Global Voices

The Mosuo Sisters

Two spirited daughters from China's last remaining matrilineal ethnic minority are thrust into the worldwide economic downturn when they lose the only jobs they've ever known. Left with few options, Jua Ma and La Tsuo leave Beijing for home, a remote village in the foothills of the Himalayas, where the Mosuo people uphold the provocative tradition that marriage is an attack on the family.

Coming to Global Voices: The Mosuo Sisters

30s

Two spirited daughters from China's last remaining matrilineal ethnic minority lose the only jobs they've ever known. Determined to keep their family out of poverty, one sister sacrifices her dream of an education to farm, while the other tries her luck in the city, where rich Chinese businessmen, lecherous gangsters, Tibetan monks, and fledgling pop stars lead her on a precarious path.

Previews + Extras

  • The Mosuo Sisters: Juma’s Conflict: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    The Mosuo Sisters: Juma’s Conflict

    S7 E7 - 4m 44s

    In this video extra from the documentary The Mosuo Sisters, one of the sisters — Juma — visits her Tibetan boyfriend’s family back home. She finds herself caught between his parents’ wishes (in a culture where sons frequently live at home with their family and where daughters live with their mothers) and those of her own family’s.

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