Communications and Media

Homosexual marriage in Hong Kong is still not legalized although most citizens living here, especially the teenagers, accept same-sex relationships and do not discriminate it. But same-sex marriage is still largely debated in Hong Kong. Not many people know the rights that are not yet implemented for homosexual union such as legal papers, social policies, tax breaks, inheritances and other legal protections. Pushing for legalization of same-sex union in Hong Kong will definitely change many lives. Hong Kong citizens, especially those not open for gay marriage, do not fully understand that legalizing unions between same sexes will eliminate discrimination among homosexuals and also recognize their rights as citizens of Hong Kong.

The posters message of legalizing homosexual marriage is very important because this will greatly affect the attitude of Hong Kong citizens since they will be more open minded about the issue of giving same-sex couples the rights they duly deserve. It also has the power to educate citizens that homosexuals love and commit the way heterosexuals do too. They vow to treat their partner with respect and care for each other the best they can just like everyone else. It also shows the people about the discrimination the citizens are making about homosexuals by not seeing them as equals because their right to marry whoever they want is not bestowed.  If this message is effectively communicated to the public, peoples lives will change especially for the homosexuals because they will receive less discrimination from people and more respect and hopefully when same-sex marriage is legalized, also the rights of all heterosexual married couples have.

The message the poster aims to impart to people was clearly shown in the poster. It has a clear idea shown through the image of two female hands, one offering the vow of union and one accepting it. One look at the poster and I clearly knew what point the group wanted to make. The slogans added to the poster made the significance of the poster even clearer.

Even if people are not aware of the debate about legalization of homosexual marriage in Hong Kong, looking at the poster will give the idea that it involves two women and a wedding ring. This will instantly make the viewer think about the message the poster wants to convey. One woman giving a wedding ring to another woman depicts a homosexual relationship and the offering of the wedding ring signifies the legal union of the couple through marriage. The slogan also made me realize that homosexuals do deserve equal dignity because they love just as hetorosexuals do, they do vow to dedicate ones life to each other, they commit fully to one another in terms of sharing resources and personal beliefs and most of all, they have every right to show the world that their love is capable of withstanding anything, from social pressure to political apprehension.

Though the message of the poster is clear to most, I personally dont think that very young minds will understand it. They may have a vague idea of what the poster means, not only the image but also the text contained in the poster, but will not understand the implications of what the message of the poster holds. For example, an 8-year old girl may understand to a point that the makers of the poster want the homosexual marriage to be legalized but she may not understand why they want to and what the big deal is about the issue of same-sex union. Also, people who strongly disagree about same-sex marriage will have a different perception of the poster. Legalizing of homosexual marriage may be immoral to them, thus eliminating the whole purpose of the poster. This may be due to the fact that Asian countries are less liberated as compared to other western countries.

For the aesthetic value of the poster, I must say that the group did a good job in making a creative and clear presentation of the message they want to impart. The image is clear and not vague. The use of nail art to signify that the two hands belong to two women is very suitable to the idea they want to impart. Also the slogan Our society has the capacity to love thus the capacity to accept differences made me feel that people do have differences but because we do know how to love, we learn to accept these differences and work around them so that we can have a more peaceful and understanding environment. Accepting homosexual marriage is accepting one of societys deviances and by this acceptance, we soon make same-sex union a norm in society.

Although the message of legalizing homosexual marriage is clear, legalizing this marriage in Hong Kong is not. From the poster, I could only clearly state that the issue is about same-sex union but I am not sure if the issue is addressed to a specific country or to the world in general. I had to read all the texts in the poster to get a clear idea. I dont think the message will be conveyed clearly by only looking at the image and not the texts which make me doubt the overall effectiveness of the poster. Some questions that can be raised about the posters capacity to communicate the message are that what if the viewers of the poster cannot read well or from another country that does not teach English or what if the viewer do not have the time to read all the texts or is far from the poster to be able to read the text How can the message be imparted then

Using a poster instead of a video or a presentation or even an audio file as a means to convey the groups message is already very effective so if I were to convey the message, I will still use a poster. But if I had to do it differently, I would make it clear in the poster that the issue is addressed to Hong Kong. First, I will choose a place in Hong Kong that will clearly illustrate that the setting is in Hong Kong. For example, I will change the background to the skyline of Hong Kong with the flag of China and Hong Kong also included. This will help the viewer realize from the flag that the setting is in China and from the skyline that it is Hong Kong because Hong Kong is the only place that has a spectacular skyline in China. By doing this, even if the viewer cannot understand the text, he or she can still understand the setting and the issue the poster wants to impart. Although the poster included the flag of China and regional flag of Hong Kong, it is not very visible. Making these flags clearer will have greater impact for the poster. As for the two hands and ring, I will not change anything about it because it portrays the homosexual marriage perfectly. I will also incorporate the use of multimedia such as websites to convey the message on a larger crowd, not just limited to the area where the poster is placed. This way, more people will be informed of the issue and of the groups message.

The group explained clearly that their topic was aimed to encourage acceptance of gays and lesbians in our society. But since most of the people in Hong Kong already accept same-sex relationships, theres not much issue to go on. They then shifted to a more specific topic, the acceptance of marriage between homosexuals in Hong Kong. They did the right step in pursuing a more specific topic about gays and lesbians since their poster will be more effective if it portrays an issue that is still widely debated in our society. This way, the poster will be more interesting and will hold more meaning for the viewer.

The makers of the poster also did a good job in choosing the message about their topic. The idea of legalizing homosexual marriage became apparent because our society should show that we do not discriminate anyone and that we grant everyone the right to partake in the honor of marriage. They explained that homosexuals have experienced a lot of discrimination during the past and have suffered under the hands of judgmental people. It is about time that the society gives them equal rights just like heterosexual people have. With this poster, the students are pushing for the equal rights for homosexuals. The group also explained why they chose the Expo Promenade or the Golden Bauhinia square outside of Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Center. I understood that they chose this location because it symbolizes the establishment of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. It represents the legal and political stand of Hong Kong. Although they justified their intentions and actions well, I believe that they may still have chosen a better location to represent Hong Kong. It is not clear that the location is Hong Kong or what the background represents. It is only clear that homosexuals want to marry through the use of two hands belonging to two women and one offering a wedding ring to another.

Based on their explanation, the group first chose homosexuality as their topic because homosexuality is becoming widely known and discussed nowadays. The group searched for current issues about gays and lesbians and found one about legalizing same-sex marriage in Mexico City. So they further narrowed the topic down to homosexual relationships specifically marriage since there wont be a lot of issue in acceptance of homosexuals because many societies accept and do not discriminate them. They applied their topic to Hong Kong due to the fact that same-sex union is not legalized here therefore equal rights for homosexuals are not given.

After the message the group will be communicating was finalized, they then observed the environment they are living to select a theme for the poster. They have chosen the location because of the legal and political relevance of the Expo in Hong Kong and the hands to better signify the union of homosexuals or the homosexual marriage.

Overall, I find the poster very engaging and will definitely make people think about the equal rights that homosexuals duly deserve. And it will make us more sympathetic about their right to partake in the honor of marriage because like the poster says, we all know how to love therefore we have the capacity to accept the differences that we see because of this love, may it be love for freedom, love for equality or simply love for humanity.