Dear Signers,
Thank you so much for your support. Our collective voice on social media and the pressure exerted by journalists who took notice of my online petition, has meant that the school that terminated me because of my gender identity, has now agreed to institute programs to sensitise students and staff members on gender identity and transgender issues.
Click on this link to share this petition over WhatsApp - https://cutt.ly/F0htpdS. Help this petition get to 10,000 signatures so that no transgender person has to ever face what I went through. Click here to share this petition on Twitter.
Uma Devi Children’s Academy, a private school in Mohammadi-Kheri, Uttar Pradesh, will also set up an on-campus complaint mechanism for transgender staff and students.
This wouldn’t have happened if so many of you hadn’t signed my online petition and journalists wouldn’t have reported about my grievance. My petition was reported about in The Hindu, Hindustan Times, The Independent, Mid-Day, The Print and ABP News, among others.
“We would especially like to thank Ms. JANE KAUSHIK who has helped us by bringing all these issues of the Transgender community into our notice. She will be a part of our Transgender sensitisation programs and will help us to build an on-campus complaint system for Transgender teachers and students,” the school’s Principal wrote in the circular announcing the measures.
I would have liked to immediately return to my job as TGT Social Studies at the school, but the administration has asked me to take an exam on 25th February to once again prove my calibre and suitability for the role. This, despite the fact that I had cleared four rounds of interviews and assessments before I was appointed as a teacher at the school.
Nevertheless, I’m hoping that this could be the start of something big for transgender people in professional spaces. From being bullied and harassed for my gender identity both as a student and as a teacher, to being able to contribute towards building an inclusive and safe environment for transgender staff and students, I’ve come a long way. And this wouldn’t have been possible without your support and encouragement. Thank you!
Having said this, I’m also apprehensive that the promised changes at the school may not occur if I’m not reinstated. For that, I need your continued support. Please keep up the momentum for this campaign. Keep sharing it within your circles and on your social media,
Click on this link to share this petition over WhatsApp - https://cutt.ly/F0htpdS. Help this petition get to 10,000 signatures so that no transgender person has to ever face what I went through. Click here to share this petition on Twitter.