June is known as Pride Month and while Somy Ali feels we have come a long way in spreading awareness about the LGBTQI community, there is a lot more to be done. Somy, who runs an NGO in the US called No More Tears, says that some of the cases she witnesses are heartbreaking.
“Things for our LGBQT Community members are definitely better, but we still have a long way to go. I work very closely with the gay community because of my work and I always get cases where the youth are discriminated against not only by our society, but by their very own immediate families. They are thrown out of their homes and treated as badly as the untouchables which result in them being trafficked or sold into prostitution,” she says.
Somy says that there is a lot that is to be done to give this community the freedom it deserves. “As for social media, I have had many gay youth interns for my NGO and many of them have two social media accounts almost always to satisfy their family members and the other account is where they can truly be who they are, thus openly gay. But I do not deem that being “open” if a young adult has to hide their sexual orientation by having two accounts in order to appease their family members and the other to seek their own freedom of speech,” she says.
She adds that people’s attitude also needs to change regarding this community. “While I agree there is progress, there is also a great deal of hatred towards our LGBTQ brothers and sisters and unless this senseless hate does not dissipate, I will not consider it to be a fair world for the gay community. It’s despicably sad to know that a gay man has to marry a woman for namesake and vice versa in 2022. Again, I blame us and our society for this and the older generations extending nonsensical discriminatory rituals in today’s era. How can one be their true self if that results in being made a mockery of and in extreme circumstances even death. Women were not even allowed to drive in countries like Saudi Arabia four years ago, let alone have an openly lesbian partner. So, yes, I am happy that June is considered Pride month, but I will not be content until our LGBTQ+ community is allowed to love themselves and whoever they choose to without fear of not just being ridiculed, but actually murdered. The older generation needs to educate themselves and comprehend that it is one’s sexual orientation not one’s choice to be gay or trans for that matter,” she says.
Somy says that there must be no discrimination. “Life is difficult enough if one is straight, do these haters actually believe one would willingly choose to be gay?! Give me a freaking break! Love is love and let people love who they choose to love. Get with the times already for the love of God! Enough is enough! Pretending to accept our gay community to look cool and actually doing so are two different things. If we still believe in the caste system and our Dalit brothers and sisters don’t have equal rights, I am not satiated. All of these ignorant beliefs have to be eradicated from our society. Only then will we win and depict true love and freedom of expression. Let’s make it a norm for lesbians to hold hands in public or gay men to do the same, let’s respects our trans brothers and sisters and allow them to be who they are and then we have seen victory in its true self. Let’s destigmatize prostitution because it is not the one selling who should be held accountable, but the buyer who is the culprit. We have men buying girls and boys as young as 5-6 years old. Let’s see a world where the caste systems are done with and a Brahmin marries a Harijan as humans because they are in love without even a thought of a caste system. That to me is a real victory. The rest is pure advocacy or lip service, not backed up by actual deeds. Overall, let’s get rid of any and all labels whether it is a caste or LGBTQ rights. If we are still matching biodatas/kundlis pre marriages, then I am afraid we are far from real progress,” she says.
She adds, “Banning caste systems and the dowry custom to show how liberated we are is all bullshit. Because I know for a fact that all the former still exists as do hate crimes against our LGBTQ brothers and sisters. Thus, I reiterate, we have a long way to go. To show that you are accepting of something and actually acting upon it by doing so are two vastly different things.”
.
.
.
.
.
