Desi LGBTQ+ Helpline for South Asians (DeQH)

DeQH is the first and only national Desi lgbtQ+ Helpline in the United States. We offer free, confidential, culturally sensitive peer support, information and resources for LGBTQ+ South Asian individuals, families and friends around the globe. We want to offer a safe and supportive ear for callers to share their concerns, questions, struggles or hopes through conversations with our trained South Asian peer support volunteers. We are a volunteer collective of South Asian queer and trans individuals across the United States.

Peer support is centrally about people with similar experiences providing support for each other as equals. For us, this is based in our shared identities as people who trace our ancestry to the South Asian subcontinent and identify or are still exploring our identities under the LGBTQ+ umbrella, including those who are curious or questioning and those who do not want to label themselves.

There are different models to provide peer support. We provide non-crisis emotional support by phone and email during a limited set of hours per week. We do not offer crisis support or long-term support (e.g., speaking with the same person regularly). This means you can call us during our open hours and whomever answers will listen openly and empathetically to what you want to discuss at that time. If you write to us, we will provide a response and also encourage you to call us to speak with someone. If you are in crisis, want longer-term support, and/or are looking for other resources, we will do our best to direct you to other services that are better suited to meet those needs.