For ALL Women and Girls: Zhao Hang on amplifying the voices of mothers and daughters, women with disabilities

Authors: Wenting Zhao and Mengwen Chen

#ForAllWomenAndGirls is a rallying call for action on the 30th anniversary of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action. Zhao Hang, 27, a creative writer from Heilongjang province in Northeast China, talks about how feminist thinking reshaped her life and led her to advocate for justice, equality and inclusion, especially for women with disabilities like herself.

A feminist lens on disability and deep-set gender norms

Typing with one functional finger, Zhao Hang documents the lived experiences of her mother, women migrant workers, and women with disabilities. Through stories, lyrics and poetry, she sheds light on the challenges marginalized communities face and the support they need.

Zhao was born with cerebral palsy. Her mother left her job to become her full-time caregiver, and for several years they travelled between hospitals across China for rehabilitation, while her father continued working back home.

Physically unable to attend high school, Zhao sat in on classes at a community university. There a course, Women’s Literature, introduced her to feminism.

“Feminism brings me a fresh perspective to understand life and to see the deeper, often hidden, structures shaping our society,” she says.

Zhao saw how many of the unrealistic expectations placed on her to be a “good girl” stemmed from harmful and deeply ingrained gender norms.

And seeing her mother give up so much for her, she also wondered what her life might have looked like had she not had a disability.

“At first, I turned that frustration inward and towards my mother,” she says. “But I later realized: blaming her didn’t change the patriarchal systems that shaped both our lives. Feminism isn’t a solution to everything but it gives us a starting point, a way to think critically and act collectively.”

Stories build courage in women with disabilities

Zhao understands the multiple barriers women like her face: “Difficulties managing menstruation, being unable to dress freely, struggling to experience romantic love, and having limited access to opportunities and resources — these are daily struggles for many women living with disabilities.”

Over the past three years, Zhao has published online more than 40 pieces – including interviews, critical reviews, translations -- on gender equality and disability inclusion, garnering over 50,000 online views and interactions.

For Zhao, even if one reader finds courage from her articles, they are worth writing.

Stories reveal the heavy, disproportionate care burden of mothers

Zhao now co-leads the 100 Mothers’ Stories Writing Project under the Global Moms Initiative, a non-profit. In writing about mothers and daughters, she realized how gender norms hurt all members of a family.

“I began to see how fathers, while often absent from home, retain unquestioned authority in the household,” she says. “The unpaid labour and emotional work of caregiving fall almost entirely on mothers. However, women’s unpaid care work remains unrecognized and undervalued. Men who fail to conform to masculine expectations — by showing vulnerability or not being the family breadwinner — also face social pressure.”

“Change won’t happen overnight. But it starts with making these issues visible,” she says.

“In whatever form we choose, let’s pick up the pen, tell our stories, and create our own narratives.”