A TRANSFORMATIVE JOURNEY

The LGBTQIA+ community has battled long and hard against deep-set social prejudices and unjust laws and notched up significant victories, but more remains to be done to achieve a just and inclusive world

- GAURAV JAIN

FROM the shadows of an unjust past to the vibrant marches of Pride parades, the LGBTQIA+ community has indeed come a long way. The community is employing both its voice and the verve to secure its rights. On the back of its unrelenting struggles within and outside courtrooms, the community has already scored many remarkable wins, translating into judicial legitimacy and social recognition and even making a mark in different walks of life ranging from the government to the private sector.

It has been a long journey to overcome a miasma of social scorn and rejection that shrouded the recent past of the community. The year 1990, which saw the launch of Bombay Dost, proved to be a turning point for the LGBTQIA+ movement. The pages of this periodical echoed with the long suppressed voices of this socially ostracised community. Most importantly, it gave them recognition, visibility and the confidence that it was in their power to redefine their destinies.

However, Bombay Dost went beyond being just a media platform helping community members to connect and communicate. It led the fight against patently discriminative legal provisions, especially the draconian Section 377, which criminalised homosexuality. While