Do you love the rainbow? Let us bow to the rain of love.
I still remember — a white saree, dark maroon lipstick, and a beautifully-tied hair bun. I remember something more than this — a deep voice, a clean-shaven face, and a strong muscular physique. Around twenty years ago, when I was in primary school, I saw a group of transgender people and my eyes stuck on the one wearing a plain-white saree. Honestly, I was not aware of how I should have reacted or responded to them because being a child (that too twenty years ago in India), all I knew was the term ‘binary’ — the classification of gender into two distinct, opposite forms of masculine and feminine, either by the social system or cultural belief.
Around three to four of them intruded my cousin’s house (who had a newborn baby) and started asking for sweets, gifts and money. The sudden intrusion into the house made me feel scared and I vividly remember hiding behind my grandmother.
As time passed, from then to now, I have learned a lot about gender as a social construction and cherish each individual as a beautiful creation and a unique being. When I travelled to England, I realised and witnessed the freedom with which people spoke about their gender (though this cannot be generalised). My journeys across diverse cultures have also beautifully depicted the social strands that each society knits. Visiting and witnessing other cultures has made me understand and learn more about my own people, cultures and communities.
Travelling to new places teaches us a lot about ‘what’s happening on the other side of the world’, and helps us reflect and understand our own cultures in a more fresh and non-judgemental way.
It is inspiring to see people confidently be who they are, to learn about their struggles and journeys, and to witness understanding and accepting communities. Surely, pride month is a brilliant way to magnify and advocate for LGBTQ+ rights, but we don’t necessarily need pride month to be proud of celebrating who we are or what our identity is.
The different colours in a rainbow flag symbolise togetherness, and therefore, I have carved this simple and short poetry on filling our eyes with colours of the rainbow, where the rainbow represents pride.
Fill the rainbow in your eyes
And see the colours and shades
That this world lives with
And the diversity of people it celebrates
I often dream a dream
Where gender is a personal choice
Where people are not silenced
For advocating an LGBTQ+ voice
Picture Credits: @youinverse1 – At the Brighton Pride Parade 2019
Surely, a rainbow looks beautiful
On the skies up and above
And I hope we craft rainbows on earth too
With the colours of peace and love
How wonderful it would be
If all people are treated well and dear
Celebrating everyone’s differences and uniqueness
And valuing and respecting the queer
I hope we could touch the rainbow
And carry it in our hands
Pouring some colours into our hearts and minds
And becoming the souls that understand
Understand that blue and red alone
Are not the symbols of humankind
But it is purple that holds more strength
When the blue and red combine
But it’s not just the blue and red
That makes a rainbow so bright
Indeed, it’s the other colours too
That makes the earth and the rainbow unite.
It’s a common practice for people to assume a friend, a coworker, or a client to be a man or a woman and have the sexual orientation based on our assumptions. However, this assumption may be intentional or unintentional.
So, what is the least we can do to support LGBTQ+ communities?
- Never make assumptions about people’s sexual orientation or gender identity
- Speak out against homophobia, transphobia and anti-LGBTQ harassment and discrimination
- Support anyone who chooses to come out as who they are and reveal their gender identity
- Attend and support LGBTQ+ events
Every day, we must cherish who we are and who we choose to be.
No, we don’t necessarily need a pride month to be proud of people to be themselves. We need supportive societies and communities that accept and celebrate our differences and diverse identities every day. All we need is an open mind with a warm heart to learn, understand and accept people as they are and enable our communities to become playgrounds of love.
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