Reconfigurando la Masculinidad y la Filiación Filial entre los Migrantes Homosexuales en la China Urbana

In contemporary China, internal migration has reshaped economic opportunities and family structures, creating tensions for gay men between their sexual identity and the normative expectations of sonhood. Unlike previous masculinity research that largely overlooks sonhood, this study aims to examine how gay migrant men negotiate sonhood as a central axis of localized hegemonic masculinity. Drawing on 41 in-depth life-history interviews with migrants from diverse class backgrounds, the analysis reveals that Chinese ideals of manhood are defined by economic success alongside family responsibilities, expectations strongly imposed on sons. Three distinct patterns of masculinity negotiation emerge through migration: reaffirmation of filial norms, hybrid reconfiguration, and compensatory or alternative masculinities that challenge traditional expectations. The findings show that gay masculine identity is both constrained and enabled by migration and family roles, and that class shapes these negotiations, offering a locally grounded perspective on how masculinity is constructed at the intersection of sexuality, family, and migration in China.