14 DAY TRIAL // Indian legislators decided to reverse the 2009 Delhi High Court verdict concerning decriminalized gay relations and reinstated the law that bans same-gender relationships. The decision was effective-immediate and the colonial-era law concerning same-gender relations was reinstated to the outrage of the whole Indian gay community.
Hundreds of activists gathered in the country's capital to protest the decision with rainbow-colored flags and placards stating their anger and dismay. Many protesters were wearing masks or costumes to protect their identity, because of the harsh way the gay community is perceived in India.
But one particular supporter decided to get out there and state her opinion for everyone to see, and took to social media for support. Sapna Bhavnani, celebrity hairstylist from Mumbai, decided to fight back the newly reinstated law and posted a selfie with her kissing her friend online.
“My initial plan was to make out in front of every police station nearby, shouting ‘Arrest me, I'm a criminal.’ [but] I settled on posting the picture on Facebook,” the female protester says, according to Times of India. Immediately after posting the photo, people started hitting the like button and congratulating her for her courage.
Another man decided to fight the system and posted a photo of him kissing his friend accompanied by the hashtag #Gayforaday. He then took it a step forward and made an event page of the campaign inviting everyone who wanted to show support to post photos with same gender companions.
In just a few hours, more than 2,000 people joined and uploaded photos of them and their loved ones, and not only. People who are straight but support the gay community also started posting pictures to help them fight for their cause.
One user wrote “I'm not a gay rights activist, but I'm a gay rights supporter. I wanted to let my family and friends, who are part of the LGBT community, know I support their right to freedom. I did this because I believe people deserve the right to choose their partner,” and many other joined the Facebook event showing their support however they saw fit.
In just one day, the “Gay for a Day” campaign spiked to a worldwide spread, with people from Europe and America joining in showing their support to the Indian Gay Community. Many users changed profile pictures with the campaign's hashtag and all social media means were overwhelmed with people supporting and sharing the trend.