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Article: A place to call home; homosexuality has been illegal in India since 1860.(First person: Betu Singh)(Legislation)
- Article from:
- The Advocate (The national gay & lesbian newsmagazine)
- Article date:
- May 23, 2006
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2006 Regent Media. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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The law, Section 377, covers "unnatural offences," and it's very difficult to strike down because it includes childhood sexual abuse. Many cops use the law to blackmail men into giving them sex or money, but they don't seem to target women as much.
Even though I'd been attracted to other women since I was 8 or 9, I didn't even call myself a lesbian before I met my ex-girlfriend Cath. She's from the U.K. and was the first open lesbian I'd ever met. Before that I'd only dated straight women.
Through Cath I met many lesbians from abroad and within India. I knew there must be more Indian women who didn't have support, or help, or places they could go. I ...