Ahead of International Women's Day, several WeChat public accounts advocating for women's and minority rights were shut down
Ahead of International Women's Day, multiple WeChat public accounts advocating for women's and minority rights were shut down. According to incomplete statistics, the banned accounts include: "Xiaowusheng Psychology," an organization focusing on mental health for sexual minorities; "Dongxia Primavera," which addresses feminist and leftist youth issues; "Letters from Two Strangers," a Gen Z feminist account; "HerStoryNow" run by grassroots feminist groups, "自由娜拉NORA" (Freedom NORA), an independent media outlet focusing on human trafficking and the rights of people with mental disabilities, "Belonging Space," a team dedicated to the mental health of women and sexual minorities, "流放地" (Place of Exile) advocating for sexual minority rights, and "艾大荀," an account operated by female public welfare activists.
Such mass bans seem to occur annually, like some kind of sacrificial ritual. My recollection is that the first instance happened during IDAHOTB in 2021. Back then, on WeChat's interface, banned public accounts would display as "Untitled Public Account（未命名公众号）." In response, some members of the LGBTQ+ community added the prefix "Untitled（未命名）" to their online aliases as a form of protest. Yet now people have even grown accustomed to it.
Unfortunately, Hexbear's domain is blocked in China, just like most non-Chinese social platforms. Moreover, abandoning WeChat is extremely difficult—even for those without a social life. Since companies tend to use WeChat rather than email for hiring and work communication, giving up WeChat is tantamount to career suicide. During the COVID pandemic, without scanning the "health code" via WeChat, you couldn't even step outside your residential compound.
Don't worry, you're not missing much. If you logged onto their site and started saying what you're saying now, they'd call you a reactionary sinophobe. I was making a joke when I said wechat protesters should use Hexbear. If they used a vpn to access Hexbear, it'd start lots of fights.
lol