WITH Dr Sarah Gill becoming Pakistan’s first transgender medical graduate and then getting employed as a doctor, the glimmer of hope has brightened up for the transgender community that has been ridiculed and deprived of its basic rights since forever.

While the law of the land is the custodian of the rights for the third gender, it cannot guarantee social acceptance to any of the marginalised communities. Society itself has to step up and forward in this regard.

George Bernard Shaw rightly said that progress is impossible without change and “those who cannot change their minds cannot change anything”. Therefore, legislation is only a pillar, but sustainable change can only come through changing the mindsets.

Regrettably, being a transgender in our society is more of a sin than a stigma. Such people are generally abandoned right after birth. They remain deprived of their rights and are compelled to beg, dance or do whatever it takes just to stay alive. We make fun of them, and refer to them with derogatory terms. What we fail to understand is that being a transgender is not a choice; it is an identity just different than ours. All these people want is for society to accept them for who they are.

They should be given equal respect and opportunities to learn and to earn a decent livelihood. They must be provided their due right to healthcare facilities so that no one dies in the future because of the confusion among hospital staff.

Transgender people carry with themselves a constant and crippling weight of hate.

If we cannot lessen their burden, we must not add to it. We should try to make a difference. Surely, many such people have the potential to become skilled professionals, as has been proven beyond doubt or debate by Dr Sarah Gill.

It is time to support the community, to alleviate its morale and to help it achieve in every possible way. Transgenders should not be forced to question their existence just because we were too insensitive to understand them.

Dr Kashf Irfan
Gujrat

Published in Dawn, February 13th, 2022