Bank’s rainbow lions draw criticism in Hong Kong
Print Edition
A PAIR of lions painted in rainbow stripes displayed outside HSBC’s main office in Hong Kong have been slammed by anti-gay groups.
Two plain bronze lions named Stephen and Stitt usually sit outside the office in the city’s Central business district and have been joined by a pair of multi-colored replicas as part of the bank’s “Celebrate Pride, Celebrate Unity” campaign.
The new statues were decorated by local artist Michael Lam and will be on display throughout December.
“Having a workforce that reflects the diversity of our millions of customers in Hong Kong and which draws on a wide range of perspectives makes us better able to serve the whole community,” HSBC spokesman Adam Harper said.
But the lions have sparked a backlash from conservative sections of society with some groups launching a joint petition against the “disgusting” artworks.
The petition says that the statues are “causing annoyance to the feelings of many Hong Kong people as well as trampling on the existing family values.”
The petition adds that the rainbow colors, symbolic of the LGBT community, are emasculating and deprive “all the strength and stamina of the original lions.”
Although Hong Kong is an international finance hub and thousands turned out for its annual pride parade last month, conservative groups regularly hit back at the promotion of what they see as an LGBT agenda. But passers-by were overwhelmingly in favour of the statues.
“A bank needs to be more inclusive rather than just cater to one group of people, so it’s actually good for the bank itself,” said Brian Yip, who also works in finance.
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