They emphasised the significance of giving their queer children the same opportunities as their straight siblings.
Digital Desk: In Hyderabad, several mothers of LGBTQIA+ people have come together to support marriage equality and children's equal rights. They have sent a letter to the Supreme Court's Constitution bench, which is presently reviewing petitions regarding changes to the Special Marriage Act, pleading with the judges to consider their requests.
The group of six mothers—Mukunda Mala Mannem, Bharathi, A Suneetha, Sushiela Ruben Ilango, Sandhya Rani, and Archana Mehrotra Wahi—identified as Queer Bandhu, an organisation of parents of queer children in Hyderabad, and made an appeal to the supreme court to work towards achieving equal rights within families.
They emphasised the significance of giving their queer children the same opportunities as their straight siblings.
The moms' letter showed that they were well aware of the prejudice, marginalisation, and discrimination that their LGBT children encounter in society. They emphasised the instances of bullying at school, harassment in extended families, and abuse at work that harm their mental health and self-confidence.
In addition, the moms criticised the nation's and its elected leaders' reluctance to acknowledge LGBT people's existence. They saw that unilaterally enacted colonial regulations from a century and a half ago had impacted cultural attitudes, which were frequently defended in the guise of "Indian culture."
They lamented the fact that these laws were not repealed after the establishment of the Indian republic in 1947 and that for the bulk of the following 75 years, queer children and adults had to face anguish and suffering because the democratic system and elected governments refused to recognise their existence.
The mothers contended that the LGBTQIA+ community still does not have full access to education, healthcare, employment, and the right to create families of their choosing, including through marriage, despite significant rulings such as the decriminalisation of Section 377 in 2018, the NALSA judgement in 2014, and the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights Act) in 2019.
They emphasised how many LGBT people still consider even fundamental pursuits like home ownership, mall shopping, or viewing a movie to be unaffordable extravagances despite having the resources to do so.
Parents who want their children to enjoy the same rights and privileges—adoption, inheritance, insurance, bank accounts—as cisgender heterosexual people do are gravely concerned about the lack of a complete legal framework.
The mothers advocated including same-sex marriage, civil unions, and other rights connected to marriage and creating chosen families in the Special Marriage Act of 1954, which now only applies to inter-caste and inter-religious couples.
They emphasised that it is their duty as parents to ensure that all of their children have the same rights and care inside the family, which is not permitted by the nation's current legal framework. They expressed optimism that the Supreme Court would comprehend their pain and the agony their children were going through.
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