It's a family affair, period.

Anna Mae He was brought to China. Her parents divorced. She is unhappy in school.

There is nothing unusual with any of this but the public simply cannot help reading a "larger picture" into it.

From the very beginning, both supporters and detractors have tended to see the story as symbols: If her parents failed to regain legal custody of her, China would lose; if they won, China won over the US.