Talking about being gay or a lesbian has never been easy, no matter, which country or culture you belong to.
Naturally, Rishi Agarwal was anxious, when he decided to come out to his parents. Being an Indian-Origin Canadian, Rishi Agarwal never discussed sex or sexuality with his parents at home.
“Typically, the response in the South Asian community is not the most open minded and supportive of (LGBT) people,” he told . “… it makes it ever harder to really openly talk about LGBT issues,” he added.
But he gathered the courage to tell his parents and was pleasantly surprised by their reaction when he said, “Mom and Dad, I’m gay.”
"I still remember the day," Vijay Agarwal told CBC News.
Source: CBC News
His usually-talkative father went quiet and his mom started crying.
"The only thing we knew is what you watch on the news. Gay — so that means boys loving boys and girls loving girls and that's about the extent of information we had," Rishi’s father, Vijay said.
Rishi’s mother, Sushma was anxious over what relatives would think.
"I was just speechless. I was in tears," she said. "I couldn't sleep. It was really tough for me."
But his parents were determined to not lose their son. They realised that they needed to be there for their son.
Over the next few days, the Agarwals gathered more information about the LGBT issues and gained understanding so as to support their son.
"We as parents are worried about society, our friends and our family and what they are going to think of us but we never think what the child has gone through. We realized it was much more painful for the child," Sushma said.
His parents’ support has been unrelenting and unconditional since Rishi came out. When seven priests refused to conduct a hindu wedding ceremony for Rishi and his partner Daniel, Vijay resolved to conduct the ceremony himself.
“But the eight priest agreed,” father said.
Rishi wed Daniel Langdon in an extravagant Hindu ceremony with all the hindu rituals.
The Agarwals, now in retirement, are running the new Peel chapter of PFLAG (Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gay) aimed at creating awareness and give support specifically to the South Asian community in Canada.
Source: CBC News
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