<p>Many families in the national capital have turned hostile to their children who belong to the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) community after the Supreme Court reinstated the ban on gay sex. <br /><br /></p>.<p>According to Society for Peoples’ Awareness, Care and Empowerment (SPACE), an organisation working on gender, health and human rights of LGBT, many families across the city have started disowning their children. <br /><br />“The families were supportive after the 2009 High Court order. For the LGBT community, the very same families have become a nightmare as they are now feeling ashamed of their children after the Supreme Court reversed the HC verdict and again criminalised gay sex,” says SPACE founder Anjan Joshi. <br /><br />“Many parents have given us the affidavits declaring they have nothing to do with their children. They have branded their kids as criminals.”<br /><br />Activists say they are also getting queries by the kin of LGBT asking if ‘loving’ a person of the same sex is ‘normal and natural’, then why has it been criminalised?<br /><br />Anjali Gopalan, Naz Foundation founder, says, “Before the 2009 Delhi High Court order the LGBT community members were not ready to come out of the closet and hid their sexual identity. After the High Court order that favoured the community, a lot of young people got the courage to come out in the open.”<br /><br />“So, after four years of leading a normal life, how can we just push them into a state of being completely forgotten again?” adds Gopalan, who has been fighting for the cause for over a decade.<br /><br />We have been busy counselling family members who come to us with just one question: “If sex between gays is normal, then why has it been criminalised?” <br /><br />The Naz Foundation was the first to file a case in 2001 in the Delhi High Court seeking decriminalisation of gay sex among consenting adults.<br /><br />The LGBT activists say they respect people’s thinking, moral and religious beliefs, but also want society to develop a sensitive attitude towards the homosexual community – and try to understand and respect their sexual preferences.<br /><br />“It’s the question about their rights. If the LGBT community can respect the society’s view, why can’t the so-called civil society do the same,” says Gopalan.<br /><br />Gay rights supporters say the harassment meted out by police to the community never stopped. “The community has been facing harassment at the hands of police even after the 2009 order. But at least we were able to advocate our concerns as the law was on our side. Now we can’t even go to the law as it has abandoned us,” says Joshi.<br /><br />“I used to feel proud of being the citizen of the country after the High Court’s order,” says Gopalan.<br /><br />Organisations supporting gay rights have decided to file a petition against the Supreme Court order. “We met Union Law Minister Kapil Sibal on Friday and he released a poster — Say No To Homophobia,” says Joshi.<br /><br />“We are planning to file a petition in the Supreme Court,” says Gopalan.</p>
<p>Many families in the national capital have turned hostile to their children who belong to the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) community after the Supreme Court reinstated the ban on gay sex. <br /><br /></p>.<p>According to Society for Peoples’ Awareness, Care and Empowerment (SPACE), an organisation working on gender, health and human rights of LGBT, many families across the city have started disowning their children. <br /><br />“The families were supportive after the 2009 High Court order. For the LGBT community, the very same families have become a nightmare as they are now feeling ashamed of their children after the Supreme Court reversed the HC verdict and again criminalised gay sex,” says SPACE founder Anjan Joshi. <br /><br />“Many parents have given us the affidavits declaring they have nothing to do with their children. They have branded their kids as criminals.”<br /><br />Activists say they are also getting queries by the kin of LGBT asking if ‘loving’ a person of the same sex is ‘normal and natural’, then why has it been criminalised?<br /><br />Anjali Gopalan, Naz Foundation founder, says, “Before the 2009 Delhi High Court order the LGBT community members were not ready to come out of the closet and hid their sexual identity. After the High Court order that favoured the community, a lot of young people got the courage to come out in the open.”<br /><br />“So, after four years of leading a normal life, how can we just push them into a state of being completely forgotten again?” adds Gopalan, who has been fighting for the cause for over a decade.<br /><br />We have been busy counselling family members who come to us with just one question: “If sex between gays is normal, then why has it been criminalised?” <br /><br />The Naz Foundation was the first to file a case in 2001 in the Delhi High Court seeking decriminalisation of gay sex among consenting adults.<br /><br />The LGBT activists say they respect people’s thinking, moral and religious beliefs, but also want society to develop a sensitive attitude towards the homosexual community – and try to understand and respect their sexual preferences.<br /><br />“It’s the question about their rights. If the LGBT community can respect the society’s view, why can’t the so-called civil society do the same,” says Gopalan.<br /><br />Gay rights supporters say the harassment meted out by police to the community never stopped. “The community has been facing harassment at the hands of police even after the 2009 order. But at least we were able to advocate our concerns as the law was on our side. Now we can’t even go to the law as it has abandoned us,” says Joshi.<br /><br />“I used to feel proud of being the citizen of the country after the High Court’s order,” says Gopalan.<br /><br />Organisations supporting gay rights have decided to file a petition against the Supreme Court order. “We met Union Law Minister Kapil Sibal on Friday and he released a poster — Say No To Homophobia,” says Joshi.<br /><br />“We are planning to file a petition in the Supreme Court,” says Gopalan.</p>
