Trans Justice and the Law Clinic (2022-2023)
In collaboration with Transmen Collective and Egale Canada
In 2022, in order to critically engage students with issues at the intersection of law, justice and marginalisation, the Law and Marginalisation Clinic, CJLS offered the Trans Justice and the Law in collaboration with Transmen Collective and Egale Canada to provide students with an opportunity to engage with the contemporary research and writing on the recognition and rights of transgender and gender variant persons in India and globally.
The clinic introduced students to the legislative and judicial history of the recognition of transgender and gender-variant persons through canonical texts on gender, sex and identity, (ii) involved interactions with community activists and scholars who have developed extensive scholarship on issues pertaining to transgender and gender-variant persons, and (iii) equipped students with advocacy skills through the development of a comprehensive handbook on all the legislative and policy measures that have been implemented at the international, national, and state levels for the welfare of transgender and gender-variant persons in India.
The guide has been developed collaboratively through two rounds of consultations with transgender, gender diverse and intersex activists, scholars and other stakeholders dedicated to promoting trans justice in India. These consultations took place during a workshop held in September 2022 and a comprehensive national discussion in March 2023. The manual has greatly benefited from their insights and guidance. Read below for more details on the consultation and the manual.
Consultations
The workshop and the consultation provided us with the opportunity to collaboratively develop the Handbook and ensure its accessibility and usefulness in addressing the continued violation of trans and gender-diverse persons’ rights.
Legal Literacy Workshop and National Consultation on The Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act, 2019
In 2019, the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act (the Act) was introduced during the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and despite objections from transgender and gender-variant persons. Our interactions with transgender and gender variant persons, activists and grassroots organizations have revealed an urgent need to (i) demystify the provisions of the Act for activists and organizations working on-ground, and (ii) increase legal awareness and empowerment among transgender and gender-variant persons on their rights and entitlements under this law. The Trans Justice and the Law Clinic therefore sought to work collaboratively with grassroots movements to draft an updated Handbook on the Act which would serve as an advocacy toolkit for transgender and gender-variant persons and the advancement of their rights.
On March 17 and 18, 2023, the Clinic organised a two-day national consultation to ensure that the Handbook benefits from feedback from transgender and gender-variant communities among experts, scholars, activists as well as other stakeholders in other regions in India to ensure multiple perspectives and representation in the Handbook. The consultation provided stakeholders with the opportunity to provide their feedback on the development of the Handbook, to ensure accessibility and usefulness of the Handbook in addressing the continued violation of trans and gender variant persons’ rights.
Guest Lectures
The Clinic The Clinic hosted several guest lectures during this course including those taught by Vqueeram, Gee Imaan Semmalar, Raja Baga, Jyotsna Sidharth, Ritwik Dutta among others.
Events
The Law & Marginalisation Clinic at the Centre for Justice, Law and Society, Jindal Global Law School in collaboration with Transmen Collective, Egale, Feminist Future Initiative at the University of California, Santa Barbara organised the launch of the Handbook on the Rights of Trans and Gender-Diverse Persons in India in Delhi, India.
April 10, 2024
Launch of the Handbook on the Rights of Trans and Gender-Diverse Persons in India
30 November 2022
Workshop on the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act, 2019
During the first six weeks of the Trans Justice and the Law Clinic, students engaged with critical scholarship on gender identity, queer politics, recognition of transgender and gender variant persons by the judiciary and the legislature, and intersectionality. On September 10, 2022, As part of the course, a Workshop on the Transgender Persons Act was organised to ensure that students adopt a community-centric approach to lawyering and advocacy and have a comprehensive understanding of the framework of the Transgender Persons Act and its on-ground impact and implementation.
The Workshop intended to deliberate and engage with three important issues under the Transgender Persons Act as well as begin discussions on the demystification of the law through a Handbook: Right to Education of Transgender and Gender-variant Persons in India; Opportunities and Rights: Employment of Transgender and Gender-variant Persons in India and Access to Healthcare: Transgender and Gender-variant Persons in India.
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