A conversation on LGBTQIA+ Leadership in Times of COVID-19 with Anish Gawande, Founder of The Pink List; Rituparna Borah, Co-Founder of Nazariya QFRG; and Grace Banu, Founder of Trans Rights Now Collective The panel will be moderated by Rafiul Alom Rahman, Founder of The Queer Muslim Project.
The panel discussed alternative ways of advocacy and organising in times of crisis. It also highlighted some of the existing relief efforts and support initiatives undertaken by the LGBTQIA+ community to combat COVID-19. This event was part of an online #CovidKindness campaign run by The Queer Muslim Project and Ms.Wafa Hamid – a US Embassy PAS Exchange Programs Alumni and one of the recipients of the US Embassy Alumni Micro Grants Competition, in association with the U.S. Embassy India, alumni of US government exchange programs & Swechha.
The virtual event took place on Tuesday, 28 April at 6 PM IST.
About the speakers:
Anish Gawande is a writer and translator. He is the director of the Dara Shikoh Fellowship and the co-founder of The Pink List. Gawande graduated with a degree in comparative literature and society from Columbia University and is currently a Rhodes Scholar pursuing a degree in intellectual history at Oxford University.
Rituparna Borah, Nazariya, Co-Director and Co-Founder: Rituparna is a queer feminist activist working on issues gender and sexuality for almost 15 years. Her expertise lies in planning and conducting training sessions on sexuality with organisations, collectives, rural communities, gender trainers, lawyers, students and government officials.
Grace Banu is a Dalit Transgender activist and writer from Tamil Nadu. Founder/Director of Trans Rights Now Collective, she’s actively involved in relief work for transgender communities in rural and urban Tamil Nadu.
Rafiul Alom Rahman is the Founder of The Queer Muslim Project. He currently represents India on the Beijing+25 Global Youth Task Force set up by UN Women to strengthen gender-responsive action and to achieve the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals. Nominated as a “Young Change-maker” by The Hindu Business Line in 2018, Rafiul brings with him a decade of experience in gender and sexuality rights organising.