Sex, Guns, and Video Games – Anita Sarkeesian Takes on Misogynist Hate Group GamerGate

My husband and I are gamers. It’s how we met. We have also both worked in the gaming industry here in China. So we have been following GamerGate pretty much since the beginning. If you don’t know what GamerGate is, lucky you, but keep reading to find out all about it. I wrote about it Read More

Erotic, Antique Chinese Art (NSFW)

Over the National Day Holiday, Seth, Zoe and I went to Macau for a day. We originally planned to go to Disneyland, but there was a mix-up with Zoe’s visa and she ended up with one for Macau (“Hong Kong is China” my ass if Chinese citizens need a visa to go there).  But we Read More

Hong Kong needs support, not White Knights

I’ve been posting as much as I can about the Hong Kong protests both to my personal Facebook page and to my official Two Americans in China account. I also changed my profile pic to one that shows support for the protesters. I’ve written about it in my newsletter. I’ve been talking to my goddaughter about why Read More

Surprise, Bustle, breastfeeding isn't shamed in China

I’ve been casually following the debates surrounding the topic of mothers breastfeeding in public in the U.S. I say casually because it isn’t something that affects me personally, but is a frequent topic on websites that center around women and feminism, so I read the stories but don’t generally get worked up about it. But Read More

Why China Needs Feminism – So Male Rape Will Be Recognized

There was a disturbing story today about how a man’s rapist was basically given a get-out-of-jail-free card on a technicality. That technicality? The fact that male-on-male rape is not considered a crime in China. Rape is one of the most common crimes in China, but it is also one of the most under-reported. China also has Read More

Naked Officials: Criminals or Victims?

Ever since President Xi Jinping came into office and declared a “war on graft,” there has been much publicity surrounding punishments of corrupt officials. Many view the punishment of these people as a good thing, proof that the war is effective. But there is one group of people who seem to be unfairly caught in Read More

Book Discussion – Unnatural Selection: Choosing Boys Over Girls, and the Consequences of a World Full of Men

Mara Hvistendhal’s book Unnatural Selection – Choosing Boys over Girls, and the Consequences of a World Full of Men was quite eye opening for me. Several months ago, American-based websites and blogs that write about feminist and AAPI issues were livid over lawmakers trying to pass legislation against sex-selective abortions in America. Most decried the laws as Read More

What's in a name? Surnames, China, and Feminism

My surname is not my husband’s surname. My surname is not the surname I was born with. My surname I took from my first husband. I kept it after the divorce because by that time the name was mine. I went to university as Amanda Roberts. All of my years of hard work were under Read More

Imperial Woman by Pearl S. Buck – Book Review

Why, yes, this is my fourth review of a book about Cixi. I’m a little obsessed. (You can read my take on Anchee Min’s books here and here and Jung Chang’s here.) When I saw that Pearl S. Buck had a novel about Cixi, I just had to read her version of this fascinating woman. While Read More

Not so different – China and America's Treatment of Teachers

In the past, I have talked to different public school teachers here in China about how much money they make. The Chinese are always fascinated by how much more expat employees are paid than locals, and I am usually equally mystified by how little locals are paid. I truly do not know how some people Read More