A Brighter Summer Day

A Brighter Summer Day

Maggie and Ching Yun in their bedroom, New Taipei City, Taiwan, 2019 ‘Those days when you were crying are not the doomsday. You have to believe you can live the way you like, can be in a healthy relationship. Thank you very much for your courage.’ Maggie Maggie (right) and Ching Yun have been together for two years, and moved together almost right after they met. Maggie works in the movie industry and is from Taichung. She had a girlfriend there and her family was shocked about it. Everybody got hurt. So Maggie left for Taipei, the big city, to be able to be herself. There’s a big gap between the Taipei bubble and other cities in Taiwan. She’s still in contact with her family but they never talked about her sexual orientation again. Even if Ching Yun looks boyish, her family still expects her to marry a man. They think her and Maggie are flatmates. Her mother doesn’t know but during the referendum about same sex marriage Chin Yun tried to persuade her to vote yes. She’s been waiting for the right timing to co

  • Product Code
  • ILEA002291408
  • Registered date
  • 2019/4/06 00:00:00
  • Credit
  • Abaca Press / Kyodo News Images
  • Media source
  • Middle East Images/ABACA
  • Media size
  • 6016 × 4016 pixel
  • Resolution
  • 300 dpi
  • Deployment size
  • 2.94(MB)*
  • Special instruction

*File size when opened in Photoshop, etc.

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    A Brighter Summer Day

    A Brighter Summer Day

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      A Brighter Summer Day

      A Brighter Summer Day

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        A Brighter Summer Day

        A Brighter Summer Day

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          A Brighter Summer Day

          A Brighter Summer Day

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            A Brighter Summer Day

            A Brighter Summer Day

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              A Brighter Summer Day

              A Brighter Summer Day

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                A Brighter Summer Day

                A Brighter Summer Day

                Po Cheng in his one room apartment, New Taipei City, Taiwan, 2019 Po Cheng is 29 years old activist for LGBTQIA+ rights. He grew up in Miaoli, a more conservative part of Taiwan. He tried to come out to his mother when he was twelve but she asked him if he needed to see a doctor, being considered as sick. As a child, his parents would not prevent him to do things considered girly, but his mother would tell him ‘you can do girly things but you can’t be gay’. ‘I tried to laugh about it. People in Miaoli are not exposed to LGBTQIA+ community, so it’s very new to them.Then we didn’t talk about it for many years. When I was twenty I talked to my family again. I told my mother and two sisters that I liked boys. But I didn’t dare to come out to my father. Surprisingly my mother told him and he just said that it was ok. But still my grandparents don’t know, because my parents refuse to talk to them. As we say I came out but my parents are still in the closet. Everyone says it’s open for gay people in Taiwan. But just
                  A Brighter Summer Day

                  A Brighter Summer Day

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                    A Brighter Summer Day

                    A Brighter Summer Day

                    Tang Tang and Ryan's wedding rings, New Taipei City, Taiwan, 2019. These rings have been given by Tang Tang’s family to bless their union. Ryan : 'This year, we couldn’t wait anymore so we got married in Las Vegas. I was already out with my siblings but I called my extended family to tell them the news. But the aunt I’m the closest with and who helped raising me, my god mother, said 'This does not align with our traditions. How? How could I accept it?' I was really sad because all the other aunts were supportive, even my uncles, but not her. Maybe because I wasn’t expecting it, thinking that she would support me no matter what. But we got married nonetheless, just without her blessing. Later on Tang Tang came back first and brought something to her. When he did that, she congratulated us. So eventually, everyone accepted. And I am like, hey, I’m actually really lucky.' Ryan Photo by Su Cassiano/Middle East Images/ABACAPRESS.COM
                      A Brighter Summer Day

                      A Brighter Summer Day

                      Crown and Carole at home, New Taipei City, Taiwan, 2019 ‘Even my mum told me that it’s not that she doesn’t support me having a family, it’s more that she thinks if we have this whole gay marriage legalization there are going to be more gay people in the society. That’s not true. It’s that now gay people are more visible, now you are hearing from them. Before they were hiding their identity within the society. This is a weird time. I didn’t think I would be able to get married or to have kids here in Taiwan. But now that this little window is open and you see the possibility that this might be able to be changed and have hope and people try to stop it, you get really angry. We had a vote before and there was 7 million votes against the legalization of same sex marriage so it doesn’t look good. Older people are being told that if we let ‘homos’ get married it’s going to ruin heterosexual’s rights to get married and that people are going to marry their dogs and their kids will become gays.’ Carole Crown works i