Equality for the gender/sexual minority community is discussed everyday, but most often, only in terms of legal status. While equality in terms of legal protection is very important, legal equality does not necessarily lead to social equality or equality in representation.
There persists major discrepancy in LGBTQI representation or visibility in every sphere of life. How many Indian politicians or scientists can we think of who identify as the gender/sexual minority? This lack of visibility exists not only in terms of occupation/employment, but also in terms of philosophical approaches in a more aggravated manner. This is only one of the ways in which the gender/sexual community is taught that they have a certain level of success and opportunity predetermined.
Therefore, there are very few people that we can think of, who can serveas LGBTQI role models. Ideally, one doesn’t need a ‘role model’ to ‘be gay’, but society teaches us to look up to ‘heroes’ while also perpetuating the notions that people who identify as the gender/sexual minority are all alike!
For example, in most Indian movies, straight characters have many attributes (funny, bold, shy etc.), but gay characters are just...gay! But hey! There are nice gay people, stupid gay people, nerdy gay people, sexy gay people, intelligent gay people and athletic gay people who have stories of their own and are not always a ‘part of someone else’s story’ like Bollywood teaches.
Moreover, there are also people even within the LGBTQI community who want to regulate the behaviour of others who belong to such community. I witnessed this at a Pride itself where someone said to another, ‘Don’t behave that way; you’ll give the community a bad name!’ Such things only aggravate the oppression we’re meant to be fighting. ‘Gays shouldn’t behave that way!’ and ‘Don’t behave that way, it’s gay!’ lead to the same thing! If we are unhappy with the way the LGBTQI community is perceived, we must take the responsibility to set things right instead of shaming others.
So, I want to broadcast to my society that LGBTQI people have their own stories and identities, not suggesting this as a way to live, but simply asserting that this is how they live. Attempting to fill a tiny part of the gigantic gap in LGBTQI representation!
Whole lotta love!
Do you identify as the gender/sexual minority, or as an ally?
Write to me at [email protected]. Tell me your story/opinion and why you think visibility is important.
Follow facebook.com/outintheopen2014
There persists major discrepancy in LGBTQI representation or visibility in every sphere of life. How many Indian politicians or scientists can we think of who identify as the gender/sexual minority? This lack of visibility exists not only in terms of occupation/employment, but also in terms of philosophical approaches in a more aggravated manner. This is only one of the ways in which the gender/sexual community is taught that they have a certain level of success and opportunity predetermined.
Therefore, there are very few people that we can think of, who can serveas LGBTQI role models. Ideally, one doesn’t need a ‘role model’ to ‘be gay’, but society teaches us to look up to ‘heroes’ while also perpetuating the notions that people who identify as the gender/sexual minority are all alike!
For example, in most Indian movies, straight characters have many attributes (funny, bold, shy etc.), but gay characters are just...gay! But hey! There are nice gay people, stupid gay people, nerdy gay people, sexy gay people, intelligent gay people and athletic gay people who have stories of their own and are not always a ‘part of someone else’s story’ like Bollywood teaches.
Moreover, there are also people even within the LGBTQI community who want to regulate the behaviour of others who belong to such community. I witnessed this at a Pride itself where someone said to another, ‘Don’t behave that way; you’ll give the community a bad name!’ Such things only aggravate the oppression we’re meant to be fighting. ‘Gays shouldn’t behave that way!’ and ‘Don’t behave that way, it’s gay!’ lead to the same thing! If we are unhappy with the way the LGBTQI community is perceived, we must take the responsibility to set things right instead of shaming others.
So, I want to broadcast to my society that LGBTQI people have their own stories and identities, not suggesting this as a way to live, but simply asserting that this is how they live. Attempting to fill a tiny part of the gigantic gap in LGBTQI representation!
Whole lotta love!
Do you identify as the gender/sexual minority, or as an ally?
Write to me at [email protected]. Tell me your story/opinion and why you think visibility is important.
Follow facebook.com/outintheopen2014