LGBTIQA+ Awareness
This page has been created to spread awareness about the LGBTIQA+ community. I have tried to write about the basic information about LGBTIQA awareness in society, the difficulties an LGBTIQA person faces, some of the laws related to the LGBTIQA community, and our responsibility towards the community.
The below information has been gathered from the book “Working Together - Bridging the gap between medical practitioners and LGBTIQA”. This book is written by Mr. Bindumadhav Khire, who is a gay activist based in India and the founder of Bindu Queer Rights Foundation (details of which are mentioned at the bottom of the page). I thank him for permitting me to summarize his book and for helping me spread awareness in society.
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I would like to start with the three dimensions of biological sex, gender identity, and sexual orientation. These three dimensions are not related to one another. These are the three distinct parts of the same person.
Biological sex- It involves the genotype (genetic or chromosomal) dimension and the Phenotype (Physical or external genitalia) dimension. 46XX is a female chromosome with female external genitalia and 46XY is a male chromosome with male external genitalia.
Gender identity - is the self-identification of gender by a person after puberty. It can be either male, female, both, or none.
Sexual orientation - After puberty, whether the person is sexually attracted to men only or women only or both or neither is the sexual orientation dimension.
Based on these dimensions there can be an infinite number of possibilities. For example:
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and so on.......
Basic terminologies to know -
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Cisgender - A person whose biological sex is in sync with the person's gender identity.
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Non-binary - an umbrella term that describes a gender identity that is neither male nor female.
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L - Lesbian - a woman whose enduring physical and emotional attraction is to other women only. Aka Gay women.
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G - Gay/ Homosexual - A person whose enduring physical and emotional attraction is to people of the same sex only.
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B - Bisexual - A person who can form enduring physical and emotional attraction to men and women.
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T - Transgender - A person whose gender identity differs from biological sex.
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I - Intersex - a person born with sexual/ reproductive anatomy and/ or chromosome patterns that do not fit the typical anatomy of a male or female. This may be apparent at birth or become so later in life.
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Q - Queer - At times, it is used as an umbrella term to include the entire LGBTIA spectrum. Sometimes, it means a person who does not fit the traditional binary gender/ sexuality framework. At times, it implies someone who is questioning their gender/ sexuality.
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A - Asexual - A person who does not feel sexual attraction to a person of any gender.
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(+) - indicates other sexually and gender-diverse people.
Problems faced and support:
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An LGBTIQA individual faces many stressors as compared to other individuals. Some are internal stressors (internalized homophobia). In this situation, the individual blames them for their sexual orientation and gender identity. Such individuals have thoughts like, "am I abnormal? Am I a sinner? , etc. Some individuals face external stressors, such as experiencing prejudice and discrimination based on their sexuality and gender. Some individuals also face victimization stressors (expectation of rejection). They are often afraid of humiliation, discrimination, and in some cases, even violence. Such thoughts are traumatizing in the long run, and lead to being closeted, leading to anxiety and depression. Many people learn to keep it a secret and take the first step of living a hypocritical, dual lifestyle.
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Parental support is essential for an LGBTIQA individual. Unfortunately, the majority of parents are unaware of the LGBTIQA spectrum. With changes in law and a more liberal media, these issues are slowly getting mainstreamed in recent times. Still, many parents, even though aware, go through the Kubler-Ross scale of grief. Many remain in denial and refuse to accept the facts. Many express anger towards their child. Some are worried about their child's future. Eventually, all of them would reach a stage of acceptance. But not only the LGBTIQA person, but also their parents would require support to go through these changes.
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All Medical professionals, especially psychiatrists, psychologists, endocrinologists, and surgeons, need to be more aware and accepting of LGBTIQA individuals. This is the most important area of improvement and spreading awareness. Many LGBTIQA individuals and their parents seek support through the process through medical professionals; therefore, the professionals are supposed to be well educated and trained to carry out this duty and guide accordingly.
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Points to understand -
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In 1973, the American Psychiatric Association removed homosexuality from its official list of mental disorders and was supported by the American Psychological Association in 1975.
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In 2013, DSM-5 (Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders - 5th edition) and the latest version of ICD (international classification of diseases) has removed homosexuality from its list of disorders.
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The American psychological association (APA) adopts the following resolution concerning their civil and legal rights: The APA deplores all public and private discrimination in such areas as employment, housing, public accommodation, and licensing against those who engage in or have engaged in homosexuality activities and declares that no burden of proof of such judgment, capacity or reliability shall be placed upon these individuals greater than that imposed on any other persons… (abridged)
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Gay, Lesbian, and Bisexual sexual orientations are normal variants of human sexuality and probably innate. Any attempts to change a person's sexual orientation (for eg., from gay to straight) or gender identity is unethical. No such 'cures' are possible. Such kinds of "cures" are often demanded from the parents of gay and lesbian persons and such hopes and expectations must be laid to rest as soon as possible.
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Similarly, in the case of gender dysphoria, the only way to alleviate the individual's distress is to assist them in accepting their gender. Further, if they so desire, the medical practitioner must help the individual in the transition process, after the individual reaches the age of majority (has completed 18 years of age).
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Medical practitioners should educate and assist the LGBTIQA person's parents in accepting their sex, gender, and sexuality as natural and not insist on a traditional form of family, eg., heterosexual marriage, etc.
About Bindu Queer Rights Foundation:
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Bindu queer rights foundation is based in Pune, India was founded by Directors Bindumadhav Khire and Tinesh Chopade in 2019. it works for health and rights issues of the LGBTIQA+ community in India.
Contact: bqrf2019@gmail.com
Website: http://www.binduqueerrights.org
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