Rehumanizing Khwajasaras through children’s comics

Abstract

ABSTRACT Khwajasaras’ recognition crisis and unacceptability in Pakistani society seem to be worsening even though The Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act of 2018 was passed to confer fundamental human rights on the khwajasara community of Pakistan. Transphobic discourses – memes and jokes, being some of the modern forms of epistemic violence and denialism – have further condemned the khwajasara community to a state of subalternity. This paper examines how children’s comics – specifically, Basila and the Street Crew by Shaikh and Ansari (2018)– can effectively transform society’s transphobic attitudes, rehumanise khwajasaras, and compel the readers to reflect on their apathy. Basila and the Street Crew (2017) is Pakistan’s first comic book that addresses transgender discrimination, tackles epistemic violence, and projects a more positive image of the khwajasara community. It is argued that children’s comics can play a vital role in combating epistemic violence and developing the recognition of khwajasaras as proper subjects. We conclude that it is imperative to produce more gender-oriented comics to dismantle society’s concept of gender liminality, which suppresses the interstitial space – the ‘third’ gender/sex.