New Posts of Chennai Dost will be available in our new Website

Wednesday, June 9, 2010

Tuesday, June 8, 2010

Chennai Rainbow Pride 2010 - Press release

Month-long programmes to highlight visibility of alternative sexualities
The Hindu: June 3, 2010
http://www.thehindu.com/2010/06/03/stories/2010060353790500.htm

Tamil Nadu - Chennai

Month-long programmes to highlight visibility of alternative sexualities

Special Correspondent

“LGBT community is opposing the 2011 Census exercise where
transgenders are being counted as female”

CHENNAI: Chennai's LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender)
community, which in June 2009 organised the first Pride March to
celebrate sexual diversity, has drawn up various programmes over the
month to highlight visibility of alternative sexualities and gender
identities.

The Chennai Rainbow Alliance, a collective of organisations working on
common issues of the LGBT segment, will have debates on homosexuality
and family values, poetry reading events, beauty contests and film
screenings as a run-up to the Pride March slated for June 27. The
events are listed on the site chennaipride.orinam.net

Addressing the media, LGBT representatives said Pride Month in June,
when sexual minorities across the world engage in self-assertion of
rights, would be a time for celebration and commemoration of those who
died for the cause.

Kalki of Sahodari Foundation said though Tamil Nadu had been
progressive in recognising the LGBT rights, much more needed to be
done.

The LGBT community is opposing the 2011 Census exercise where
transgenders are being counted as “female”. The demand is that this
community be recorded in the category corresponding to the gender of
their choice and not limited by the limited binary choices of “male”
and “female”.

Though the Chennai Rainbow Alliance is affiliated to the India Network
for Sexual Minorities, there is as yet no coalition at the
national-level to lobby for the Census demand, L. Ramakrishnan,
country director (programmes and research), SAATHII said.

Sunil Menon, founder of Sahodaran, said families needed to value
sexual orientations of LGBTs as natural and normal and provide for
freedom of expression in terms of attire, romance and life partners.
He also stressed the importance of access to counselling services for
the emotional well-being of LGBTs.

Magdalene Jeyarathnam, director, Center for Counselling, condemned
unethical attempts to change sexual orientation through drugs and
other means. She called for awareness among the family members of
LGBTs that sexual orientations should be seen as normal and not deemed
to be symptomatic of a mental illness and sought to be changed through
therapy or marriage.

A support group session will be held on June 13 for family members of
LGBTs. The centre also runs counselling helplines on
9884700174/9884700104.

Chennai LGBT Pride 2010 - Donations

Dear all, as you know Pride is being organized by several organizations under the umbrella of Chennai Rainbow Coalition. This message specifies focal points for donations to the various events. The list of events is at http://orinam.net/Chennaipride/events

(i) For donations to support the SIAAP debate event (June 5): Contact Lavanya Keshavraj (98842-35188, lavanyak@siaapindia.org) to determine mode of payment

(ii) For donations to support Sahodari Foundation event (June 18) and their performance group: Contact Kalki Subramaniam (98847-00409, aurokalki@gmail.com) for electronic transfer, cash or cheque.

(iii) For donations to support the beauty contest (June 26) and the host organization Sahodaran: Contact Sunil Menon (93810 16129, sunilmenonc@yahoo.com) for electronic transfer, cash or cheque.

(iv) For donations to support the Pride march, press meets, art supplies for poster-making sessions and art contests, poetry reading, Nirangal performance event, and printing/photocopying of flyers and resource book 'Our Children / நம் குழந்தைகள்' in for parents of LGBT:

Aniruddhan Vasudevan (98840-17695, aniruddh.vasudevan@gmail.com) representing The Shakthi Resource Center, is the focal point for donations for the above activities and events. Cheques may be made out in the name of The Shakthi Resource Center and sent to 42A, 1st Floor, 5th Avenue, Besant Nagar, Chennai--600090. Electronic Bank Transfer and Cash - please email for the bank account or cash pickup/dropoff details. If you have a preference for supporting one of the activities listed above, please let Aniruddhan know. For cheques and bank transfers please drop an email to inform that the payment has been made and provide an address to which the receipts may be mailed.

For all other inquiries regarding donations, please email me LRamakrishnan.lists @ gmail.com

Thank you!

Chennai Rainbow Gay Pride 2010 - Events


July 8 2010, Chennai:


Chennai Rainbow Pride month is in full swing. So far, we've had a pre-Pride workshop by Asma for LGBT community members on how to make the media work for the cause, a spirited debate with the Hindu Munnani (a religious right group) on homosexuality and family values (facilitated by NGO SIAAP), and a couple of volunteer-driven sessions to produce placards and posters for Pride events. Reports of these events will be shared by participants soon.

Here are the events lined up for Week II, including a topical discussion on the issue of the trans inclusion in the Government of India census, screening of Prodigal Sons and Milk, a not-to-be-missed queer poetry reading, and a meeting of parents of LGBT people.


(i) June 10 2010, Thursday: The Others and the Census - discussion by Sahodari Foundation
Organizer: Sahodari Foundation
Venue: SWAM office,6/13, II Cross Street, New Colony,West Saidapet,Chennai – 15

Time: 3 pm | Entry: Open to all | Contact: Kalki (98847 00409, aurokalki@gmail.com)

Sahodari Foundation facilitates a discussion on the critical issues surrounding India’s 2011 census, and the need for counting transgender people with due regard to their gender of choice.

(ii) June 11 2010, Friday: Screening of Prodigal Sons

Organizers: U.S. Consulate, Chennai
Venue:Consulate Auditorium | Time: 6:00 pm – 9:00 pm


Entry: SPACE IS LIMITED, RSVP BY JUNE 10 by sending a SMS to 54999 with the words “Talk2US Pride”

The US Consulate General Chennai will screen a highly-acclaimed documentary film, Prodigal Sons, at the Consulate auditorium, followed by a digital video conference Q&A with the director, Kimberly Reed, who is based in NYC.
US Embassy Delhi and US Consulate Mumbai will also screen Prodigal Sons. For more details on the film, visit www.prodigalsonsfilm.com. The next morning, for those who missed last year's screening of Milk, there's another chance to watch it at the American Library, June 12, 11am - 2pm. http://bit.ly/cOUUP1

(iii) June 12 2010, Saturday: Queer Poetry Reading
Organizers: Chennai Rainbow Coalition together with Madras Terrace House
Venue: The Madras Terrace House, 15, Sripuram 2nd Street, Off R. K. Salai, Royapettah, Chennai 14
Entry: Free, by invitation, please RSVP to Aniruddhan (9884017695, aniruddh.vasudevan@gmail.com)
Time: 6:45 p.m

Chennai celebrates Rainbow Pride 2010 with an evening of poetry including lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) themes, featuring work by celebrated and lesser known poets. The readings, in English and Tamil, will make visible loves, intimacies and relationships that go beyond what is mainstream, conventional and heteronormative.


Acclaimed Chennai poets and writers Salma and Sharanya Manivannan will read selections from their work. The evening will also feature readings of Auden, Garcia Lorca, Vikram Seth, translations from Urdu Rekthi poetry, and work by lesser known poets. We invite you to share your poems or read from your favorite queer poets.

(iv) June 13 2010, Sunday: Meeting of parents and siblings of LGBT people

Organizers: Center for Counselling
Venue: Center for Counselling office, Nungambakkam
Time: 10.30 am - 12.30 pm
Entry: Free, by invitation. Media not allowed: this is for parents and siblings. Please RSVP to Magdalene at info@Centerforcounselling.org

Chennai Rainbow LGBT Pride 2010