A Young Chinese Male Committed Suicide After Being Bullied for Being “Too Effeminate"
The 26-year-old shocked his family, friends, and social media with a 5,000-word suicide note before jumping into the ocean.
The death of a young Chinese guy who claimed to have been tormented for being “too feminine” has ignited discussions about gender norms in the country. However, analysts fear that little will change as long as the Chinese government continues to criticize “sissy guys.”
The suicide of a 26-year-old Chinese photojournalist, Zhou Peng, in late November 2021 has revived discussion over the mental health and bullying implications of China’s desire for boys and men to be masculine and not “sissy or effeminate.”
Zhou died just a few months after China banned “sissy” and “effeminate” men in the entertainment industry and announced plans to strengthen traditional masculinity in schools in early 2021.
When he died, social media star Zhou Peng left a suicide note on his Weibo account that was over 5,000 words long.
“Boys are expected to be mischievous, fight, and cuss, whereas boys who are excessively calm and nice are considered effeminate.” “I was referred to as’ Sissy’ in school.” This is what Zhou Peng, age 26, allegedly wrote in an online suicide note days before he was found dead after falling into the water in Zhejiang province, eastern China.
The statement also said that he was a child “left behind” in the country by his migrant parents, who had moved to the city to find work. But what truly connected with the Chinese people was his tale of being bullied.
Zhou Peng, a well-known Chinese photographer,Ludaosen once remarked, “I may have resembled a girl when I was younger, but I wore’regular’ clothing and made no attempt to imitate girls.” “Yet I was bullied in school, verbally abused, shunned, threatened, and called a variety of derogatory names.”
Zhou said, “No one had anything to do with my death,” even though he had a long history of…
