ShanghaiPride
Raise The Pride​
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Raise The Pride
The Challenge:
Pride Month is meant to be a period for visibility and freedom of expression for the LGBTQ community, but the reality is stark in China. The Chinese government bans all forms of official LGBTQ expression, forcing local communities to fly under the radar in fear. This year, Shanghai Pride, China's longest-running and only ‘major’ annual celebration, abruptly shutdown, amidst an increasing clampdown on LGBTQ rights. The Pride flag, the symbol of the community, was declared illegal by authorities and forced into the shadows.
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The Insight:
The most inconspicuous place can become the most obvious space to express your pride.
With personal and mass media being censored, we turned to an unexpected medium for Shanghai Pride to raise their flag – Shanghai’s iconic outdoor clotheslines, visible from every nook and cranny of the city.
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The Idea:
Shanghai Pride cooperated with 6 local apparel designers to create a Raise The Pride Pack. Inside, each designer created a T-shirt, together the 6 colors corresponded to each of the colors in the Pride flag. The Pride Packs were distributed to the community ahead of Pride Month.
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On Pride Day, Shanghai Pride created a disruptive moment. We interpreted the Pride flag with clothes of representative colours, turning the city's clotheslines into our proudest expression. Flying them high and proud in every nook and cranny of the city, we brought together the LGTBQ community in solidarity, getting them to Raise Their Pride in plain sight.
Raise the Pride flag, without raising any red flags in China.
ShanghaiPride - Raise The Pride
ShanghaiPride - Pride Pack
