As Sepia Mutiny reported, FIA, the Federation of Indian Associations, has banned the local LGBT group (SALGA) from marching in the New York India Day parade.  I'm not a huge fan of national parades, to understate it, but I am even less of a fan of a bunch of self-serving people claming to represent an entire community and then acting in a discriminatory manner against people who have less power than them in the community.  It's abhorrent, regressive (literally...this battle had been won already), and shouldn't stand.  SALGA will be holding a demonstration as well as marching with SAKHI in the Parade, and you can see the relevant information in a comment I left on the SM thread.

Thanikfully, the FIA is dumb and have left the mobile numbers of their Executive Committee up on the web..  I strongly encournage you to call them and tell them  that it is not acceptable for Indian American groups and the organisers of the India Day Parade to discriminate against anyone, including South Asian LGBT people.  Note that I am not affiliated with SALGA these days and just suggesting this on a personal level.  However, I am pissed.  No one has the right to organise in  my city and speak on behalf of my community and then f"£k people over; I don't care how important you think you are.  If you want to see sample talking points, you can, again, see the message in the SM comments I left that's from SALGA folks.

FIA Executive Commitee

President
Dipak Patel
973-464-4515
dipakpatel@fianynjct.org