Man sues company after allegedly being sacked because he was gay

Last October, a video showing the Nanshan police dealing with a dispute between two gay males in the street went viral on the web (see below). A speech made by one of the men wearing a “little red hat” in the video turned into an internet meme, and it further inspired multiple music videos and imitation videos online. The man and his “little red hat” gained so much attention, he was even able to sign with a talent company.
However, the other party of this dispute, a man named Mu Yi, said he was “outed involuntarily” because of the viral video, and is now suing his company for firing him because he is gay. This is believed to be China’s first ever sexual-orientation discrimination lawsuit.
“During that time (when the video went viral) I was a total wreck. I couldn’t go out. I couldn’t answer the phone. I even lost my job,” Mu told reporters. “I was the victim to begin with, it doesn’t make any sense for my company [to punish me more],” he said.
Mu originally worked as the head of sales in a design company. Shortly after the video went viral, he received a notice from the company claiming that he did not follow the company dress code and that there were complaints about his service attitude. Mu was soon after fired.
“Worst thing of all, when I was on break, the company lowered my salary substantially, which is clearly discrimination against me. I can find another job but the discrimination is unbearable. That’s why I decided to file the lawsuit,” Mu said.
Liu Xiaohu, the lawyer who represents Mu Yi, told reporters that “this is China’s first ever sexual-orientation discrimination lawsuit.”
Here is the original video in which Mu claims he was outed along with one of the remixes: