Queer children face maximum discrimination, bullying at homes, schools: Survey

Guwahati: A recent survey found that LGBTQIA+ children and adolescents face the highest levels of discrimination and bullying in their own homes, schools and neighbourhoods, with activists and stakeholders urging for concerted efforts to address these issues to help them get equal opportunities.

A recent survey of over 900 LGBTQ+ individuals by a Kolkata-based organisation, 'Bridge', which works for the rights of the community across Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Nagaland, Odisha, Jharkhand and West Bengal, reported that most bullying happens between the ages of 12 and 15 years.

Many young people are forced to drop out of school, losing out on education, future employment, and income security, Bridge's founder director Prithviraj Nath told PTI.

"Even after the decriminalisation of homosexuality in 2018, the NALSA judgment in 2014, and Transgender Protection Act of 2019, LGBTQ+ people continue to face systematic exclusion in education, health care, workplaces, and public life," he said.

Basic human rights still remain out of reach for many and it is extremely important that we bring to light the lived realities and challenges faced by the LGBTQIA+ community, and have dialogues with the larger society towards equal rights and inclusion of the community, Nath added.

Rudrani Rajkumari, founder of 'Xomonnoy', an LGBTQIA+ rights organisation and support group, pointed out that the government and all stakeholders must make collective efforts to create a roadmap to reduce discrimination and promote equal rights.

"We cannot talk about human rights in India and leave out LGBTQIA+ citizens. Every child deserves safety in their home, respect in their school, and dignity in their workplace. Equality is not a favour, it is a constitutional promise," Rajkumari said.

Former vice principal of Guwahati's Dispur College, Sunita Agarwalla, claimed that it is one of the pioneer institutions in Assam, having done commendable work for the education of the children from the community.

Besides having a gender-neutral toilet, it has reserved seats for such students in both its higher secondary and degree courses, with education being free if such a student needs it and sensitisation programmes are also for all its students regarding the issues of the community, she said.

"I, as an educator, feel that it is very important to understand that people from the LGBTQIA+ community are also human beings and citizens of our country, so they have to be treated equally by everyone in every aspect," Agarwalla said.

Lalit Chandra Bharali College's professor Kunjalata Brahma Bhatiri said that more and more people are voicing their support for equal treatment of people from the community and judgement-free spaces, but a collective and concerted effort from all stratas of society is needed.

Sensitisation and orientation to drive in the very understanding of the basic right to live freely and with dignity is required at all levels, she said.

"More people should talk, discuss, opine and work in attaining dignified living spaces for the queer community," she said.

Tezpur University's faculty from the Department of Social Work, Sammy said, "Incredible work is being done by multiple stakeholders in the field of queer-inclusive education at secondary, college and university levels in the northeastern region but with every new initiative, we face a wall of structural resistance which is coated in layers of binary understanding of society." Social systems like family, schools, neighbourhoods, state authorities, community institutions, health care services, workplaces and every sector that completes a human being needs gender inclusive approaches and practices as well, she said.

"We cannot lose our queer students, children, adults and elders to public scorn, confined spaces, hopelessness and suicides," Sammy said.

Every department in higher education institutions needs to create safe spaces, accessibility to queer-affirmative support initiatives such as gender-neutral toilets, transport facilities, hostels and common rooms, livelihood opportunities, and speedy redressal mechanism for complaints and quality healthcare services, she said.

Former Cotton University professor and Assamese writer Najma Mukherjee said, "As an educator and litterateur, I believe in the power of art -- be it literature or the visual arts. Books and movies have definitely contributed to the shaping of public consciousness in understanding queer experiences all around the world." Nath pointed out that stakeholders, during discussions on the issue, have pointed out that there is a need for capacity building for school teachers and B.Ed trainees to equip them with skills to support LGBTQIA+ students.

There is also a need to engage more with parents to build understanding and provide supportive environments at home and introduce comics, storybooks, and visual learning tools on gender and sexuality in school libraries, especially in Assamese and other languages, he said.

Rajkumari pointed out that stakeholders have urged the government to include mandatory training for teachers and staffers in all educational institutions, in line with the Supreme Court's guidelines on student mental health, and biannual sensitisation for officials in judicial, police, and administrative departments on laws and rights related to LGBTQIA+ people.