An unexpected phenomenon: why Melania Trump has become a new style icon in China
Kyiv • UNN
US First Lady Melania Trump has gained unexpected popularity in China, especially among women. Chinese social media admire her style, independence, and attitude toward family life, despite the tense relations between the two countries.
US First Lady Melania Trump has unexpectedly gained popularity in China, especially among women. Despite the tense relations between Washington and Beijing, Chinese social media are full of posts admiring her style, independence, and attitude toward family life. This is reported by AP, according to UNN.
Details
In particular, after Donald Trump's inauguration, the Chinese platform Xiaohongshu began to actively discuss the US First Lady's exquisite taste in clothing and her steadfast support for her husband, despite the scandals surrounding his behavior. Her wide-brimmed hat, which she wore at the ceremony, instantly became a trend: online stores began selling similar models, and bloggers even published video tutorials on how to create it.
She looks heroic, elegant and determined, so strong and majestic, and I love it,
According to generally accepted Chinese standards, women should support their husbands and focus on raising children. But Chinese fans are also attracted to Melania Trump's independent character and what she has achieved coming from a small town.
Chinese fans like the fact that she combines both traditional and modern features of a woman,
One of the most popular was an archival video of Melania refusing to take her husband's hand after leaving Air Force One. This video has gained over 5 million likes on Douyin, the Chinese equivalent of TikTok.
Nearly half a million people liked a post in November on Xiaohongshu that joked about how reluctant the usually reserved Melania Trump should be to return to public life as first lady. A satire in The New Yorker magazine criticizing her marriage to the president received 1 million views on Bilibili, a YouTube-like platform, and seems to have only increased her popularity.
Almost 30,000 people liked a November post about a years-old interview Melania Trump and her husband gave on the Ellen DeGeneres show, calling their relationship "super cute.
While Donald Trump is fomenting trade wars with China, his wife seems to be winning the hearts of the Chinese.
The details of leaders' lives are a novelty for many in China, where senior leaders tend to appear only in strictly regulated public situations. China's first lady, Peng Liyuan, who was a famous singer before she married Xi Jinping, has been held in a higher status than the wives of previous leaders, but the couple's lifestyle is still so little known that it is unclear where they live or whether they have pets.
Associate Professor of the School of Communications at Hong Kong Baptist University Rose Luciu said that fans see Donald Trump as a winner whose success is shared by the first lady.
The more independent and successful she is - but also unwaveringly loyal to (Donald) Trump - the more it reflects his supposed success as a man,
Melania Trump admitted that she does not always agree with her husband13.01.25, 15:32 • 139591 view
