Online forum to answer queries on LGBTQI finds instant connect

NEW DELHI: Two years after Section 377 was decriminalised, the LGBTQ+ rights movement finds itself still craving for spaces and platforms where it can share the community’s experiences of coming to terms with identity, social response to the same and associated concerns like violence and discrimination.
Now two queer women and a trans masculine person, all in their twenties, have launched an online forum called, ‘The Second Puberty’, which allows users to submit questions anonymously and find “connection, validation and advice”.
Since its launch in July, 50 odd queries have been received. A 19-year-old struggling to understand both her gender and ‘attraction’ wonders if she is asexual or aromantic. Similarly, “Odd_dorkly” is gender fluid and struggling to make friends as an adult.
“Confused soul” is a man nearing 30, but in his 20s he has had both men and women as sexual partners. He is currently in love with a woman and has not had sex with a man for over six months. He says “How do I know I won’t go back that route 20 years later in my life-?”Venika Menon, the forum founder, pointed that by bringing “taboo” topics to the forefront, the forum wants to give space for people to grapple with their values and internal contradictions. Development researcher Menon says the name ‘The Second Puberty’ comes from the theory of queer-temporality which states that queer people (especially trans people) often experience a second puberty when they “come out” and find self-acceptance.