Pink-Light District is
English-language nomenclature referring to brothels fronting as
hair salons in China. The term derives from
Red-Light District but is specific to the P.R.C., as Chinese brothels are identifiable nationwide by the transparent-pink film that typically covers hair salon sliding glass doors. Such hair salons usually operate in small clusters, hence forming a "district." The term "Pink Light District" is a neologism directly attributable to, and first seen in print in, the book CHINA: Portrait of a People (
Tom Carter, 2008), which features in part a series of revelational photographs of various
pink-light districts across China, the first published book ever to do so. The term is not, however, commonly used by the Chinese themselves.
Thousands of suspected prostitutes were arrested last
weekend during a city-wide police
sting of Beijing's notorious pink
light district.