Tread softly...

“... because you tread on my dreams,”
Yeats, I know... More commonly referred to as “What was that poem that British geezer in Equilibrium is reading?” But why is it this little excerpt from He Wishes for the Cloths of Heaven at all relevant? Who says it is? Maybe it is and maybe it isn’t. You’ll just have to find out, won’t you?

A landmark judgment (I’m certain I’ve had that phrase a good few thousand times since yesterday) was passed by the Delhi high court just yesterday and it knocked major chunks off one of the most oppressive, inhuman and backward elements of the Indian Penal Code (aka the tome for India’s justice system). This element has long blighted and dehumanised a significant section of the population.

The following is the article in its abridged form:
Unnatural offences: Whoever voluntarily has carnal intercourse against the order of nature with any man, woman or animal, shall be punished with imprisonment for life, or with imprisonment of either description for term which may extend to ten years, and shall also be liable to fine.
Explanation: Penetration is sufficient to constitute the carnal intercourse necessary to the offense described in this section

Until yesterday, homosexuality used to be lumped under “carnal intercourse against the order of nature with any man, woman or animal”. Until yesterday, it was a criminal offence to be gay. Until yesterday. Many — gay and straight alike — rejoiced as the verdict was over. The battle was won. And India had taken a major step into the 21st Century.

So what do I have to rant about then, you may well ask.

Not a few hours had passed since the verdict, that murmurs of disapproval turned louder and cruder. As usual, right-wing parties were opposing the decriminalisation of homosexuality. But they’re about as relevant these days as the Laser Disc, so screw them. What caught me a little off-guard was when people I’ve known for a while as decent, broad-minded people seemed to have suddenly had a change of heart.

“Good grief, now these homos will be rampant all over the place,.. doing their thing” was one of those remarks. “Does this mean that kids who are gay will openly be gay in schools that I send my kids too?” was another brilliant chunk of insight I was privy to, which is almost up there with a question I remember from sex ed. class in Class 7 — “Can ‘homo-ness’ spread by touching a homo?”. Genius.

The award however goes to “Decriminalisation will just encourage them now”. Encourage them to do what? Live without fear of prosecution, persecution and of course, being extorted by policemen? That’s right. Sources tell me that the Mumbai police is among the most homophobic citizens of the city. So the decriminalisation will hit them worst, presumably, if they can’t extort money from gay people threatening to arrest them. Fact? Possibly.

Right now, however, all is well. Most people are busy thumping themselves heartily on their backs that they are such an open-minded and tolerant people. “Ah yes, we accept and tolerate homosexuality, don’t you know... And we’ve saved up for our annual trip to Switzerland... Life is good”. When the proverbial honeymoon period is over, that’s when shit will hit the fan. I dread to imagine it.

I guess this is where Yeats’ line — maybe not in the same context as the poem — comes in. Through decriminalisation, a number of hitherto pariahs have been handed back their dreams. Dreams of walking arm-in-arm with their same-sex partner along the beach, without a care in the world about who’s going to try and come and swear at them or worse, beat them up. Dreams of filling in forms that require a partner’s name and entering the name of a person of the same sex. Now that they’ve been handed their dreams, let’s not trample all over them. What say?