Sunday, November 15, 2009

New Delhi's 'eunuchs' forge lives in conservative nation

The "third sex," called eunuchs in Indian English and hijras in Urdu and Hindi, live a tough life in India according to an article from CNN.com. Though many of them are called eunuchs, they are usually not eunuchs by definition and are in fact intersexual, meaning that their external and internal sexual organs may not match. The hijras have a long history in Indian culture and used to be considered trusted loyalists by Indian royalty. These days, however, they are more or less cordoned off in their own small communities and treated as outsiders. They make meager livings by begging in the streets, prostituting themselves, and performing blessings and dances at events such as weddings and births. Hijra blessings have long been valued by Indian culture, although today many worry about the hijras bringing curses. This past Friday, the hijras won a small victory when they won a longtime fight to be recognized as "others" on voting forms instead of being forced to mark male or female. They see this as a very small step in the right direction, but a step nonetheless.

By: Kimberly Severns

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