by ROBERT SCHMAD
The Biden administration wants to train at least 200 activists to advocate for transgender rights in India as part of a program ostensibly designed to advance America’s “national interests,” according to a federal grant posting.
President Joe Biden’s State Department plans to “train at least 200 LGBTQI+ community leaders … with preference given to trans and intersex community leaders” by “deliver[ing] specialized legal education and support” which will, in turn, empower “them to advocate for their rights and access the services they need,” according to a grant announcement published on April 8. The department is offering the grant under its Public Diplomacy Programs, which exist to “support the achievement of U.S. foreign policy goals and objectives, advance national interests, and enhance national security.”
The grant opportunity argues that “improved health, education, economic strength, justice and equality” for transgender people in India will ultimately benefit the United States.
The proposed program, titled “Empowering LGBTQI+ Community Leadership Across India,” focuses on transgender and intersex Indians because, according to the State Department, they face both “more severe discrimination and social stigma compared to other groups within the LGBTQI+ spectrum” as well as “unique challenges” when it comes to “accessing education, healthcare, employment and legal recourse against discrimination.”
To accomplish its goals, the program will utilize a “train the trainer” approach, using the 200 people it trains directly to reach a further 2,000 activists within one year. The State Department hopes to set off a “ripple effect” across India through this strategy.
The major Indian cities of Chennai, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Mumbai and New Delhi are all targets under the State Department’s program.
The department is offering between $120,000 and $150,000 for a third party to run the program, which it says will start on August 20.
Funding LGBT initiatives abroad, ostensibly to promote America’s interests, has been a defining factor of the State Department under Biden. Under the Biden administration, the State Department has bankrolled “queer” Muslim writers in India, funded theatrical productions to teach Africans about LBGT rights, backed a ballroom dancing program to “uplift” Peruvian transgender youth and paid a university to churn out “LGBTQI+ allies.”
