This week on Sinica, I'm delighted to welcome — my brother! Jay Kuo is a Broadway writer & producer, and the man behind the terrific U.S. politics-focused Substack newsletter The Status Kuo. In a previous life, from 1996 to 2000, he was also really active in Beijing's gay community, just at the time when homosexuality was being decriminalized and was stepping out of the shadows. We talk about how it all took off. Jay also puts on his other hat to talk about how China figures into American politics with the election less than five months away, and about the legal standing of the TikTok divest-or-ban law.4:54 – The gay community in Beijing in the ‘90s, and the Half-and-Half bar in Sanlitun 16:06 – How the gay community in Beijing changed after two major rulings 27:33 – The end of the “golden era” for the gay community in China36:26 – Progress and its drivers and obstacles42:28 – Jay’s “China priors”50:41 – The issue of China in the upcoming U.S. presidential election  57:08 – The TikTok ban bill Recommendations: Jay: The TV series Manhunt (2024), available on Apple TVKaiser: The TV series The Sympathizer (2024), available on HBO; the audiobook of The Sympathizer by Viet Thanh Nguyen, narrated by François Chau See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.