27 June 2010
Chennai
Marking International Gay Pride day, three hundred members of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgendered community turned out on Marina Beach here on Sunday. The parade passed off peacefully despite initial fears about violence from some right-wing Hindu groups, who had threatened coounter-demonstrations. According to the organizers, the protesters had “chickened out” due to the massive police presence.
The march culminated at Labour Statue by around 5.15pm with a joint proclamation by the community that the event was a celebration of their identity and the decriminalisation of section 377 by the Delhi High Court. Activists demanded that transgenders be recorded in the 2011 national census in the gender of their choice and not be limited by the available choices of ‘male’ and ‘female’. The numbers were said to be lower than last year, however newer people and more families turned up.
Homosexuality was legalized in India on 2 July 2009 in a Delhi High Court Judgement. Tamil Nadu has given significant legal rights to its transgendered citizens.
(Pink Pages News Network, Photograph: Vrinda Vijayan)
