S5: Queering Premodern Asia - Ep.0 - An Introduction

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In search of our queer Asian roots

The idea for this series came about a year ago, inspired by my interviews with the queer Asian community.

Many of the guests shared a desire to connect more with their culture, but also a feeling of being rejected by it because of their queerness, like Cece S1 E07⁠

Queer representation in the media has primarily centered white narratives which is often not relatable to queer Asian folks, like Josh explains in S1 E06

A lot of families see queerness as a Western concept that is incompatible with their Asian heritage or cultural tradition, especially the part of our culture that expects us to get married and have kids. Like Travis says on S3 E06

My queer guests also often feel like queer spaces aren’t safe for them, as those are typically very white spaces and often have very overt anti-Asian sentiment. Edmond talks about this in S1 E08

Another issue our queer Asian community faces is fetishization, as well as misogyny in their Asian family circles. Like Sally, S1 E09

For some of my guests, it was religion, more specifically Christianity, that made it hard for their parents to accept their queerness. Like Dani S3 E05

A common theme I also picked up in those conversations is how lonely it was for them as young people trying to navigate their queerness. Like Tonie S1 E03

I was really struck by how little I knew of these experiences. As a straight woman, I lived decades completely oblivious of these experiences. But the more I heard, the more I wanted to encourage my fellow straight folks to be curious, to care, and to engage with these stories. 

One day, I was scrolling on TikTok when I saw a video about how in 1651, there was a Chinese play that featured lesbian characters. It immediately piqued my interest. If that story was out there in a hit play in 1651, what else is out there? Could history bridge the gap between our current diasporic existence and conversations that seem too futuristic for our parents? More importantly, what if we could validate the idea that queerness and cultural pride are not alien concepts, but in fact intertwined in our past? 

And thus began my journey. 

For my Queer Asian listeners, my hope is that this series will help you feel more connected to your Asian roots, and bring hope & healing as you laugh and cry with us on this journey. 

For my fellow straight folks, I hope it makes you curious to learn more. Because I don’t think creating a society that is more inclusive of queer folks should fall squarely on our queer community’s shoulders. In a society where cis-hetero folks like us are the norm, we’d get much further if more of us pitched in. And we can start by listening.

And for the activists and educators listening, I hope this series helps you reflect on the language you use in