NAHARLAGUN, 17 Jul: The AP Queerstation (APQ) conducted its third ‘queer community meet-up’ in the auditorium of the Oju Welfare Association (OWA) here on Saturday.
The event included a session on “the importance of LGBTQ+ visibility for public awareness and the significance of education to break down the social taboo that is hovering over the community,” the APQ stated in a release on Sunday.
The meet-up was attended by 15 LGBTQ+ members from the capital region and a few who travelled from Ziro and West Kameng districts. The meet was also attended by a few allies, comprising mental health professionals from the AAPPA, along with legal rights practitioners.
A short film, titled Gender Identity, was screened during the meet, which was followed by “a brief story-sharing, wherein core members of APQ, TR Nending (he/him), Taw Simon Tara (she/her), Rituraj Borah (he/him) and others shared their lived experiences to invoke a sense of community bonding and peer support,” it said.
Lawyer and activist Ebo Mili (he/him) shared his concern for the community and assured that his team would “put their best foot forward in fighting for the community concerning their rights and other important legal battles in the future.”
Stressing on the impact of trauma, psychologist Yuma Narah (she/her) reminded everyone of “the significance of being careful with one’s words, thoughts and language as something trivial for someone can be a triggering factor for another.”
She stressed on the importance of “venting out to a significant person in life and adapting to healthy alternative ways of coping,” adding that “when the situation goes out of hand and the caregiver fails to provide adequate assistance, professional intervention cannot be overlooked.”
APQ founder Sawang Wangchha (he/him) stressed on “the importance of community meet-ups and how unanimous unity can help in the all-around development of the queer community.”
He expressed gratitude to OWA chairperson Ratan Anya (she/her) for her “relentless support in favour of the community, and for providing them with a safe space to conduct their meeting.”
The team will organise more such community meets every month, along with awareness and sensitisation programmes, in the days to come, the APQ said.
