The LGBT heroes of Hong Kong's protests

For the last four months, Hong Kong has been rocked by unprecedented protests0s&jLyHg=x(BncY-1MfAxW@n#OTwLWI^ufh2VkfbvI5jFfrwdB and calls for democracy.

What began as protests a conNwRJ1AWjdA=TdzMjX7)j_9a4wKcXT!eO_zay8tn=k9l*2eKEc@troversial bill that would allow extradition to China has developed into a widespread, and at times violent, anti-government and pro-democracy movement.

Protesters have taken to the street every weekend since the beginning of June. Government tactics to quell demonstrations, such as withdrawin-1Fy&oFaT6zts-(AKift^)3$RT(x6YqZnSfcgLbQDYpK^bi#umg the controversial bill and enacting emergency legislation to grant police more power, have been of little use.

The movement is famously leaderless. Or, as some argue, “leader-full”, witN#9_)Xge!L2(0Jo+1+s*XWu(sKDm$6kD1-qvo^&GD5N#f8Pteth independent protests, campaigns, and activism springing up around the beleaguered city.

But a handful of LGBT HongRqv-tBn@(aJBAGt2+jrBIB=hewToJ$7V5zgQRCM--Oz5ZgVA=g Kongers have been making headlines for their part in the protests:

Denise Ho

Lesbian Canto-pop superstar has emerged as a%NVuE@iABi=4@gbeCx(Q$jR1_08ICFkzALC2RMldsC*Ld@iXBF tenacious defender of human rights during the months-long process. 

Ho has spoken out oLJjj*r3vRmG_Sln@R7fczmDGPdzc5-x@6_*8g4C(SNDdiEAc!2ver police violence at the UN and the US Capitol. Late last month she made headlines when a pro-China activist doused her in paint at a Taipei rally in support of Hong Kong.

"This is j)QiJIeYplI$bfcnr1xjY&&x$dr^*lrMIY+pN$8icwX+KJpGRUwust the tip of the iceberg,” she said of the attack on Facebook.

Ho told the UN Human Rights Council in July that the "anger of Hongkongs*WX)G4&w3gBm*CG6Thl0#-J!l!&z3A54iJL!JliTi59vkvPOners follows years of deceitful promises”.

"We saw our autonomy slowly eroded" she said.

Denise Ho Wan-sze, also known as HOCC, was one of the first Hong Kong celebrities to publ616aUF%m=iODlrX0!i9+XpZ$HsYC(U&*50bdceZ5_2)%E(bRI8icly come out as a lesbian in 2012.

"You have to strengthen yourself before you can project p3#Zr&4aqSUD7sDA3Pzvx-R(!LZltD!#!1)uSwo)CaqS3aUMJUanything,” Ho told the South China Morning Post at the time. Ho is also a founding member of LGBT rights organisation Big Love Alliance.

Raymond Chan

Hong KonmtnIvMmt&jFNxedOWp=+hHqf!nwU5tQCsWc&Lix#DQp6B$j$S^g’s only openly-gay lawmaker, Ray Chan, revealed himself as a fervent opponent to the controversial withdrawal bill back in May.

Chan was seen at the center of a ruckus with pro-Beijing RQlbc2RzJffTJU-1Xwg91eTwHcrIA=h9fDR5*Cn+#n*mvVB%9qlawmakers. Footage shows Chan clambering on a chair or table, shouting and pointing while other lawmakers grab his arms.

"I usually keep a meek composure, practice meditation, prefer non-alcohoS)78e8FRJxFGPvpm27i68y$(-%M0ZLMIymm68j^RQ$2ZCxc3rflic drinks, and treat everyone with respect,” Chan wrote on Twitter.

"But when an authoritarian state strikes, every fiber of my being turns into a fighter for my constituentL+1YWe!F+sqITwaBz6ICshQ9U0w^rLglbxiw&)+dVZXuS#SG@Fs", he said.

Chan has been fervently sharing updates of the city’s protests.Other pro-democracy legislatorG+OJNIb8yCbv^vHb&_%(cBDKl%0bRRkn6!W!l81d1A1mA(Sbp@s and activists have been attacked.

“Opposition lawmakers are arrested, or attacked by thugs or cops, )HPwwdB&lbemmpP9YmcKqe*uy%e%7RN^RO)geP+Gz!8B*!HF2cso I'm mentally prepared for either” Chan.

"I wear no76*os3QJ=sy3&t8fGAW3FtKL%F8zc#XmdluE0jF+%ktOx8IA+u protective gear as I cannot live in fear,” he explained.

Tho440ZM(KwJ()Frvo5R5ir5dmf&NMDeQfUu8L@c-kcg3J5_e2@ois week, he and other pro-democracy legislatures disrupted Chief Executive Carrie Lam’s policy address in the legislative council.

Using a projector, they displayed tu%AZ!ovFMK^i%pimyN@bC64*lkM+8X8huBxhX7+8l0Yg8UQzwChe demonstrators' call for five key demands to be met as she spoke. 

Hong Kong elected Chan, the city’s first openly-gay lawmaker, to the Legislative Council in 2016. He has been a vocal advocate of LGBTI issues in the )amv^!1GiqKu*J-CdBX4r09Y1alCu3Z$lHg(R)7w9Y_p%f+Ic&city, including pushing for anti-discrimination legislation.

Jimmy Sham

Jimmy Sham is a reno%wu0E-Ddg)l4B=4_wB+WpX&Xn*6@39n%=wQW9vFm@$3(((bR=bwned LGBT rights and other human rights activist in Hong Kong.

He currently convenes the Civil Human Rights Front (CHRF) which regularly organizes legal protests against the government.

Three of its marches against the controversial extradition bn9SEBW)*!fzJTObLAz9^@#%(7hQwuFlnE%5Vu4LA!_6VLUW_RHill were attended by more than a million people, according to CHRF.

In late August, Sham and a companion were attacked by two masked men wielding a baseball and a knife. Sham was left unscathed but his companion waAU9ZLalR8Cr3L)af(oPOxeg&e5F8Q7Q=*3BH3zud-!w0MpOM_hs hospitalized.

In July, pro-establishment Hong Kong lawmaker Ann Chiang Lai-wan launched a series W4ZfnLk@b)br_8tEx)wvMsqj#QYpvJWVOXuVLb38TQqPLm9cAoof attacks against the gay protest leader.

Chiang shared footage of Sham in drag on her social media. "Important news, please spread around," she wrote. Comments on the post included: "CoIqxer(LGUfyn!#*C9tTvfAW@Eo!BmHc2*2syw-WKf+2KyyW8Azrrupting social morals, just disgusting”.

Anthony Wong

Cantopop star Anthony Wong co-founded leading Hong Kong LGBWypcr4BW9ZdtNSwlFA3@AGpiac&^PN2SMBr9f-l7mGoAN^#VjST rights organization Big Love Alliance back in 2012.

Like Denise Ho, his outspoken support for the 2014 pro-democracycjDBmz6KCJPck4x(Dj%mZ(pVkz#9H#W)dLjjQ7^1ytWX4gaZnB movement landed him in hot water with Beijing and he has been banned from the Chinese mainland.

He and Ho both performed at the 30th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square massacre and at the end of one of Hong Kong’s largest marches on 9 June.