Global Times：Small man, great power

Lei Chuang (right) is hugged by a woman during one of his events to solicit support from strangers for HBV carriers in Wuhan, Hubei Province. Photo: CFP

When a train gets overbooked, most people cross their fingers in the hope that they will be one of the lucky ones to get a seat. This is not only because standing for an entire train ride is an exhausting affair, but also because standing tickets go for the same exact price as seated tickets. While most people in China quietly accept this as an unavoidable fact of life, the 27-year-old Lei Chuang decided to take the railway corporation to court in order to combat this practice.On February 18, the Guangzhou Railway Transportation Court accepted Lei's case against Guangzhou-Shenzhen Railway Corporation for charging the same price for both standing and seated tickets. In late January, Lei and his friend spent 85.5 yuan ($14) to buy standing tickets for a train ride from Shenzhen to Shaoguan, Guangdong Province. When they got aboard, they found that the price they paid was the same as those who bought seated tickets. Once the two got off the train, they filed the case and demanded a 42.75 yuan refund. The trial is set to begin on March 6."I'm not going to profit off of this case, and it might be a stupid way to defend your rights, but my dignity is priceless," Lei told the Global Times.Before the trial, Lei was already well-known for his creative activities in fighting for equal rights for carriers of the hepatitis-B virus (HBV). From sending 10 kilograms of pears ("pear" sounds like the word "pressure" in Chinese) to Shenzhen's Human Resource Department to protest HBV examinations for employment applications to making a 80-day journey on foot from Shanghai to Beijing to hand over a petition to reduce HBV medicine prices, from inviting the Chinese Premier to have dinner with him to requesting 53 central government departments release information about their salaries, Lei has continually used his own unique methods to make his voice heard."I am a small person with great power, I like turning my concern into action," Lei said.From Lei Feng to Lei ChuangLei Feng, a household name since the 1960s, is known for his selfless spirit. However, the icon's spirit of serving others has lost its appeal among the youth of today. Instead many now worship Lei Chuang's fighting spirit: "Whenever we encounter injustice, we fight."It is estimated that there are over 100 million HBV carriers in China, one third of the worlds' HBV carrier population. Lei and his elder brother number among them. Born in a rural family in Chongqing, Lei and his brother discovered they were carriers in high school. After the discovery their mother always worried about people's attitudes towards them as HBV carriers often face discrimination when it comes to employment and education.Even though it has been scientifically proven that HBV is chiefly transmitted via blood, sex and mother-to-fetus transmission, the public's fear still runs deep. Her nightmare came true when Lei's brother was rejected by a State-owned company in 2007. "I don't know why the country would allow them to go to school but not allow them to work?" his mother asked. Since then, employment has become a very sensitive topic in his family.To avoid following in his brother's footsteps, Lei decided to take action by publicly revealing his condition. He made a banner proclaiming "HBV is not transmitted via food and water. I'm an HBV carrier, are you still worried?" His protest had little effect. In 2008, when Lei's friend, a senior at Zhejiang University, was turned down by a company for the same reason, Lei protested again.Although he cannot remember how many times he has protested, he still remembers people's cold reaction towards him and the loneliness of fighting all alone.Knowing how little power he has as a "small person," Lei decided to go big. After graduating from Zhejiang University, he sent letters to 524 academics at the China Academy of Sciences to protest against a mandatory physical examination for postgraduate study. While those letters did not help lift the examinations, his name became known all over the country. Later he was admitted to Shanghai Jiao Tong University.Meanwhile, Lei's parents began to worry about the consequences of his outspoken activities. Every time Lei called home, they would ask him to stop, but for Lei there was no going back. Lei said the achievement empowered him to fight harder. To further improve public awareness of HBV, Lei organized a "Free hugs for HBV carriers" campaign in Henan Province. About 100 people gave Lei and his team hugs. Later that year, Lei became the first person in the country to receive a health certificate that allows him to be employed in the food industry. He was also named as the 2009 China's Justice Character by the Procuratorial Daily, and nominated for the 2009 CCTV's Economic Figure award.On World Hepatitis Day in 2012, Lei organized an "HBV carriers treat you to dinner" event in 12 cities. Hundreds of HBV carriers joined the event.Last year, shortly after his postgraduate graduation, Lei and his father walked from Shanghai to Beijing's National Health and Family Planning Commission. Lei estimated that it costs an HBV sufferer at least 1,000 yuan a month for needed medicine. He called for authorities to reduce the financial burden of HBV sufferers.During that 80-day journey, Lei said some 40 strangers kept them company along the way and offered them food. The journey was tough, but he was touched by their support.A frequent participant of Lei's events who only identified herself as Hua told the Global Times that Lei's sense of justice is what makes him human. She and Lei met at an HBV-related event in 2010 where he made a very deep impression on her."But what makes him more human is he cries a lot," she added. "He cries in front of us whenever he shares his stories with us."