MOMENTOUS: Homosexuality is no longer illegal in India after 157 years.
By Alex Flores, Staff Writer
On September 6th of this year, India decriminalized homosexuality by repealing Section 377 of its constitution which deemed consensual gay sex as “against the order of nature.” A five-judge constitution bench led by Dipak Misra, Chief Justice of India, made the decision and in doing so, not only ended the colonial-era law, but also made significant progress for the LGBTQ community as a whole. There is now one less system in place to intimidate, blackmail, and abuse members of the community. “The LGBTQ community has the same fundamental rights as citizens. The identity of a person is very important and we have to vanish prejudice, embrace inclusion and ensure equal rights,” Misra said.
However, India has not yet completely embraced inclusion or ensured equal rights: same-sex marriage is illegal and conversion therapy is legal despite there being “…no scientific evidence that sexual orientation can be altered by any treatment and that any such attempts may, in fact, lead to low self-esteem and stigmatisation of the person,” as the Indian Psychiatric Society (IPS) stated. Even so, the ruling lays a strong foundation for LGBTQ rights in India, as well as indicates the possibility of further enactments.