Closet Homosexualtiy in South Asia
~ Anonymous
The closeted South Asian lgbt community is largely ignored within our community. No one assumes the typical dark haired South Asian could be a homosexual in the first place. There seems to be a need to hide one’s homosexual desires, especially for those people who grew up in their home countries and has not resided in America their entire lifetimes. The primary problem which results in such veiled behavior probably comes from the lack of adult role models to accept homosexuality within South Asian societies. Attitudes would need to be changed for the future generations of South Asians to feel more comfortable with their sexual orientations. Although TV shows and then world of media expresses the idea of being ‘gay’ openly, such openness does end up causing strenuous relationships with closed ones. A lot of South Asians consider being gay as something which will cause their parents to throw them out of the house and just cause a lot of arched eyebrows and discomfort within social gatherings. Happiness can be achieved within the lifestyle and sexual partners that the South Asian homosexual wants but the constraints enforced by religion, parents and friends just end up causing numerous bouts of depression, anxiety and anger, as if it is wrong and deviant to be gay. People just tell them to remove such ‘dirty’ thoughts. One’s sexual orientation is an inherent feature just like all our other traits like humor, happiness, etc. If we are able to express such attributes, then the idea of concealing one’s sexual preferences should be looked into. The stigmas within our conservative societies should be removed, and then perhaps we might start trenching on a path of equal rights where everyone could be accepted.