Ye Haiyan (born 1975) is a Chinese

gender Gender is the range of characteristics pertaining to femininity and masculinity and differentiating between them. Depending on the context, this may include sex-based social structures (i.e. gender roles) and gender identity. Most cultures ...

activist, best known for her action in favor of

women A woman is an adult female human. Prior to adulthood, a female human is referred to as a girl (a female child or adolescent). The plural ''women'' is sometimes used in certain phrases such as "women's rights" to denote female humans regardl ...

prostitutes Prostitution is the business or practice of engaging in sexual activity in exchange for payment. The definition of "sexual activity" varies, and is often defined as an activity requiring physical contact (e.g., sexual intercourse, non-penet ...

, and children against

violence Violence is the use of physical force so as to injure, abuse, damage, or destroy. Other definitions are also used, such as the World Health Organization's definition of violence as "the intentional use of physical force or power, threatened ...

and sexual aggression. In May of 2012, her NGO office in Guangxi was raided by eight plainclothes men who also reportedly attacked her. Haiyan said after the attack that she presumed the men had been sent by the local government. On 27 May 2013, she campaigned against a school director in Hainan accused of raping six female students, aged 12 to 13. She held a sign that read: "Principal, call me if you want to get a room. Leave the pupils alone." This helped to raise bring attention to this specific case, sparking national outrage via the Internet. Artist

Ai Weiwei Ai Weiwei (, ; born 28 August 1957) is a Chinese contemporary artist, documentarian, and activist. Ai grew up in the far northwest of China, where he lived under harsh conditions due to his father's exile. As an activist, he has been openly c ...

and filmmaker

Ai Xiaoming Ai Xiaoming (; born 1953) is a Chinese documentary filmmaker and political activist. She is also a scholar of women's and public issues, and former professor at Sun Yat-sen University. Ai was born in Wuhan in 1953, and has spent most of her adult l ...

have supported her campaign. In response to her activism, Ye has reported pressure, threats, and attacks, and she was arrested in June 2013. She is one of the subjects of the 2016 documentary film ''

Hooligan Sparrow ''Hooligan Sparrow'' is a 2016 documentary film about Ye Haiyan and other Chinese activists written and produced by Nanfu Wang Nanfu Wang (born 1985) is a Chinese-born American filmmaker. Her debut film '' Hooligan Sparrow'' premiered at the ...

''. In May 2014, she was attacked in her home and arrested for being a whistleblower. She exposed the harsh conditions of local brothels, which sex workers were sexually and physically abused.

References

External links

Documentary about Ye
titled ''

'', streaming at

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educat ...

Chinese activists Chinese women activists Sexuality in China 1975 births Living people Chinese women's rights activists {{feminism-activist-stub