Winds of Change
By Chacko Jacob
In the last couple of days, Cardinal Konrad Krajewski, the “papal almoner”, has made headlines by wiring money to a small community of transgender women in a beach town near Rome. The lockdown has affected their most common form of livelihood – sex work. Struggling for food, and unseen by or even hiding from the government because of lack of documentation, this small community approached a catholic priest for help, who then referred them to the Cardinal. Krajewski deemed the act unworthy of being news, calling it “ordinary work” in the course of his duties as the official distributor of alms of the papacy. Could this be a sign of changes to come?
Parallels can be drawn to Virudhunagar a town in Tamil Nadu, India. In several villages in the district, there lives a scattered transgender community that is feeling the brunt of the lockdown in a way similar to the community in Rome. The transgenders in Virudhunagar, much like the rest of India, depend on begging, dancing, sex work and wedding appearances to make ends meet. They are prone to experience high rates of sexual violence, physical abuse and harassment for their perceived difference in appearance and lifestyle. The community that once held high positions in the courts of kings took a fall with the arrival of the British and continued being criminalized and marginalized post-independence. In modern times, there is a long way to go, but recent changes in laws and introduction of welfare policies mark slow but sure changes.
Parthasarathy Kandasamy, founder of ARAVANS and 2016 kanthari graduate, works in Virudhunagar for the empowerment of the LGBTQI community. ARAVANS cares for and supports elderly LGBTQIs, is involved in activism demanding equal rights, and aims to create more livelihood opportunities for the LGBTQI community. The present conditions have of course, forced a break in ARAVANS’ regular activities.
Only a minority of Virudhunagar transgenders possess ration cards which are mandatory for a range of government services. Those that have the ID are only entitled to a financial relief of ₹ 1000 (€ 11.95) and 5 kilograms of rice and dal each for the month of April. This presents major nutritional and health challenges to all, but especially those that are HIV positive. Nutrition is a huge part of an HIV positive person’s life. Without nutritious vegetables, and a variety pulses and grains the ability to absorb ART drugs and maintain a healthy weight is gradually lost. After complaints to the Social Welfare Department, around 60 people who have identity cards from the Social Welfare Department got ₹ 1000 deposited in their bank accounts. Also, Partha has been approached by the local government to present a list of his beneficiaries that are not able to receive the financial aid due to not having a bank account. He is hopeful that the government will come through.
Armed with permission from the government to move about for the purpose of Covid-19 relief, Partha is reaching out to all his beneficiaries, trying to distribute much needed nutritious food. ARAVANS counselling telephone line is also busy. Partha and his team are stretched thin, especially because of how scattered his beneficiaries are in villages in and around Virudhunagar. Any volunteers he is lucky to get are only able to give a day of their time before they move on. With non Covid-19 medical issues not being taken seriously, sick transgenders and those requiring post-op care are turned away by doctors. “Come back after the lockdown”, the doctors say dismissively. Partha is trying to find doctors that are willing to treat transgenders without any prejudice.
At the end of our phone conversation and having listened to the details of the dire situation, I sheepishly asked him if there are any positive takeaways from the situation. He paused for a while, racking his brain for something to say. He burst into laughter after a long silence and said, “Well I really cannot think of a positive angle, the only thing I can say is that alcohol consumption, tobacco use, and unsafe sex work have decreased because of the lockdown! But of course, no sex work means no livelihood.”
A vicious cycle indeed.
One of ARAVANS’ dreams is the Gender Free Village where everyone regardless of orientation, sex or gender will enjoy freedom, access to education, good health care, better living environment and a discrimination free society. The community would live in eco-friendly housing, practice organic farming and Natural Resource Management, be united in solidarity and create plenty of livelihood opportunities.
It seems a far-cry from the present situation. But hey, winds of change are blowing everywhere. Can you feel it?