A Long Way to Go

“I am what I am, so take me as I am.”–Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

We finally did it. Homosexuality is no longer a crime in India. Supreme court finally overturned a Victorian Era law.

This is important for the world as a whole. We’re the second most populous country. By pure statistics alone, we should have a high population of people in the LGBT community.

On the reverse we can say that we didn’t get this populous by having a lot of gay people in our country. ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

Credit- Reuters

The court decided that societal morality shouldn’t dictate constitutional legality. Rightly so. Morality shifts like sand. What is “unnatural”? Thirty years ago marrying outside your religion and caste was “unnatural”. Thirty years from now people will look at this day and think “big deal”. We deprived a group of citizens of their identity and this is the least we can do to make up for it.

But I’m not here to pat ourselves on the back. The fight is far from over. All we’ve done is recognised them as human. But many questions remain.

• But will the people be willing to come out?
• Will the child tell his parents how he really feels?
• Will priests and pandits allow them to marry? Will society?
• Will the parent accept their kids for who they are?
• Will the person’s neighborhood be safe for them anymore?
• Will couples be able to adopt?
• Will companies ensure that people aren’t fired immediately as they out themselves? Some companies like Godrej offer benefits for LGBT employees, will other companies adopt the same?
• Will they refused be services once they’re out in public?

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Only time will tell. We need to protect people. Especially children from “Godmen” who will try to convert them with “therapy”. Often this is a harrowing, torturous experience based upon ignorant concepts. You can’t “ungay” someone. That’s who they are.

Credit-Reuters

The trolls will come. “It’s against our culture”. “They spread AIDS”. “They try to turn straight people gay”. You can’t get rid of these filth. They’re like weeds. The best we can do is make sure they don’t grow somewhere they shouldn’t, like an elected office.

My point is, society isn’t going to accept them at first. It’s a bitter truth. The LGBT community needs our support and solidarity. Not just for now, but also for the battles to come.