While recognition of genders outside male and female have only recently been discussed in Western societies, people of nonbinary gender expression have been playing important roles in South Asia for more than 2000 years. It is currently estimated that there are more than 3 million "third gender" people live in India alone. In 2014, the Supreme Court of India ruled that transgender people have the right to self-identify as male, female or a “third gender.” The Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act of 2019 in India allows transgender people to have a self-perceived gender identity and receive a certificate of identity. Similar rulings and laws have been passed in neighboring Bangladesh, Nepal and Pakistan. 

What are the implications and its impact on the transgender people of the subcontinent and beyond? For the rest of Asia and the United States. We will discuss this and other issues with our guests.

About the Speakers

Amrita Sarkar is the one of the founding members and the Secretary of IRGT–A Global Network of Trans Women and HIV. She has been working for the transgender community and their wellbeing in India for more than two decades and has been involved in numerous capacity-building initiatives for the same communities at the national and international level.

Zia Jaffrey is the author of The Invisibles: A Tale of the Eunuchs of India (Pantheon/Vintage). She has written cover stories, features and book reviews for many publications, including Vogue, The Nation, The New York Times, The Washington Post, and Elle, where she ran the front of the magazine, wrote literary pieces, and cultivated new voices. Her work has been anthologized in several tomes, most recently, in PEN America’s India at 75, and Toni Morrison: The Last Interview and Other Conversations.