Li Yinhe (A&S ’88) graduated from the University of Pittsburgh with her PhD in sociology. Li’s interest in sociology, human sexuality, and gender studies led her to become a prominent advocate for LGBTQ+ Rights in China. She is one of the first sociologists in the People’s Republic of China to research and publish on topics of homosexuality and diverse sexual practices.
Prior to pursuing her PhD at the University of Pittsburgh, Li studied history at Shanxi University in 1977. She began her career as an editor at Guangming Daily before being assigned to the State Council Research Office in 1978. In 1979, she joined the Institute of Marxism-Leninism at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences where she began her research on family issues and marriage. After graduating from Pitt she returned to China where, in 1992, she joined the Institute of Sociology at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. She later became the director of the Research Office of Family and Sexuality where she worked until she retired in 2012.
Li’s activism in China foregrounds tolerance of nonconventional sexual activities, including legalizing acts such as prostitution. In 2000, she proposed a same-sex marriage law when the National People’s Congress was preparing to revise the marriage law. Ultimately, her argument was dismissed, but she has continued her efforts to advance this proposal.
Li has published many research books and articles on topics such as homosexuality in China, sexuality and love of Chinese women, and feminism. Her titles include Sexuality and Marriage in China (1991), Sexuality and Love of Chinese Women (1996), and The Argument of the Change for the Marriage Law (1999). She has also translated many texts that are focused on queer theory including works from Judith Butler, Steven Epstein, Gayle Rubin, Steven Seidman, and many others.
Li has made a large mark in the evolving sexual culture of China.