Text Sample:SOCIAL CONSTRAINTS:In our society, women have a very derogatory stand and especially if they are lesbian, transsexual or bisexual then they are even more heckled in their surroundings. Women stepping out of heterosexual norms are seen as being doubly subversive (Seager, 2009) 8. Homosexual women are also women. Similarly, the gay man is more vulnerable than the heterosexual man. Homosexuality is nothing abnormal but just another form of sexuality.The queer problem is considered to be the most trivial in our society. One of the journalists Ushashi Chakraborty says that, most people react and say that they are not lesbians, none of their friends or relatives are also like them so why do they need to think about them? They are the perverts, the '' other'' of our society. It is tragic yet true how pathetically our society demarcates them.
It is not only the outside community people who think them to be pervert but unfortunately they themselves also sometimes think so. Their greatest opposition is their families. The social problem is one of the major constraints faced by the queer people. Homosexuality is not against any culture. Science has proved that homosexuality is not a preference but an orientation. This truth has only been rejected through resistance.SUPPORT GROUPS FOR GAY, LESBIAN, BISEXUAL AND TRANSGENDER PEOPLE: SPECIAL EMPHASIS ON SAPPHO AND SWIKRITI:Both Sappho and Swikriti are Kolkata based support groups.SAPPHO AND SAPPHO FOR EQUALITY-A SUPPORT GROUP FOR LESBIAN, BISEXUAL, TRANSGENDER WOMEN:Sappho, a Kolkata based support group for lesbian, bisexual and transgender, founded on 20th June, 1999, is the only group of its kind in Eastern India.
It derives its name from the legendary character Sappho of ancient Greek literature, who was one of the most popular female poets from Mytilene on the island of Lesbos. The mission of the organization is to address the issues of sexually marginalized women in our society and to broaden the struggle for democracy for their equal rights, within the nation-state and beyond. Their vision is a society free of sexuality-based discriminations. The initial goal of the organization was to provide safe space for women with same sex preference; gradually it moved into a rights oriented movement to fight discrimination and hatred against marginalized women. They provide a non-judgmental and non-discriminatory support of everyone who seeks their help. In the larger society they are committed to fight the hegemonic hetero-normative order while affirming diversities and resisting divisiveness. Their struggle is against heterosexism.Sappho for Equality is a forum that has emerged as an effort to bridge the ever-widening gulf between queer and non-queer community in India aspiring to become a collective voice of all cross-sections of society who feel the imperative to challenge the hegemonic hetero-normative order that rules our present.
It is a journey that reflects a shift from services to activism.Chetana is a resource center on sexuality conceived and supported by Sappho for Equality aspiring to create awareness about sexuality. The center provides facilities for personal and legal counseling through the service of experts in the respective fields. It hopes to build bridges of communication with all thinking and endeavoring people for a better understanding of LGBT issues and to create a wider base for the feminist and human rights movement. The organization also arranges for empowerment sessions.The love of a woman for another woman cannot be denied. Their sexuality is something that needs to be recognized. These women are denied their existence and looked upon as a sexed subject.
They are looked upon as a minority when from all other angles they belong to the majority.Sappho believes, it is necessary to be a part of the larger society who feels that a woman cannot be outcast on the ground of her sexual orientation. This is to be true even in case of men. Sappho does not confine itself within a specific community but goes beyond.