02 August,2026 07:56 AM IST | Mumbai | Arpika Bhosale
Rayyan Monkey at the pride march in Mumbai earlier this year
Gen Z are often described as digital natives - the first generation that has no concept of life without social media - and therefore the ones who took the meme culture of the early 2000s to the next level. And no one expects memes to be politically correct or sensitive; if anything, their power comes from shock value. But the LGBTQIA+ community was not laughing during the recent CJP protests, when the same memes - some of which were queer- and transphobic - were turned into dissent posters and slogans.
While we might think that the perennially online Gen Z has access to everything there is to know about the nuances of how language can be queer-affirmative or offensive, we must understand that this is also the generation that has also been exposed to incel culture. Now add a dash of toxic masculinity, courtesy the manosphere and its heroes like Andrew Tate and Clavicular who punch down on anything that doesn't fit the macho man mould. With so much contradictory noise around them, perhaps we can all be a little kinder to Gen Z.
As a Millennial, this writer has rarely agreed with the ridiculous stereotypes slapped onto the generation following us. It's important to note that Millennials are far from perfect awareness of queer and trans conversations. We are still learning, and some have never attempted to learn. But the hope is that Gen Z, and soon Alpha, will be better at embracing all the colours of the rainbow.
What the protests did do, though, was bring Gen Z out of their silos. A savarna and a Dalit, a Muslim and a Hindu, Left and Right, homophobic and queer alike stood shoulder to shoulder.
And as they say, it's hard to hate your enemy once you see them face to face.
Rayyan Monkey, a transwoman, uploaded a video of a Gen Z protestor carrying a transphobic poster and the showdown that followed
At the age of 35, Rayyan Monkey believes that there is a slight difference in the kind of phobia she has experienced from Gen Z. "Most Millennials had seen progressiveness while growing up. An alternative point of view was easily accessible," they say. But incel culture has made it harder for Gen Z to access these ideas, and the algorithm tends to swing towards that which fuels hate and division. "With incel culture, that access to different points of view has shrunk further in mainstream discourse. So it's easy for him [the boy in her video] to look me in the eye and not feel anything while continuing with his transphobia," they add.
The video in question shows a young protestor in a black t-shirt with a bra painted over it, with a poster depicting political leaders in women's clothes. "This is transphobic, you are making fun of me. Do you think a man wearing lipstick is funny?" Rayyan asks the youth. The boys mutter a quick sorry, laugh, and carry on. Another offensive poster featured a transwoman who was filmed using metaglasses without their consent is ripped by a friend of Rayyan's. The lack of consideration was a bit irksome to Rayyan, a filmmaker based out of the city. "He just wanted me to get out of his face so he could continue with the behaviour," they say, adding, however, that there is a marked difference in how women react to the incident.
Gen Z's reaction to the video has largely been positive, but there were also a few "really crazy and hateful comments, but they were a minority". Rayyan points out something interesting, "My personal experience from my college days to now is that women are very helpful. But the men are not as supportive," they add.
Rayyan, who was also present during the Transgender Bill protests, does feel that Gen Z might listen when talked to. "I feel they are more open to dialogue and understanding and that's always a good place to start," they say.
Ujjwal Singh went viral after they were targeted at the June 6 protest for being queer. But they still believe that the majority of Gen Z is open to learning
Toxic Internet culture turned Ujjwal Singh into a meme for bring one of the first openly queer-presenting people at the first CJP protest at Jantar Mantar on June 6 after his Common University Entrance Test (CUET) was cancelled.
"Everyone knows what happened to me and Harshit [Singh] when we went to the protest [they were targeted for presenting queer]. But the homophobic crowd was not part of the core group of protestors," they say.
They do, however, feel that even those who do not have queer friends came to the protest with an open mind and went back with a better understanding of the LGBTQIA+ perspective. "I spoke with so many of them who had never met a gay man before. When I told them that certain words and phrases are offensive, they actually listened and soaked up the information," they add.
Do they that many from Gen Z went back with a more tolerant understanding of the queer community, the 19-year-old says, "Definitely. That is why I really miss the protest. People were smiling and speaking with everyone. I felt safe in that space."
Krey Kannojia, a 27-year-old queer Dalit who has recently returned from the Delhi protest, says queer education is a journey
Krey Kannojia felt that queer- and transphobia comes from a place of misogyny, more than anything else. "A lot of people at the protests came from economically weak backgrounds, and so not everyone has had access to queer education. I am not trying to justify trans or queerphobia but I felt that this was a good place for many to get that exposure. At the end of the protest, many of those Gen Z who have never seen a trans or a queer-presenting person in their life went from looking at them with a weird look to kind of just looking at them and moving on⦠and I think that is a win," they add.
Krey too is missing the feeling of solidarity that was developed at the protest and have come back to the maximum city with the hope that this new understanding only deepens.
