Will Changing Our Profile Pictures Help Homosexuality In India?

Does changing our profile pictures on a social networking site help in changing the mindset about homosexuality in India? 

The recent verdict by the Supreme Court of United States of America or #SCOTUS legalizing gay marriages has been lauded worldwide. A popular social media website came up with a program, where users could post rainbow coloured profile pictures as a mark of celebration for the ruling.

Soon after the pronouncement, the weekend was well spent when all and many changed their digital avatar basking in the celebration. I did not change my picture that is not to say I am not glad. This was much needed but the way we celebrated was where I had my doubts.

US is not the first country to legalize gay marriages.

US is not the first country to legalize gay marriages. You just need to look across the Atlantic – The Netherlands did it way back in 2001 and many followed suit. So why is it now being lauded so much?

Are we deeming Uncle Sam to be the supreme authority on human rights? Especially when friends from Beijing have just denounced them for police brutality and global surveillance… Anyway, that’s beside the point!

I genuinely feel that changing an online icon or picture within the cosy confines of a room on a lazy weekend doesn’t serve anyone or even change ones attitude towards the so called ‘different people’. How many of us would actually help someone who’s homosexual get wedded to his/her partner? Wouldn’t we still continue to stare, smirk or pass comments if we happen to notice them in our vicinity?

Why is it that we as a society are not maturing enough to think for ourselves, especially our problems?

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Do we really need a judgement from another country to make us realize that every human being has the right to choose the way he/she wants to live and that we have no right whatsoever to judge that?

For the record, they just criminalized homosexuality in my country.

By merely expressing our support to what has happened in some other country, are our parliamentarians going to change our law? (For the record, they just criminalized homosexuality in my country).

Mahatma Gandhi once famously said ‘Be the change you want to see in the world’ – his fellow countrymen still remain hesitant to bring about a revolution themselves. That is when our demographic dividend will be put to best use. I saw a glimpse of that happening for the net neutrality issue, but nothing so far on the social causes. I guess the Internet is far more important these days than anything else.

The SCOTUS verdict and the support thereafter does increase awareness about homosexuality but the awareness drive will make sense only when it sinks deeper into our minds, goes beyond the computer screen and gets translated into actions, however small they are. Such drives should not merely become social fads, but should revolutionize our collective consciousness, backed by actions.

Till then along with our pictures, our minds are going to remain coloured.

Image via Shutterstock

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