An LGBTQ group has said it was banned by Hong Kong authorities from selling a T-shirt with a sign-language gesture meaning “LGBTQ” at a bazaar last weekend.
PrideLab was among the groups that hosted a booth at the Rainbow Market, organised by the Hong Kong Pride Committee, in Kwun Tong on Sunday.
However, less than a week before the event, the committee informed PrideLab that it would not be able to sell one of its T-shirts.
Kenn Chan, founder and creative director of PrideLab, told HKFP on Wednesday that the group had to submit pictures of the merchandise it planned to sell to the committee, which then included them as part of the application to the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department (FEHD) to hold the event.
However, on November 17, six days before the bazaar, the committee told the NGO that the FEHD had flagged one of its T-shirts as an item that cannot be displayed or sold, Chan said.
The black T-shirt features a design showing one hand holding up the index finger and the other hand four fingers – a Hong Kong sign language gesture for “LGBTQ.” The T-shirt was designed by artists in the deaf community, Chan added.
“When we were notified, we felt helpless. It’s disappointing because we lost a chance to promote sign language,” he told HKFP in Cantonese, adding that the group has been advocating for the inclusion of the deaf community in Hong Kong.
Online, some people left comments on a media outlet’s post on the incident, saying that the design resembled a hand gesture for “five demands, not one less.” The slogan was a popular chant during the 2019 protests and unrest, referring to protesters’ calls for the government to scrap a controversial extradition bill and conduct an investigation into alleged police brutality, among other demands.
“We have noticed these comments,” Chan said. “We do not have any intention other than promoting sign language.”
He added that the sign language for LGBTQ consists of one hand showing four fingers moving away from the other hand, with the movement mimicking a rainbow.
“Maybe the fact that [the movement] has been distilled into a static image has created this impression,” he said.
HKFP has reached out to the FEHD for comment.
‘We did not ask why’
The Rainbow Market took place at The Wave, a co-working and event space in Kwun Tong, on Sunday. It was organised by the Hong Kong Pride Committee, which used to organise annual Pride marches before the protests and unrest in 2019.
Cuby Lee, secretariat of the Hong Kong Pride Committee, told HKFP on Wednesday that FEHD did not provide any reason as to why Pride Lab’s T-shirt could not be sold.
“We did not ask why. We were too busy,” Lee said. “And given this social atmosphere, is there any use in asking? It might be a waste of time.”
She also said that this year, the FEHD required organisers to prepare guidelines, which all stallholders had to sign, promising not to endanger national security.
The Rainbow Market was one of two events the committee had planned for this month.
The other one, an outdoor event called the Rainbow Festival, was scheduled for this coming Saturday at Kwun Tong Promenade, but it was axed after the venue said it was unavailable due to “construction work.”
The cancellation comes as some civil society groups in recent years have reported difficulties securing venues for their activities. On some occasions, groups said the venues axed their bookings after receiving “pressure.”
Chan said that PrideLab could not take part in a Pride Month bazaar organised by the NGO Gay Harmony in June.
The NGO told PrideLab it could not arrange for the group to take part without offering any explanation, Chan said, adding that he did not blame Gay Harmony as it was doing a “difficult” job.
