Coming Out: Gay and Lesbian Life in East Asia

Homosexuality and the Law

• State-sanctioned: Burma, Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei
• Discrimination: Vietnam, Taiwan
• What are the bases?

Societal Pressure

• Occupational expectations
• Stereotypes - gay: effeminate
• Family, friends
• Ignorance about what it means to be gay
• "Disease"?

Glad to be Gay

• Things are changing for the better
• Acceptance
• Political change: Taiwan, Indonesia, Malaysia
• No more denying their existence
• Usefulness to community