ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Jenni Chang and Lisa Dazols - Documentary filmmakers
Jenni Chang and Lisa Dazols made "Out & Around" to show the momentous changes in the status of LGBTQ equality -- all around the world.

Why you should listen
When Jenni Chang and Lisa Dazols fell in love, they vowed to follow a life of adventure. Their promise led them to leave their 9-to-5 jobs, pick up a video camera and travel to fifteen countries through Asia, Africa and South America in search of "Supergays," the people who are leading the movement for gay, lesbian and transgender equality in the developing world.

While interviewing LGBT leaders across the globe, they realized their journey could have larger impact beyond just self-growth, so they bought a book on how to make a documentary. Out & Around, the resulting film, captures the momentous changes in the status of queer people around the world today. A film in partnership with the It Gets Better Project, the joint mission is to share stories of hope around the world.
More profile about the speaker
Jenni Chang and Lisa Dazols | Speaker | TED.com
TEDWomen 2015

Jenni Chang and Lisa Dazols: This is what LGBT life is like around the world

Filmed:
2,487,775 views

As a gay couple in San Francisco, Jenni Chang and Lisa Dazols had a relatively easy time living the way they wanted. But outside the bubble of the Bay Area, what was life like for people still lacking basic rights? They set off on a world tour in search of "Supergays," LGBT people who were doing something extraordinary in the world. In 15 countries across Africa, Asia and South America -- from India, recently home to the world's first openly gay prince, to Argentina, the first country in Latin America to grant marriage equality -- they found the inspiring stories and the courageous, resilient and proud Supergays they had been looking for.
- Documentary filmmakers
Jenni Chang and Lisa Dazols made "Out & Around" to show the momentous changes in the status of LGBTQ equality -- all around the world. Full bio

Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.

00:12
Jenni Chang: When I told
my parents I was gay,
0
560
2296
00:14
the first thing they said to me was,
1
2880
2176
00:17
"We're bringing you back to Taiwan."
2
5080
2216
00:19
(Laughter)
3
7320
1680
00:22
In their minds, my sexual orientation
was America's fault.
4
10000
3856
00:25
The West had corrupted me
with divergent ideas,
5
13880
2936
00:28
and if only my parents
had never left Taiwan,
6
16840
2976
00:31
this would not have happened
to their only daughter.
7
19840
3456
00:35
In truth, I wondered if they were right.
8
23320
3096
00:38
Of course, there are gay people in Asia,
9
26440
2056
00:40
just as there are gay people
in every part of the world.
10
28520
3216
00:43
But is the idea of living an "out" life,
11
31760
2936
00:46
in the "I'm gay, this is my spouse,
and we're proud of our lives together"
12
34720
3656
00:50
kind of way just a Western idea?
13
38400
3640
00:55
If I had grown up in Taiwan,
or any place outside of the West,
14
43160
3696
00:58
would I have found models
of happy, thriving LGBT people?
15
46880
5056
01:03
Lisa Dazols: I had similar notions.
16
51960
1667
01:05
As an HIV social worker in San Francisco,
17
53651
2205
01:07
I had met many gay immigrants.
18
55880
1976
01:09
They told me their stories
of persecution in their home countries,
19
57880
3176
01:13
just for being gay,
20
61080
1496
01:14
and the reasons
why they escaped to the US.
21
62600
2456
01:17
I saw how this had beaten them down.
22
65080
2136
01:19
After 10 years of doing this kind of work,
23
67240
2016
01:21
I needed better stories for myself.
24
69280
2456
01:23
I knew the world was far from perfect,
25
71760
2016
01:25
but surely not every gay story was tragic.
26
73800
2320
01:29
JC: So as a couple, we both had a need
to find stories of hope.
27
77160
3616
01:32
So we set off on a mission
to travel the world
28
80800
2936
01:35
and look for the people
we finally termed as the "Supergays."
29
83760
3856
01:39
(Laughter)
30
87640
3200
01:43
These would be the LGBT individuals
31
91760
2456
01:46
who were doing something
extraordinary in the world.
32
94240
3336
01:49
They would be courageous, resilient,
33
97600
2336
01:51
and most of all, proud of who they were.
34
99960
2936
01:54
They would be the kind of person
that I aspire to be.
35
102920
3296
01:58
Our plan was to share their stories
to the world through film.
36
106240
4536
02:02
LD: There was just one problem.
37
110800
1576
02:04
We had zero reporting
and zero filmmaking experience.
38
112400
3056
02:07
(Laughter)
39
115480
1016
02:08
We didn't even know
where to find the Supergays,
40
116520
2336
02:10
so we just had to trust that we'd
figure it all out along the way.
41
118880
3096
02:14
So we picked 15 countries
in Asia, Africa and South America,
42
122000
3416
02:17
countries outside the West
that varied in terms of LGBT rights.
43
125440
3656
02:21
We bought a camcorder,
44
129120
1256
02:22
ordered a book
on how to make a documentary --
45
130400
2143
02:24
(Laughter)
46
132567
1649
02:26
you can learn a lot these days --
47
134240
2536
02:28
and set off on an around-the-world trip.
48
136800
2200
02:32
JC: One of the first countries
that we traveled to was Nepal.
49
140520
3736
02:36
Despite widespread poverty,
a decade-long civil war,
50
144280
3496
02:39
and now recently,
a devastating earthquake,
51
147800
3096
02:42
Nepal has made significant strides
in the fight for equality.
52
150920
4016
02:46
One of the key figures
in the movement is Bhumika Shrestha.
53
154960
5056
02:52
A beautiful, vibrant transgendered woman,
54
160040
3296
02:55
Bhumika has had to overcome
being expelled from school
55
163360
3176
02:58
and getting incarcerated
because of her gender presentation.
56
166560
4296
03:02
But, in 2007, Bhumika
and Nepal's LGBT rights organization
57
170880
5096
03:08
successfully petitioned
the Nepali Supreme Court
58
176000
3056
03:11
to protect against LGBT discrimination.
59
179080
2696
03:13
Here's Bhumika:
60
181800
1216
03:15
(Video) BS: What I'm most proud of?
61
183040
1736
03:16
I'm a transgendered person.
62
184800
1496
03:18
I'm so proud of my life.
63
186320
1776
03:20
On December 21, 2007,
64
188120
3736
03:23
the supreme court gave the decision
for the Nepal government
65
191880
3656
03:27
to give transgender identity cards
66
195560
2736
03:30
and same-sex marriage.
67
198320
1936
03:32
LD: I can appreciate
Bhumika's confidence on a daily basis.
68
200280
3296
03:35
Something as simple
as using a public restroom
69
203600
2896
03:38
can be a huge challenge
when you don't fit in
70
206520
2536
03:41
to people's strict gender expectations.
71
209080
3056
03:44
Traveling throughout Asia,
72
212160
1696
03:45
I tended to freak out women
in public restrooms.
73
213880
2536
03:48
They weren't used to seeing
someone like me.
74
216440
2416
03:50
I had to come up with a strategy,
so that I could just pee in peace.
75
218880
3191
03:54
(Laughter)
76
222095
1281
03:55
So anytime I would enter a restroom,
77
223400
1715
03:57
I would thrust out my chest
to show my womanly parts,
78
225139
2957
04:00
and try to be as
non-threatening as possible.
79
228120
2136
04:02
Putting out my hands and saying, "Hello",
80
230280
1976
04:04
just so that people
could hear my feminine voice.
81
232280
2680
04:07
This all gets pretty exhausting,
but it's just who I am.
82
235680
2856
04:10
I can't be anything else.
83
238560
1800
04:13
JC: After Nepal, we traveled to India.
84
241480
3056
04:16
On one hand, India is a Hindu society,
85
244560
3536
04:20
without a tradition of homophobia.
86
248120
2896
04:23
On the other hand, it is also a society
with a deeply patriarchal system,
87
251040
4256
04:27
which rejects anything
that threatens the male-female order.
88
255320
4136
04:31
When we spoke to activists,
89
259480
1616
04:33
they told us that empowerment begins
with ensuring proper gender equality,
90
261120
5136
04:38
where the women's status
is established in society.
91
266280
3056
04:41
And in that way, the status of LGBT people
can be affirmed as well.
92
269360
5056
04:46
LD: There we met Prince Manvendra.
93
274440
2456
04:48
He's the world's first openly gay prince.
94
276920
3696
04:52
Prince Manvendra came out
on the "Oprah Winfrey Show,"
95
280640
2536
04:55
very internationally.
96
283200
1256
04:56
His parents disowned him
97
284480
1256
04:57
and accused him of bringing
great shame to the royal family.
98
285760
3256
05:01
We sat down with Prince Manvendra
99
289040
1616
05:02
and talked to him about why he decided
to come out so very publicly.
100
290680
3856
05:06
Here he is:
101
294560
1216
05:07
(Video) Prince Manvendra:
I felt there was a lot of need
102
295800
2536
05:10
to break this stigma and discrimination
which is existing in our society.
103
298360
4176
05:14
And that instigated me to come out openly
and talk about myself.
104
302560
5136
05:19
Whether we are gay, we are lesbian,
we are transgender, bisexual
105
307720
3456
05:23
or whatever sexual minority we come from,
106
311200
2336
05:25
we have to all unite
and fight for our rights.
107
313560
4056
05:29
Gay rights cannot be won
in the court rooms,
108
317640
2936
05:32
but in the hearts and the minds
of the people.
109
320600
2400
05:35
JC: While getting my hair cut,
110
323920
1736
05:37
the woman cutting my hair asked me,
111
325680
2256
05:39
"Do you have a husband?"
112
327960
1816
05:41
Now, this was a dreaded question
113
329800
1776
05:43
that I got asked a lot
by locals while traveling.
114
331600
3576
05:47
When I explained to her
that I was with a woman instead of a man,
115
335200
3696
05:50
she was incredulous,
116
338920
1336
05:52
and she asked me a lot of questions
about my parents' reactions
117
340280
3376
05:55
and whether I was sad
that I'd never be able to have children.
118
343680
3520
06:00
I told her that there are
no limitations to my life
119
348040
3016
06:03
and that Lisa and I do plan
to have a family some day.
120
351080
3040
06:07
Now, this woman was ready to write me off
121
355040
2376
06:09
as yet another crazy Westerner.
122
357440
2040
06:12
She couldn't imagine
that such a phenomenon
123
360280
2016
06:14
could happen in her own country.
124
362320
2016
06:16
That is, until I showed her
the photos of the Supergays
125
364360
2620
06:19
that we interviewed in India.
126
367004
1480
06:21
She recognized Prince Manvendra
from television
127
369600
2416
06:24
and soon I had an audience
of other hairdressers
128
372040
2239
06:26
interested in meeting me.
129
374303
1191
06:27
(Laughter)
130
375518
1858
06:29
And in that ordinary afternoon,
131
377400
2296
06:31
I had the chance to introduce
an entire beauty salon
132
379720
2936
06:34
to the social changes
that were happening in their own country.
133
382680
3680
06:39
LD: From India,
we traveled to East Africa,
134
387520
2616
06:42
a region known for intolerance
towards LGBT people.
135
390160
3976
06:46
In Kenya, 89 percent of people
who come out to their families
136
394160
3496
06:49
are disowned.
137
397680
1296
06:51
Homosexual acts are a crime
and can lead to incarceration.
138
399000
3696
06:54
In Kenya, we met
the soft-spoken David Kuria.
139
402720
3656
06:58
David had a huge mission
of wanting to work for the poor
140
406400
2936
07:01
and improve his own government.
141
409360
1736
07:03
So he decided to run for senate.
142
411120
2136
07:05
He became Kenya's first
openly gay political candidate.
143
413280
4656
07:09
David wanted to run his campaign
without denying the reality of who he was.
144
417960
4656
07:14
But we were worried for his safety
145
422640
1656
07:16
because he started
to receive death threats.
146
424320
2256
07:18
(Video) David Kuria:
At that point, I was really scared
147
426600
2616
07:21
because they were
actually asking for me to be killed.
148
429240
3776
07:25
And, yeah,
149
433040
2816
07:27
there are some people out there who do it
150
435880
2256
07:30
and they feel that they are doing
a religious obligation.
151
438160
2667
07:33
JC: David wasn't ashamed of who he was.
152
441800
2576
07:36
Even in the face of threats,
153
444400
1856
07:38
he stayed authentic.
154
446280
1200
07:40
LD: At the opposite end
of the spectrum is Argentina.
155
448880
3216
07:44
Argentina's a country where 92 percent
of the population identifies as Catholic.
156
452120
4296
07:48
Yet, Argentina has LGBT laws
that are even more progressive
157
456440
3696
07:52
than here in the US.
158
460160
2336
07:54
In 2010, Argentina became
the first country in Latin America
159
462520
4416
07:58
and the 10th in the world
to adopt marriage equality.
160
466960
2840
08:02
There, we met María Rachid.
161
470440
2216
08:04
María was a driving force
behind that movement.
162
472680
2616
08:07
María Rachid (Spanish):
I always say that, in reality,
163
475320
2536
08:09
the effects of marriage equality
164
477880
1576
08:11
are not only for those couples
that get married.
165
479480
2256
08:13
They are for a lot of people that,
even though they may never get married,
166
481760
3496
08:17
will be perceived differently
by their coworkers,
167
485280
2336
08:19
their families and neighbors,
168
487640
3056
08:22
from the national state's
message of equality.
169
490720
4456
08:27
I feel very proud of Argentina
170
495200
1856
08:29
because Argentina today
is a model of equality.
171
497080
4016
08:33
And hopefully soon,
172
501120
1576
08:34
the whole world will have the same rights.
173
502720
4936
08:39
JC: When we made the visit
to my ancestral lands,
174
507680
2736
08:42
I wish I could have shown
my parents what we found there.
175
510440
3056
08:45
Because here is who we met:
176
513520
1936
08:47
(Video) One, two, three.
Welcome gays to Shanghai!
177
515480
5136
08:52
(Laughter)
178
520640
2440
08:58
A whole community of young,
beautiful Chinese LGBT people.
179
526440
5576
09:04
Sure, they had their struggles.
180
532040
1496
09:05
But they were fighting it out.
181
533560
2256
09:07
In Shanghai, I had the chance
to speak to a local lesbian group
182
535840
4056
09:11
and tell them our story
in my broken Mandarin Chinese.
183
539920
3656
09:15
In Taipei, each time
we got onto the metro,
184
543600
2656
09:18
we saw yet another
lesbian couple holding hands.
185
546280
3176
09:21
And we learned that Asia's
largest LGBT pride event
186
549480
4136
09:25
happens just blocks away
from where my grandparents live.
187
553640
4376
09:30
If only my parents knew.
188
558040
1720
09:33
LD: By the time we finished our
not-so-straight journey around the world,
189
561387
3429
09:36
(Laughter)
190
564840
1216
09:38
we had traveled 50,000 miles
191
566080
1696
09:39
and logged 120 hours of video footage.
192
567800
2656
09:42
We traveled to 15 countries
193
570480
1496
09:44
and interviewed 50 Supergays.
194
572000
2056
09:46
Turns out, it wasn't hard
to find them at all.
195
574080
2640
09:49
JC: Yes, there are still
tragedies that happen
196
577480
2496
09:52
on the bumpy road to equality.
197
580000
2256
09:54
And let's not forget that 75 countries
still criminalize homosexuality today.
198
582280
4800
09:59
But there are also stories
of hope and courage
199
587880
3456
10:03
in every corner of the world.
200
591360
2160
10:06
What we ultimately took away
from our journey is,
201
594600
3096
10:09
equality is not a Western invention.
202
597720
3720
10:14
LD: One of the key factors
in this equality movement is momentum,
203
602840
4296
10:19
momentum as more and more people
embrace their full selves
204
607160
3376
10:22
and use whatever opportunities they have
205
610560
2136
10:24
to change their part of the world,
206
612720
2216
10:26
and momentum as more and more countries
207
614960
2216
10:29
find models of equality in one another.
208
617200
2976
10:32
When Nepal protected
against LGBT discrimination,
209
620200
3536
10:35
India pushed harder.
210
623760
1776
10:37
When Argentina embraced marriage equality,
211
625560
2896
10:40
Uruguay and Brazil followed.
212
628480
2216
10:42
When Ireland said yes to equality,
213
630720
2936
10:45
(Applause)
214
633680
4056
10:49
the world stopped to notice.
215
637760
1936
10:51
When the US Supreme Court
makes a statement to the world
216
639720
2656
10:54
that we can all be proud of.
217
642400
1336
10:55
(Applause)
218
643760
2520
11:02
JC: As we reviewed our footage,
219
650560
1536
11:04
what we realized is that
we were watching a love story.
220
652120
3936
11:08
It wasn't a love story
that was expected of me,
221
656080
2776
11:10
but it is one filled
with more freedom, adventure and love
222
658880
4336
11:15
than I could have ever possibly imagined.
223
663240
2936
11:18
One year after returning home
from our trip,
224
666200
2536
11:20
marriage equality came to California.
225
668760
2976
11:23
And in the end, we believe,
love will win out.
226
671760
3760
11:30
(Video) By the power vested in me,
227
678560
2856
11:33
by the state of California
228
681440
2576
11:36
and by God Almighty,
229
684040
2256
11:38
I now pronounce you spouses for life.
230
686320
3336
11:41
You may kiss.
231
689680
1216
11:42
(Applause)
232
690920
1880

▲Back to top

ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Jenni Chang and Lisa Dazols - Documentary filmmakers
Jenni Chang and Lisa Dazols made "Out & Around" to show the momentous changes in the status of LGBTQ equality -- all around the world.

Why you should listen
When Jenni Chang and Lisa Dazols fell in love, they vowed to follow a life of adventure. Their promise led them to leave their 9-to-5 jobs, pick up a video camera and travel to fifteen countries through Asia, Africa and South America in search of "Supergays," the people who are leading the movement for gay, lesbian and transgender equality in the developing world.

While interviewing LGBT leaders across the globe, they realized their journey could have larger impact beyond just self-growth, so they bought a book on how to make a documentary. Out & Around, the resulting film, captures the momentous changes in the status of queer people around the world today. A film in partnership with the It Gets Better Project, the joint mission is to share stories of hope around the world.
More profile about the speaker
Jenni Chang and Lisa Dazols | Speaker | TED.com