Suggested Citation: Singh, A. (2021, May 31). Why do we need an LGBT+ inclusive curriculum in schools. Queer Academia. URL
On 6th September 2018, Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code was decriminalized by the Supreme Court of India. This historic ruling was a ray of hope for the LGBTQ+ community of India. But despite this positive step by the Court, LGBTQ youth continue to face bullying, harassment, and discrimination. In May 2020, a 21-year-old queer woman committed suicide after being forced to undergo conversion therapy by her family (Deol, 2020). In July 2020, Mumbai Mirror reported an incident wherein an LGBTQ youth from Kolkata was beaten up at night by a group of policemen and arrested without any charges. The individual’s phone was taken away by the policemen and several homophobic insults were hurled at him. He was detained by the police for twelve hours and was released on bail the following morning (Nag, 2020). These are only some of the several incidents of abuse faced by the members of the LGBTQ+ community. The root cause of such mistreatment is the institutionalized homophobia and transphobia that continue to exist in Indian society.
In February 2021, the Central government denied the LGBTQ community the right to marriage by claiming that in India, marriage is a “bond between a biological man and a biological woman” (Mandhani, 2021). This extremely transphobic statement by the Centre highlights the thought process of the majority of the Indians who view the society in terms of binaries and fail to accept individuals who lie outside their narrow worldview. The sole reason for such behavior is the lack of awareness about issues related to gender and sexuality. From childhood to adulthood, Indian children are socialized in an exclusionary manner. They are taught about only two genders and they see only heterosexual couples in their textbooks. There is no mention of homosexual couples or transgender individuals. The educational curriculum continues to exclude LGBT studies and reinforce heteronormativity. It conditions young minds to follow strict gender norms and fails to accommodate diversity in terms of sexual orientation and gender identity. It completely alienates the LGBTQ students and adds to their struggles by promoting rigid ideas about gender and sexuality in the classroom.
Schools also play a major role in instilling homophobia and transphobia in the students. From judging the character of a girl from the length of her skirt to teaching them to keep menstruation a secret, Indian schools objectify young girls’ bodies and teach them to silence the conversations surrounding their bodies. Boys are insulted for wearing earrings or acting feminine in any manner, and are met with statements such as “You’ll become a housewife.” Such instances cause children to associate femininity with shame. Often, sexist and transphobic comments are made by teachers and this sets a bad example for the students (Awasthi, 2020). Homophobic and transphobic slurs are hurled at students who don’t conform to rigid gender norms. The study titled “Be a buddy, not a bully!” conducted by Sahodaran- UNESCO in 2018 to document the experiences of sexual and gender minority youth in Tamil Nadu schools, revealed that more than 43% of participants who identified as LGBTQ faced sexual harassment at the primary school level. Around 60% of participants faced physical harassment and 26% faced verbal harassment in middle school and high school. 84% of participants reported that their bullies were their co-students (C. et al., 2019). Schools are supposed to be safe centers of learning but the research evidence suggests that they have become places of abuse for LGBTQ children. Most, if not all, educational institutions turn a blind eye to the abuse and continue to create a generation of students that act hostile towards anyone who does not conform to heteronormativity and cisnormativity.
Harassment and bullying cause psychological distress to children and lead to various mental health issues such as anxiety and depression. In 2019, Trevor Project, A US-based organization conducted a National Survey on LGBTQ Youth Mental Health and reported that 39% of participants had considered attempting suicide in the past twelve months, out of which more than 50% were transgender and non-binary youth. Over 18% of the participants actually attempted suicide in the past twelve months. In India, there is very limited access to mental health resources due to the stigma attached to mental illness so LGBTQ individuals are likely to suffer in silence. Moreover, there is a misconception that homosexuality can be cured with drugs, this makes it unsafe for LGBTQ individuals to reach out for help since they might end up being forced into conversion therapy, such as Anjana Harrish. Deteriorating mental health impacts academics as well and many LGBTQ individuals end up dropping out because of the psychological impact of abuse. This hinders their Right to Education and takes away their opportunity to become financially independent and live life on their own terms. Education is a fundamental right of all citizens; therefore, the educational curriculum must include an LGBTQ inclusive comprehensive sex education to create a safe learning environment for children of all genders and sexualities (C. et al., 2019).
An LGBTQ inclusive curriculum will help to reduce classroom bullying and make LGBTQ children feel comfortable with their identity and improve their physical and mental well-being. It will also help children to understand the difference between sex and gender, and expose them to the different sexual orientations and gender identities which will help to break the hetero/cisnormativity that exists in Indian society. An inclusive curriculum will create a more open-minded and egalitarian society wherein the LGBTQ community would be respected and accepted. Students will become more empathetic and understanding of diversity and this will help to create a healthy environment for learning. LGBTQ children will find their identity reflected in the course which will help them to gain self-acceptance and high self-esteem. In the long run, it will help to frame and enforce laws that would help in the protection and upliftment of the LGBTQ community.
References
Awasthi, G. (2020, July 9). How the Indian School System Reinforces Gender Norms. Live Wire. https://livewire.thewire.in/gender-and-sexuality/how-the-indian-school-system-reinforces-gender-norms/ .
C., S. M., Chakrapani, V., & Jadav, S. (2019). BE A BUDDY, NOT A BULLY! Experiences of sexual and gender minority youth in Tamil Nadu schools. http://orinam.net/content/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/368435eng.pdf .
Deol, T. (2020, May 20). Shock and outrage won't stop Indian parents forcing queer children into 'conversion therapy'. ThePrint. https://theprint.in/opinion/pov/shock-and-outrage-wont-stop-indian-parents-forcing-queer-children-into-conversion-therapy/425439/ .
Mandhani, A. (2021, February 25). Gay marriage not a fundamental right, wedding a bond between man, woman - Centre to Delhi HC. ThePrint. https://theprint.in/judiciary/gay-marriage-not-a-fundamental-right-wedding-a-bond-between-man-woman-centre-to-delhi-hc/611698/ .
Nag, J. (2020, July 25). Even after Supreme Court's judgment on Section 377, violence against queer individuals continues. Mumbai Mirror. https://mumbaimirror.indiatimes.com/news/india/even-after-supreme-courts-judgment-on-section-377-violence-against-queer-individuals-continues/articleshow/77171267.cms .
Project, T. (2019). National Survey on LGBTQ Youth Mental Health. https://www.thetrevorproject.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/The-Trevor-Project-National-Survey-Results-2019.pdf .
Written by: Aashi Singh
Reviewed by: Kanav Sahgal, Mohit Dudeja
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