Journey towards Social Inclusion: Initiatives of Social Workers for Hijra

It is very important for the hijra people, in terms of the legal framework, to have a distinct gender identity beyond male and female. Generally the hijra populations are excluded from all the economic, civil and social rights due to their diverse gender approach and culture. Through this identity, they can work in the mainstream economic field and able to live in a society which accepts them.  In order to ensure social inclusion, community’s quality of life as well as social changes are needed. The social workers are actively trying to create awareness among the people in the society regarding this marginalized group of people. However, only social workers cannot make the change. The government should also advocate for their rights. If government doesn’t support the social workers in this issue, there is a high risk of being banned due to the unfair social and religious power. In this aspect, the government need to be more committed. The social workers can play a significant role in this process. They can involve the community more closely while working for hijra. Also they can persuade the government to approve the legal support, gender right and social inclusion for hijra.

This paper tries to describe and investigate the recent social position of hijra. It also tries to explore the way social workers work with these people and the outcome of their work.

Reference:

Habib, T. (2013). A Long Journey towards Social Inclusion: Initiatives of Social Workers for Hijra Population in Bangladesh.

https://gupea.ub.gu.se/bitstream/2077/32545/1/gupea_2077_32545_1.pdf