— Ridha Shemil
Our country is normatively known to the world as the torchbearers of the phrase – “unity in diversity”, however, it is high time that the phrase extends to the LGBTQ+ community as well. India is a country that celebrates its traditional roots and is a land filled with patriarchs and heternormative hypervisibility. Achieving financial independence, apart from instilling a progressive attitude in the citizens is a stepping stone towards the much necessary inclusion of the LGBTQ+ community.
In a scenario, where the LGBTQ+ community faces discrimination in their workplace in terms of unequal wages and denial of equal opportunities vis-a-vis other cis-hetero employees, the need of the hour is to raise awareness as well as constitute laws to prevent discrimination in the name of gender and sexual orientation in the workplace. In such a situation, it becomes crucial to initiate proactive steps to secure financial independence for the community. Closer home, the Chennai-based startup PeriFerry’s work is a step towards providing equal employment opportunities to the transgender communities by driving the necessary change in the attitude towards the community.
Several other NGOs across the country have been working towards the cause of empowering the LGBTQ+ community through education and creating awareness.
Humsafar Trust
The Humsafar Trust located in Mumbai provides health care facilities and financial help to the transgender community. Through various projects such as the Project Aarambh – an HIV intervention project, Project Dostana and Project Yaarana, the trust focuses on reducing the prevalence of HIV amongst the trans communities. This is an important step towards restituting dignity to the lives of people from the community.
The Sahodari Foundation
The Sahodari Foundation based in Chennai seeks to revive the economic condition of the LGBTQ+ community through art education, Apart from providing a means of innovative livelihood, it works as a form of therapy to deal with the indifferent behaviour and discrimination by those around.
The Born2Win Foundation
The Born2Win, a transgender person led foundation works with the primary goal of empowering the trans community through an array of activities. Their activities include livelihood programmes such as jewellery making, marketing, and seeking and providing job opportunities for MSMs and TGs, thereby aiding in securing a safe financial future.
Salem Thiru Nangaigal Sangam
A community-based organisation working for the empowerment of the LGBTQ+ community, Salem Thiru Nangaigal Sangam has conducted various activities through the years with funding from organizations such as the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. The social protection programme initiated by the organisation includes economic empowerment, health and social empowerment activities. The DIVA Project undertaken by them conducted several programmes such as strengthening community ambassadors through training programmes and sensitization meetings for small scale industries/factories and social institutions.
While these NGOs work to help the LGBTQ+ community to progress by solving problems at the grassroots level and help in overcoming the discrimination faced at the workplace and the society as a whole, their collective efforts consequently assist in achieving much needed financial independence. The skills and awareness gained through such organizations often help in kick-starting the careers of the members of the LGBTQ+ community – providing encouragement for the initiation of entrepreneurial ventures and rising to positions of leadership which were denied before, merely through sheer hard work and determination, self-confidence and awareness regarding their rights as human beings and fight their oppressors with the strength and confidence gathered!
Design by Keziah Ooman
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