New Documentary from Fusion Explores Queer Life in China

"Gay rights are human rights, and human rights are gay rights," former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton declared during a 2011 speech in Geneva. While the LGBTQ movement in the U.S. has great momentum, in places like China, those who advocate for gay rights and speak out can be harassed, intimidated and detained. Gatherings are banned, movies are censored and gay people are sometimes forced to undergo treatment to make them straight.

For China's LGBTQ, the surveillance, intimidation, and even imprisonment of advocates is often coupled with stigmatization at home in a country whose national pride rests on 4,000 years of tradition. In a new one-hour documentary, Fusion TV's award-winning investigative team examines what it's like to be gay in China and the challenges LGBTQ activists face. "The Naked Truth: China Queer," which airs during the final week of Pride Month, is narrated by actor Omar Sharif Jr. who currently serves as an Ambassador for the Human Rights Foundation and previously served as a National Spokesperson for GLAAD. Full bio below.

"The Naked Truth: China Queer" is the culmination of almost two years of reporting that includes exclusive undercover footage from a LGBTQ activist who works to expose clinics that try to convert gays with medically baseless therapy and a shocking recording of a man held against his will in a mental hospital for being gay. The documentary also features the first U.S. television interview with a gender rights activist after she was detained by the government for 37 days after planning a protest.

"Pride Month is not just a celebration, it is a call to action and awareness," said Omar Sharif Jr. "With this documentary, Fusion opens our eyes to the challenges facing LGBTQ people in China- challenges that are not uncommon to those of us who continue to fight for equality and acceptance globally."

"The Naked Truth: China Queer" premieres Sunday, June 26 @ 9PM on Fusion TV. Channel listings here. More on "The Naked Truth" series here.

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