How the rise of HIV in India resulted in government protections
for gay groups, transgender people, and sex workers
This original
ethnographic research explores the relationship between the HIV/AIDS
epidemic and the rights-based struggles of sexual minorities in
contemporary India. Sex workers, gay men, and transgender people
became visible in the Indian public sphere in the mid-1980s when the
rise of HIV/AIDS became a frightening issue. The Indian state started
to fold these groups into national HIV/AIDS policies as "high-risk"
groups in an attempt to create an effective response to the epidemic.
Lakkimsetti argues that over time the crisis of HIV/AIDS effectively
transformed the relationship between sexual minorities and the state
from one that was focused on juridical exclusion to one of inclusion.
The new relationship then enabled affected groups to demand rights
and citizenship from the Indian state that had been previously
unimaginable. By illuminating such tactics as mobilizing against a
colonial era anti-sodomy law, petitioning the courts for the
recognition of gender identity, and stalling attempts to criminalize
sexual labor, this book uniquely brings together the struggles of sex
workers, transgender people, and gay groups previously studied
separately. A closely observed look at the machinations behind recent
victories for sexual minorities, this book is essential reading
across several fields.