Trans, Queer in Kolkata | Find safe space

Garima Greh members in South Kolkata in Ardhanarishvara Puja organize in their backyard. |Photo source: Shrabana Chatterjee

“Please help! They beat us!” 26-year-old Sayon Sheikh screamed to his colleagues on the phone Koyel Ghosh and his colleague REE attacked in Kolkata, the capital of West Bengal in February. He recalled Gosh and another colleague who came to rescue him. That morning, Sheikh and Ree went to the grocery store just a few meters from the cafe they worked for.

“We saw a woman jumping the line at checkout,” Sheikh recalls. Things escalated when he objected. What followed was his inability to get rid of the “terrible memories” of his mind, he said. On the way, more than 30 mobs allegedly gathered and surrounded them, mocking them with queer slander. Then, all four people said they were sexually harassed and assaulted. When the shy Sheikh gathers his thoughts, he is anxious and uncomfortable, describing the way the mob touches him and questioning his queer identity.

Sheikh and his colleagues work in Porshi, a café in Jodhpur Park, one of the most expensive neighborhoods in Kolkata. It provides a safe space for trans and queer people to be friends and is run by Sappho to achieve equality, one of the oldest forums for queer activists in the state. Ghosh is the management trustee of the organization.

Gosh said they called the lake immediately Tana (Police Department), less than a kilometer, but the police only appeared after the attack. “Even if they arrived, instead of protecting us, they insisted that we get into the police car. We filed a complaint and registered for the FIR, but two days later, an anti-FIR was filed against us.”

Police are reluctant to talk about the matter or comment on any incidents related to multinational violence. However, on April 15, during the 18th National Transgender Day commemoration, activists, actors and government officials participated in members of the police force.

“West Bengal is still far behind in the trans movement,” said Ranjita Sinha, a transgender female activist, during the event.

Under the Transgender (Right Protection) Act, a crime was registered in the 2019 Tamil Nadu, under the State Administration of Criminal Records.

The bill sets out specific crimes committed against transgender people who are punished by law. These include denying trans people access to public spaces; forcing a person to leave their place of residence, or even a family; impairing, harming or endangering the “life, safety, health or well-being of trans people, whether mental or physical well-being…”.

Transgender people say that physical, sexual, sexual, verbal, emotional and economic abuse of transgender people are punished by law and embedded in society.

Ghosh, who has worked for more than a decade in the rights of Trans-Qualer, said that while cross-name people face attacks and discrimination every day, the implementation of the law is a “major challenge.”

Hold together

Porshi, meaning Bangladesh’s neighbor, is marked by a red gate in the large house in Jodhpur Park. A poster hangs at the entrance, calling it a “safe space”, a passionate member of the trans and queer community. However, people working in the cafe say there are few tourists nearby.

From vandalism to uncomfortable gaze, cafe staff and visitors say they have experienced varying degrees of aggression and attack. “When we opened this cafe two years ago, our neighbors cut the cables to the light outside the cafe,” Ghosh said.

They point out that many queer people have been abused at home. When part of their identity is dalit-adivasi-bahujan, twice as much oppression. and another discrimination when the economy is emphasized. “Demographically, we are on the edge. The system failed us both in domestic and public places.”

Dr. Ranjita Biswas, a psychiatrist who offers free consultation meetings in Porsey, has been associated with Sappho for more than 22 years. She said forced marriage and marital rape resulted in loss of confidence.

“The Natal family is constantly ashamed of their identity, which makes people think that their existence is wrong,” said Dr. Biswas, adding that isolation from conventional social spaces in parks or movie halls, such as parks or movie halls, is also traumatized.

Lost your home, find your home

Shaan Sharma, 25, from a village in Uttar Pradesh, said he was fired when he transitioned to work in Delhi. In pain, he returned home. He said that despite his family’s acceptance of their identities, relatives and society made their lives difficult.

“I was asked to leave the house or my brother wouldn’t find a match for marriage. My identity became an obstacle in his life.” A nervous and emotional Sharma said, using anxious gestures to describe how he was kicked out of the house. He recalled: “When I got home after I lost my job, some relatives came to stay. I was locked in a room for a few days, so they didn’t see me. I went to jail in my own house.”

Sharma found several friends on social media who told him a safe house called Garima Greh in Kolkata. This has become his home in the past three months. Garima Greh is one of 12 central government-funded safe houses in India, established with support for livelihoods and business (Smile) programs for marginalized individuals. Over the past year, residents have received skills-based training and living spaces.

From paying rent to employee salaries, the nonprofit Gokhale Road Bandhan is working to make ends meet. The center manager Mini Routh was founded in 2021 and said they were forced to cut corners to keep them floating. “I myself have no salary for the past year and a half. Residents are also suffering from nutritional deficiencies because buying food is a struggle. We have to pair with other NGOs to get our rations and provide residents with money to attend their skills training courses.”

Aggressive and passive aggression

The home offers accommodation for more than 20 transgender people who feel constantly threatened. The poster hanging at home was torn. Residents said a neighbor ripped it apart.

Last year, residents tried to host the public Ardhanarishvara Puja at last year’s Durga Puja Festival, dedicated to the Lord of the Hindu deity and his Parvati. All over Kolkata, it is common during music festivals. Residents of Garima Greh obtained police permission when people nearby said they were not allowed to do so. However, locals refuse to be annoying, and the celebrations must be transferred to their backyard.

Routh, a cisgender woman, said over the years, over the years, there have been many attempts to raise awareness in the local area as people nearby still have severe boycotts. Rous talks when they look for space for rent. But when homeowners find out that this will be a space for trans people, they will back off.

Another challenge is keeping threatening relatives away from residents. Family members often track their location to a “safe house.” They say residents live in a state of constant anxiety and feel unsafe even after leaving their abusive family.

Although Sharma is training to become an accountant, his ID card still says “women” and he wants to know how he will ensure work without gender changes on paper. In order to change the documents, he had to return to Uttar Pradesh, which made him anxious about how family members would receive him.

Sinha is also a leader in Garima Greh in Kolkata, and has been working with the community for the past 30 years. She said that even if the world becomes more and more progressive, the abuse of them is far from over.

“Hum Log Jayen Toh Kahan Jayen? (Where are we going?)” she said with a sigh. She noted that most people outside the LGBTQIA+ community refer to trans people as hijrasin the dictionary of laymen, who is dressed in clothes and beggar. There is little understanding of the complexity of gender.

In 2014, in a landmark judgment, the Supreme Court endorsed the “third gender”, disconnecting it from a biological point of view, and said that those who self-identify as trans have fundamental rights under the constitution and international law. The Supreme Court also directed the state government to develop policies to ensure this.

In March 2015, the West Bengal government hyped up its transgender development committee at the State Department of Women and Child Development and Social Welfare. Sinha is part of the body and says it is currently non-functional. Shashi Panja, the minister currently in charge of the department, could not comment.

Pocket of hope

It’s a karaoke night at the tavern’s Resto-bar night, and owner Anand Puri started a queer friendly Thursday night for those from the LGBTQIA+ community. Puri said over the years he has trained his staff for inclusion and has conducted sensitivity drivers to develop this safe space. He said people may not have to order a lot of stress.

“Slowly, we’ve reached a place where we can accept society. We’re a mainstream place that helps open the doors to each marginalized and unique identity and feel safe to be ourselves.”

Finding such a safe space keeps people connected to each other. This “family of choice” is usually more trustworthy than it was when born.

Sanaya Malik, a 22-year-old trans woman, chose a fashion design skills training program at Garima Greh. “I want to own a tailoring shop and be my own boss. Given my appearance, the long hair and facial hair make it difficult for me to explain myself in the workplace,” she said.

On May 9, members of Garima Greh observed the anniversary of Rabindranath Tagore through the verses and philosophy of the bard, which tell the common human experience that encourages diversity and openness.

shrabana.chatterjee@thehindu.co.in

Edited by Sunalini Mathew