Introduction

LGBTQIA+ rights and queer inclusion is something extremely close to my heart. Over the years, as I battled internalized homophobia I found inspiration in advocacy for queer rights. With minimal exposure and being surrounded by homophobia in school, there was little I could do to spread awareness. Originally, some of my friends and I, founded “Ameya Initiative” which is a non profit page aimed at raising awareness on taboo and often unheard topics. A little before my summer vacation started is when I discovered Tribes for GOOD where I got the opportunity to indulge more into this topic and research beyond what I know and spread awareness. 

My major inspiration comes from Marsha P. Johnson- someone who fought for the queer rights of millions and because of whom pride month is celebrated. She was an an American gay liberation activist and self-identified drag queen. Moreover, my inspiration comes from countless of those who advocate for queer rights in places like school where there is an impending fear of disapproval and rejection. 

WHAT?

This project included various aspects to it helping me gain an overall understanding of what we were advocating for. There were various aspects to it but in a topic as sensitive as this, research is of the utmost importance. Throughout the duration of this project we were introduced to people working at Sappho for Equality to get an in depth understanding on gender and sexualities as well as learn more about the impact on queer mental health. We also wrote an article on advocating for inclusion and diversity which required significant research of its own. By the end, the rigorous research and learning helped me gain a better perspective on queer standing in the society and how there is a long way to go for acceptance. 

During my research, I realized how important it is to use the corrected terminology and differentiate between sex and gender. Moreover, I got a better understanding of pronouns and non binary people including the use of neo pronouns. The significance of pronouns is one of utmost importance since it makes a more inclusive environment online and in person. This also encourages cisgender individuals to include their pronouns on their social platforms to de stigmatize the usage of pronouns. This was one of my major leanings during this particular task which in turn helped gain a better perspective on my pronouns as well. This also became an important topic for me as I wanted to focus on the constant disregard for pronouns. The lack of diversity and inclusion arises from pre determined beliefs and thoughts that then after get portrayed in the form of hate comments and harmful stereotypes regarding the queer community. As a young changemaker, it is vital that these views are erased through constant advocating and awareness spreading to create a safer environment for the LGBTQIA+ community. 

HOW? 

After our workshop with Sappho for Equality, we gained a better understanding on how to deal with sensitive issues like this and present it to kids in an interactive manner. With that, we conducted a workshop with the kids from PRATYeK, an NGO. We incorporated inclusion and diversity through images and relatable story lines to help them understand the issues on a personal level. The powerpoint consisted of heavy topics for the eager children. However, through our learnings in the previous sessions, we tried to make the workshop as interactive and informal as possible in order to make the kids feel comfortable. To our surprises, all the responses we got from that workshop were extremely inclusive.

Furthermore, we as a group sent our surveys to people we know asking questions and their viewpoints on the LGBTQIA+ community. Eventually, we had a test group of 46 people between the ages of 15 to 24. Although most of the responses were accepting, we found out that most of the people have a surface level understanding of the queer community and mental health issues. We were also taken aback as some of the responses from people we know and talk to were homophobic. One responses said, “ nothing I don’t like gay people” which helped us realized why understand the terminology and issues related to the queer community is extremely important.

There is not enough being done to spread awareness on these topics and thus for me as a young changemaker, it is important to take up this challenge and do my absolute best. These statistics were integral in gathering insights and undertaking appropriate measures in order to further the progress of LGBTQIA+ students in India. Some of the statistics that we received are presented below. Although extremely minimal, there are still some students that do not support queer rights which was extremely helpful for us while planning our future endeavours with carrying forward the advocacy. 

Some snippets from our workshop

Following this, we worked on a comic strip showcasing issues faced particularly by the disables and trans community through visual imagery and how members from these communities face exclusion and are discriminated against on a daily basis. Through our comic strip, we aimed to put the major focus on the impact on an individual’s mental health due to exclusion. 

RESULT 

Through the responses we received for our questionnaire, we could clearly see that a majority of them were supportive of queer people and recognised how the lack of inclusion in schools can affect the mental health of students from the community. Despite having counselors in school, children are unaware of who they can turn to for help which needs to change. The schools have neglected to teach students about LGBTQIA+ identities in the school curriculum either as essays or word problems or in the form of queer history, etc. the majority of students also feel that the school has not provided a safe environment/space to be associated with LGBTQIA+ clubs and alliances without facing any exclusion. As someone who studies in a school that is not inclusive, I wish to take upon this challenge of spreading awareness through clubs and workshops. I have already started brainstorming ideas for a GSA club meaning gender sexuality alliance club along with help from my peers which shall be conducted city wide and where anyone and everyone can join to discuss queer art be it music, art, literature etc. Our current project is conducting a workshop concerning pride in literature and talking about the history of pride month. I hope I can make a change, small or big. 

About the author: Misri is a Grade 12 student from Navrachana International School, Vadodarais an active advocate for gender justice and is an alumni from Global Challenges and Social Justice program.