Gaysia: Adventures in the Queer East Book Review

(This may or may not be cross-posted on Yahoo. It's quite likely it'll be rejected because they tend to be fairly conservative over there. A post on Teen Coming Out parties was rejected because of Yahoo guidelines on material content.)

A good book gets you excited to read something else. And even more. That’s what the Harry Potter books did for me. As did Gaysia: Adventures in the Queer East. 

The book by Australian journalist and TV writer Benjamin Law was released in Australia in 2012 but is only getting its first US publishing this June. Documenting queer life, Law traversed Asia in 2010. The fastest changing continent on the planet, many of Law’s portraits are of Out and are dated. But never outdated. In fact, the erstwhile traveler witnessed monumental change in India, experiencing firsthand the aftermath of the repeal of Section 337, India’s law that criminalized homosexuality. That it was four years ago doesn’t render Law’s keen observations and meticulous depictions less relevant.

The book contrasts the over the top rise of transsexual television personalities in Japan to the unstoppable ascension of ex-gay organizations in Malaysia. The outlandish procession of Thailand’s transsexual pageant queens and the colorful proliferation of gay travel spots in Bali are underscored by the bleakness of Myanmar’s sex trade which lends to the country’s increasing HIV rates. According to Law’s sources, 15,000-20,000 people in that country are dying from lack of antiretroviral treatment. 

While Myanmar’s sex trade is as pervasive as Bali’s, it remains one of the poorest countries in Asia. Prostitutes can sell themselves for 3000-7000 kyats per hour, equal to 4-9 US dollars. On slow nights, the rates can go down to 500 kyats, approximately 65 cents in America. Bali’s dependency on tourism, no matter the nature, has its costs as well—the erosion of its environment and culture, Law notes.

I read a small excerpt of Gaysia prior to my trip to Macau. The section on China retold how in the late 90s, LGBT only discovered what they were feeling thanks to the emerging internet. With no outlet and certainly no LGBT center, they met through the forums and websites, many of which were pornographic.

In talking to the only 2 publicly out gay people of a 600,000 population, I found that that was an accurate representation of 2014 Macau. Apps like Grindr are used to meet other LGBT and not just for sex. The only thing close to a gay bar is a wine shop that is gay-owned.

Since reading, I’ve used Gaysia as a model of precision story-telling. In his journeys, Law doesn’t impose judgment on his subjects, cavorting with “gay ghosts” in China as much as conversion religiosos in Malaysia. He’s equally fascinated with marriage beards as he is with the facial growth of Swamiji Baba Ramdev who ties anti-gay rhetoric into his contortionist yoga instruction to 80 million followers worldwide. The diversity of presence that he witnesses instills a deeper pride within himself of his identity.

Law’s story provides a spine but he’s careful never to outshine the stories of his subjects and of the continuingly changing life in Asia. 

In the section on India, Law encounters a closeted man on the train who bemoans the organizers of gay parties who charge relatively high admission prices but give nothing back to the community that fought so hard to decriminalize homosexuality. Unlike many tourists, Law delves beyond the flashiness of falsies in Thailand and Kawai queers on Japanese television. He uncovers multifaceted issues in the flamboyance and façade such as with Myanmar’s NGOs that focus on HIV education but are pillaged and forced to act as pimps by their government overseers.

Some may be tempted to skip over the underbelly of issues that Law presents and just go for the romp, as the book is highly entertaining. But as the author demonstrates, the complexity is there for the seeing if people care to look. Gaysia is worth the look.