‘My parents’ gradual acceptance mirrored the changing attitudes towards the LGBTQ+ community in Taiwan’
Exclusive: Diving school owner Salomé chats with Attitude about finally getting the approval of her religious parents
By Dale Fox
After growing up in a devout Presbyterian family in Taiwan, Salomé Chia-Ting Galicher-Chen sought freedom by attending university in France. This allowed her to finally live her truth as a lesbian and opened the door to educating her LGBTQ+-hostile family about the queer community.
Here, she chats with Attitude’s Dale Fox about her journey from being forced to hide her true identity from her family to being able to live as her true self with her wife – and parents – after returning to her native Taiwan to be closer to her sick mother.
Growing up in Taiwan within the confines of a devout Presbyterian family, my days were marked by a routine centred around religion: up at 7am on Sundays to park right outside the church for services; prayers before meals; and meticulous memorisation of biblical verses in Taiwanese, Mandarin and English. This strict upbringing, coupled with societal and familial homophobia, framed the intense struggle I faced in embracing my authentic self.
From an early age of around six or seven, I sensed my divergence from societal norms regarding my sexuality. However, in a society rife with homophobia, particularly within my family and the church, I quickly learned to bury this truth. Finally coming out at 15, amid my mother’s battle with breast cancer, proved to be an ill-fated revelation. My parents dismissed it as a fleeting phase, grounding me, confiscating my phone, blocking my access to the internet, and even entertaining the idea of subjecting me to so-called ‘conversion therapy’.
“I purposefully chose to study in Montpellier, France, knowing the city had a reputation as an LGBTQ+-friendly hub”
Four years later, when it came to finding a university, I purposefully chose to study in Montpellier, France, knowing the city had a reputation as an LGBTQ+-friendly hub. Although my parents pushed for me to study in a city near a pastor they knew, I held firm, desperate to find a place where I could finally be open about my sexuality after years of hiding.
Montpellier was liberating, like taking my first full breath. But my parents still controlled me from afar, demanding I attend church services daily and report back on the pastor’s sermons in detail over the phone. Their manipulation persisted for months until I met Gwenola, my future wife, online. She was shocked at how my parents could still dictate my actions from halfway across the world. Her bewilderment at my obedience prompted me to finally take back my autonomy, and I devoted myself to nurturing our relationship without guilt or shame.
In 2014 and 2017, I brought Gwenola back to Taiwan, presenting her only as my ‘best friend from university’ to my family, although my mum interrogated me relentlessly about our true relationship, never once acknowledging Gwenola as who she really was.
“My dad later openly opposed same-sex marriage in a public march against it in Taipei”
I clung to the hope that the legalisation of same-sex marriage in Taiwan in 2017 would begin to soften my parents’ stance against the LGBTQ+ community. However, my dad later openly opposed same-sex marriage in a public march against it in Taipei. This prompted me to come out again in 2018. The aftermath was brutal, with contentious phone calls filled with uninformed questions.
Their gradual acceptance mirrored the changing attitudes towards the LGBTQ+ community in Taiwan. In 2019, my parents attended my PhD defence in France, and our relationship improved during a road trip across the country. Then in 2021, Gwenola and I married in France, with my parents witnessing the ceremony virtually from Taiwan.
While studying, I discovered a revelatory book, Animaux homos: Histoire naturelle de l’homosexualité by Fleur Daugey, about the history of homosexuality in nature. Moved by its power to challenge preconceived notions, I translated the book into Mandarin and managed to get it published in Taiwan in 2021, hoping it would contribute to the understanding of the LGBTQ+ community in my homeland.
The book proved pivotal. My once-sceptical mum asked thoughtful questions after reading it, and my dad shared the book with friends.
“My once-fractured family now stands united”
Also in 2021, my mum was diagnosed with bone and liver cancer, so Gwenola and I moved to Taiwan to help care for her. After moving, we founded our business, Gweno Salomé Diving, intertwining our passion for scuba diving with environmental awareness.
Today, Gwenola and I happily run our business while also providing care as my mum continues her cancer treatments. My once-fractured family now stands united, strengthened by open hearts and minds, and we look positively towards a future marked by understanding.
This Rainbow World feature originally appeared in issue 357 of Attitude magazine, available to read now alongside 15 years of back issues on the Attitude app.
