophobic healthcare

“Don” once went to get an urologic examination. During the routine check, the doctor gave unsubtle hints accusing him of being gay. For example, the doctor would say something like “this issue doesn’t seem like something a straight person would have”. Of course the patient was uncomfortable because he was only there to get a check-up, and the job of the doctor is to tell him whether anything is wrong, and not to judge or make inappropriate comments.

Another sad thing now is that gay and bisexual people are prohibited from donating blood in Taiwan. Many people have found this to be annoying and unfair, and it further projects harmful stereotypes on gay people.

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Taiwan mostly is in support of the LBGTQ+ community, but there is still casual homophobia. People think that they are allies, however, they also say things like “I support gay people, I just don’t want them to fall in love with me or touch me”. This sad reality has to change. Of course legalizing gay marriage is awesome, but there is still so much room left for us to improve. We should all change our mindsets about gay people, and this should start by people spreading this type of awareness and educating the public.