“She was ahead of her time in … leading our movement for equality into a broader movement for freedom and justice and dignity for everyone.” - The Dream of A Common Movement, a collection of Vaid’s writing published following her death in 2022.
Urvashi vaid was a pioneering Indian-American lesbian activist and civil rights attorney. Her vision of LGBTQ activism critiqued calls for assimilation, advocating for politics rooted in coalition and confrontation. On a national level, Vaid headed the National LGBTQ Task Force anf founded the Creating Change Conference. But, as she relates to SALGA and the conflict with the FIA, Vaid was a key fighter for SALGA’s inclusion. Her work helped publicize support for SALGA’s efforts and denounced the parade for its exclusionary politics, making it clear that cultural pride should not come at the expense of queer visibility. Her goal was to expand upon the rights of defining “Indianness” in the diaspora.
“Creating this common movement… what if instead of saying, I’m in coalition with you, we tried to identify how HIV treatment issues connect with racism… And that’s the case in reproductive choice.” -Urvashi Vaid
