Rainbow flags and posters with the colorful motif have been on display outside some embassies in central Beijing's leafy Chaoyang and Dongcheng districts in recent weeks, marking the International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia on May 17, and remained up as late May slipped into June, the official Pride Month.

But despite this quiet nod to the city's LGBTQ community, Pride Month itself is not a major event in the Chinese capital, Ying Xin, director of Beijing LGBT Center, told CGTN.

Nonetheless, the organization, established in 2008 and one of the main groups of its kind in the city, does hold events throughout the year including street photography of same-sex couples, business diversity meets, online seminars and parties.

Meanwhile, a lively Pride is taking place this month in Shanghai, Beijing's more international counterpart, with many in-person events in the calendar.

"Since (it's founding in) 2009, the reception of ShanghaiPRIDE has been largely positive. Perhaps, in the beginning, people were curious about what it is or what it represented, even for myself," Charlene Liu, one of the organization's co-founders, told CGTN.

"We see the LGBTQ (community) and allies taking the opportunity to share, network and support each other. This is really heartwarming," she added.

Connection during coronavirus

Despite the difference in Pride Month celebrations between the two cities, Beijing's LGBTQ scene is in ascendance – helped by increasing openness to connection online from when the coronavirus pandemic was severe in China earlier this year.

"Before the pandemic, if we held an online seminar usually 50 people would join us; now up to 200 or 300 people can join us," Ying said, adding that while some people prefer face-to-face interaction, others are happy because web events overcome the limitations of geography, for example, involving those in Wuhan City or Hubei Province when lockdowns and quarantines were in place.

Three to five percent of China's population is openly LGBT, which is an estimated 60 to 70 million people, according to China-focused market research firm Daxue Consulting in February of this year.

"Last year, we had 4,370 beneficiaries who joined our events or used our services directly. We had 1,057,627 viewers on our official WeChat account and 324,956 new followers on Weibo," Ying said, adding that at parties or drag events, there are 200 to 300 participants, 70 to 80 percent of whom are expats.

"Shanghai is a diverse and cosmopolitan city, and people in general are very accepting. Personally, as a sort of minority, I have found Shanghai to be a safe space," Liu said, a Malaysian-born expat herself.

But this does not mean there are no problems. While Pride Month is growing in profile in China, "due to the uncountable challenges on hosting offline events/activities, it is still not visible enough to the public," Pai Yang, deputy chief editor of Love Matters China, an online sex and love education platform, told CGTN.

Despite ShanghaiPRIDE being well established, "It is inevitable that every year the organizer will encounter many limitations," he said, also pointing out that Pride is not celebrated offline in other Chinese cities due to restrictions.

The most silent people

Pride or no Pride, Beijing still offers benefits to its inhabitants from sexual minorities.

"Non-straight people have more chance to be themselves in Beijing," said Alex, a gay 26-year-old lawyer originally from east China's Shandong Province, adding that small cities do not offer as many activities and events for the LGBTQ community.

In fact, for many Chinese of sexual minorities, it is navigating the domestic sphere – in particular dealing with parental disapproval, more important in Chinese society than in the West, that is the most difficult. Some older generations do not accept non-straight sexualities or simply cannot fathom that they exist at all.

Both Alex and Damon, 30, who is also gay and a Shandong native living in Beijing, said their peer groups were accepting of their sexuality. "I don't think it's more difficult than in the U.S. when I talked to my friends in college," said Damon, who went to university abroad.

But he explained that while his parents want him to be happy, they don't want trouble, so his sexuality is not discussed with the wider family. "That's the funny part of Chinese culture. They'd (other relatives) guess and figure it out maybe, but they won't talk," he said.

Alex is in a similar situation. "I'm a lucky man because my parents are educated, and they have a better understanding of new things, but I have some friends whose parents totally cannot understand," he said.

Due to taboo, "Gays in China are the most silent people," Damon said.

Developing attitudes

Homosexuality was decriminalized in China in 1997 and removed from the country's official list of mental disorders in 2001. It is usually not part of the mainstream media in China, though a recent notable exception was a lesbian kiss in 2019's "Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker" movie that made it into Chinese cinemas.

Same-sex couples cannot get married legally in China, though "weddings" do take place. On June 1, photos shared online of a lesbian "wedding" between famous Chinese dancer Shui Yue and her female partner topped the trending list on Weibo and were met with congratulatory messages from many users, reported The Global Times. The photos also showed the couple's fathers hugging and smiling.

The legislative affairs commission of China's main lawmaking body, the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, said in December 2019 that it had been advised by the public to include the legalization of same-sex marriage in China's new Civil Code, which was approved by lawmakers last month, when it sought public opinion over a draft late last year. Around 190,000 people made the suggestion, said The Global Times.

While the proposition was not included in the final Civil Code, Pai, who is pro same-sex marriage, viewed the development positively. "It is still a victory from the perspective that at least the request has been responded by Chinese top legislative officials," he said.