To mark the Pride Month, The US Consulate General Kolkata in partnership with a youth organisation named Prantakatha and the South Asian Young Queer Activists Network, hosted the second South Asian Dialog on LGBTQI Youth and Livelihood Discrimination recently at American Center, Kolkata.

A digital video conference initiated discussions by representatives of LGBTQI communities from Bangladesh, Burma, India, Nepal and Pakistan. MaryKay Carlson, charge d’affaires, US Embassy, New Delhi, was a part of the conference. Other interlocutors included members from West Bengal Transgender Gender Board, namely, Ranjita Sinha, Aparna Tista Das, Anurag Maitryee, Samarpan Maiti and Abhijit among others. Jay Treloar, deputy director, American Centre, moderated the sessions.

The panel discussion explored the various dilemmas that people from the LGBQTI community has to face. Scientist Maiti who is also the winner of Mr Gay India 2018 shared the torments he had to go through since childhood. “My teachers used to call me names and I was trolled. Today I hold a respectable position, but I still get bullied in my workplace,” he said.

Subhagata Ghosh, founder member, Sappho for Equality, shared how the lesbian girls are forced to marry. The condition in rural and suburban regions is all the more difficult. She cited a recent incident of two girls committing suicide as the society wouldn’t accept them as lovers.

Many transgenders from the audience shared their stories of hardships. Fighting a lot of battles to uphold her identity, Suchitra Dey underwent sex reassignment surgery last year and changed her named from Hiranmay Dey. Holding a double MA in English and geography and also a BEd, she applied for teaching posts in schools of Kolkata where she was asked irrelevant questions by interviewers.

“During the interview, one of the panel members enquired about my genital status. They hardly asked any questions about my professional abilities and were more interested in knowing about my sex change process. A principal asked me whether I can conceive a child after intercourse, while another from a reputable school almost threatened me to change the credentials if I wanted a job there,” she said.

“The actors from the community are still facing discrimination. We are still turned down roles with lame excuses,” said activist cum theatre artist Maitryee.

However, the session also explored stories of hope. Transpersons Jia Das from Malda and Devdutta Biswas started their career as surgical technicians in a Kolkata hospital this year.

“In an event organised last year, a health entrepreneur offered to train two members from the community as OT technicians. Jia, who once had to dance at gun point in soirees in Uttar Pradesh, has now become the first transgender OT technician in the country,” said Bappaditya Mukherjee, secretary, Prantakatha.

The panellists concluded the session urging all to extend their empathy and compassion towards the transgender community, thus making their life worth living. The victims must also come forward rather than silently bearing the injustices meted out to them.