Charmaine Hussain

In this episode, Priya chats with Charmaine Hussain, the proud mom of a queer and trans teenager. Charmaine talks about early childhood experiences for her child, Sameer, and the gender stereotypes that she fell into. Priya then asks about how Charmaine started to confront these assumptions, and Charmaine shares her initial reaction to Sameer's coming out. She opens up about how Sameer helped her navigate her questions and a pivotal experience that opened up their private journey to the public. Then, Charmaine shares how she overcame her fears about log kya kahenge, what people would say, and a truth that helped her realize that society can be more accepting than she thought. Later, Priya asks about how Charmaine developed an understanding about gender identity and Charmaine talks about societal standards of beauty, pronouns, and providing support to her child beyond labels. Finally, Charmaine shares what it was like to share Sameer's journey with her parents in Pakistan, and advice and resources for parents who may be going on a journey of their own. Charmaine ends with advice and an apology to South Asian children, then turns the question on Priya to ask what support they need.

Be sure to also tune into Episode 9 with Charmaine's child, Sameer! You can find more information about this episode on www.queeringdesi.com.