International Transgender Day of Visibility occurs every year on 31 March and is dedicated to celebrating transgender people and raising awareness regarding their struggles and the discrimination they face. The day was founded by US transgender activist Rachel Crandall in 2009 as a reaction to the lack of LGBT recognition of transgender people, citing the vexation that the only well-known transgender-centered day was the Transgender Day of Remembrance which centered around mourning the murders of transgender people, but did not acknowledge the living members of this community.
The word ‘Transgender’ or ‘Trans’ is an umbrella term for people with a gender identity different than what was assigned to them at birth. This incredibly diverse community has a variety of people identifying as; trans men, trans women, non-binary, gender non-conforming, agender, bigender, genderqueer, or any other identity they personally identify with.
This community gets a lot of flak for basically existing and faces discrimination on a daily basis. The discriminatory treatment more than often starts in their own homes, where being raised in a heteronormative society, crossing the gender barrier is deemed as shameful and disrespectful for the parents. Continuing in schools and employment sectors, well, there’s no place where they’re not put down for being themselves. Crimes against the trans community are on an all-time high with statistics showing that transgender people are disproportionally affected by hate crimes but are less likely to report it. Not being openly discussed in the Asian culture, Transgender people are often marginalized and the society remains non-supportive and conservative.
Talking about India’s take on the trans community, their representation is yet to fully burst out of the bubble of being associated only with begging near traffic signals and inside trains.
Always a part of the Indian culture and highly respected and even powerful, their identity suffered the most during the colonial rule. Section 377 (S377) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), introduced in India in 1864 as a legal transplant of the British 1533 Buggery Act criminalized non-procreative sexualities. Historically it was used to target transgender people including Hijras.
Media representation generally plays a salient role in establishing or disintegrating social structures. In this case, though, Indian media sends a clear invitation for increasing social stigma and discrimination against trans people by portraying them as mere caricatures and laughing stocks. Given the fact that they did get official recognition by the Supreme Court till April 2014, this community is still not visible to the maximum population as ‘normal humans’. Still discriminated against, still hated for existing, still outcasted from society, they have a right to be visible. They do have a right to positive representation. That’s why the International Transgender Visibility Day is so crucial for the celebration of the trans community!
Many Transgender Activists and allies are trying to spread awareness about this community and eliminate the social exclusion and discrimination against them. Breaking the societal barriers, rising irrespective of the bigotry, they are proving their mettle in their respective fields. Here are some-
Alok Ved Menon- New-York based Menon is a writer, performance artist, and media personality who has been working with trans, queer and feminist movements over the past decade. They use poetry, drag, lecture, comedy, fashion design, and social media to traverse themes of gender, race, etc. Bullied in the states for his race as well as for being trans, they found a coping mechanism in poetry.
In India, they are interacting with LGBTQ+ members in different cities, and is quite sanguine that the young Indian population will voluntarily blur the hetero-normative barriers and be allies to the community. Their Instagram is filled with resourceful information regarding the Trans and LGBTQ+ community.
Check it out here- Alokvmenon (ig)
Trinetra Haldar Gummaraju-
A 23-year-old medical student, currently interning at KMC Manipal, Trinetra has earned the position of Karnataka’s first Trans doctor. She is also a vlogger who has documented her transitioning journey on her youtube channel The Trinetra Method, (a must-watch!). From being called trans-misogynistic names, being forced into masculine activities from her early childhood to appear ‘normal’, bullied into self-harming, and having suicidal thoughts to overcoming her past and making a career and name in this ruthless world, Trinetra has come a long way, prevailing over her struggles and gaining respect and admiration from the skeptic Indian society.
Her Instagram ind0ctrination has a series of posts, sharing her day-to-day life experiences and dealing with haters in the forms of savage replies, to say the least!
Laxmi Narayan Tripathi-
A well-known transgender activist, she is also a Bollywood actor, Bharatnatyam dancer, and motivation speaker. In 2008, she became the first transgender person to represent Asia Pacific in the United Nations, She has served on the boards of several NGOs dealing with LGBTQ+ activist work and is currently the chief of Kinnar Akhara.
She also became a TEDTalk speaker in 2010 where she shared her thoughts on self-love and the various aspects of the transgender movement. Since then she has spoken in quite a few and has mesmerized the audience with her way of speaking and her heartfelt content. She was also awarded ‘Indian of the Year’ in 2017. Her life journey and present work influences people in all spheres and generates respect for her and the trans community alike.
Sathyasri Sharmila-
Born and brought up in a conservative family, Satysharee didn’t have an easy childhood or life for that matter but she didn’t let her past hinder her future. Having left home at her home at the age of 18, she completed her undergraduate degree in commerce and then pursued law from Salem government college. She registered as Tamil Nadu’s first Transgender lawyer in 2018. She finished her law degree in 2007 but it took her a decade to muster up the courage to register herself as a lawyer with State Bar Council. For her, serving the trans community is her topmost priority. Her foray into law, a mainstream profession gives a ray of hope for a better future for the trans community and also a pipe dream that our society is headed for better inclusivity.
K Prithika Yashini-
The first trans woman in India to become a police officer, she has achieved a milestone for the trans community. Although this move was highly criticized and her application rejected citing the reason that there were only two columns under which she had to restrict her gender to male or female, but she went ahead and filled it as ‘transgender’.This eventually led to a legal battle which she won fair and square. Her conviction and ability to stay strong-headed sets her as an example for the trans community!
Not only have these people proved their mettle in their respective fields, but they’ve also raised awareness and have shown a torch on the trans-community and the need for their exclusivity in every sphere today. It is still burdensome for this community to bear the load of educating others about their experience. That is why it is imperial for us, to be allies to the community and do our bit to educate ourselves and others around us about the basics of expression and gender identity. We make the society and we have the potential to change it. Except for some people who have no life and achieve satisfaction out of disparaging others, it isn’t very difficult to treat normal human beings as, well, NORMAL HUMAN BEINGS!
Learning is an ongoing process and so is becoming the perfect ally.
Linked below are a few websites to get you started.
Further Readings-
FAQ’s to get you started-
The struggle of Transgender people in India-
A guide to getting started on being an Ally-
How to be an Ally to Transgender and Non-Binary people-
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