Being a woman in China is getting harder. But in Chengdu, female-only spaces are flourishing

<p>The socially relaxed city has seen a cautious feminist revival despite authorities’ growing alarm at women who shun traditional roles</p><p>In a small, unassuming bookstore in south-west China, a discreet community of women dream of a more equal future. Here in Chengdu, 42-year-old Shen Shen runs one of the country’s leading feminist bookstores.</p><p>“The world doesn’t lack bookstores for men,” she says, surrounded by piles of volumes by authors including Judith Butler, Simone de Beauvoir and <a href="https://viewer.gutools.co.uk/world/2023/apr/26/chizuko-ueno-the-japanese-writer-stoking-chinas-feminist-underground">Chizuko Ueno</a>.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/jun/10/chengdu-female-only-spaces-china-women-feminist-revival">Continue reading...</a>