Youngsters compile 'The Pink List,' names LGBTQ-friendly Lok Sabha candidates
Days after the Supreme Court dismissed a petition seeking civil rights for the LGBTQ+ community, a group of three friends have kick-started an initiative to ensure queer issues get political precedence. Launched on April 17, 'The Pink List' is a collection of 2019 Lok Sabha candidates who have publicly supported LGBTQ+ rights, or are members of the community. Here is more.
A plea seeking civil rights for the LGBTQ+ community - same sex-marriage, surrogacy, IVF etc - was dismissed by the Supreme Court recently stating that they "are not inclined to entertain this petition" after the September 6 verdict on Section 377, which decriminalized gay sex.
'The Pink List' is a collaborated effort by Anish Gawande, a Columbia University graduate and director of Dara Shikoh Fellowship, The Quint journalist Devina Buckshee, and freelance designer Smriti Deora. According to Elle India, Gawande and Buckshee combed through news reports and publicly accessible Lok Sabha online archives, dating all the way back to 2010, to collate 'The Pink List'.
"We've been calling out homophobic MPs for a while. But we must also recognize efforts of those (across parties) who stand up for queer and trans rights," the website reads. "Support LGBTQ+ candidates running for elections by giving them a platform to be heard," it added. The list comprises 49 Lok Sabha candidates who are spread across four categories- trailblazers, superheroes, heroes, and allies.
The Trailblazers are five out and proud LGBTQ+ candidates. The Superheroes include six politicians who "unequivocally" supported the LGBTQ+ movement through activism and policymaking. The 17 Heroes are politicians who supported LGBTQ+ rights through public statements. The 22 Allies are those who helped the movement in little ways and primarily includes MPs, who supported Shashi Tharoor's bill opposing Section 377 in the Lok Sabha.
Trailblazers: Independent candidates Ashwathi Rajappan, and Radha; AAP's Chirpi Bhawani; and Durbal Ghatak Aghadi's Sneha Kale and Jatin Mummy. Superheroes: Congress' Shashi Tharoor, BJP's Jay Panda, Pattali Makkal Katchi's Ambumani Ramadoss, et al. Heroes: Congress' Rahul Gandhi, BJP's Shobha Karandlaje, AAP's Atishi, et al. Allies: BJP's Mahendra Nath Pandey, Congress' Ranjeet Ranjan, Shiv Sena's Shivajirao Adhalrao Patil, et al.
The goal of 'The Pink List' is to highlight queer and trans-inclusive politicians other than mainstream voices like Shashi Tharoor. Additionally, once the election results are declared, they also hope to bring the winning candidates together, along with LGBTQ-identifying persons and allies, to initiate a dialog on how they could move forward. "Because our fight does not end after 377," they added.
"There are so many candidates in semi-urban and rural parts of the country who don't have anything [like that] to gain by supporting LGBTQ rights. The Pink List is an attempt to get all of them on a common platform," Gawande told Elle India.
However, 'The Pink List' warns people that simply because their Lok Sabha candidates are queer and trans-inclusive, doesn't mean that their parties are, too; nor does it mean that they are inclusive across religion, caste, class or even across all spectra of gender and sexuality. "We are striving to create a section on how parties have supported LGBTQ+ rights in public statements or manifestos."
