Contemporary Indian society displays the paradox of legal recognition of queer status and rights alongside queer exclusion within families. Despite progressive legislative measures enacted in recent years to ensure equal rights for the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and intersex (LGBTQI) community, including decriminalizing homosexuality and providing legal recognition of transgender identities, social support systems remain inadequate. As sociocultural norms in India regard the family as a primary institution that solidifies heteronormative ideals, any form of gender, sexual, erotic, and relational diversity that disrupts traditional family values is met with resistance and disapproval. Utilizing family systems theory, this paper adopts a conceptual approach to analyze how queer youth’s anticipation of negative reactions from family members influences the decision to (not) disclose their non-conforming gender and sexual identity. It further explores how intersecting socio-economic factors, including caste and class hierarchies, remain dominant forces that influence social standing and the acceptance of queer youth within their families. Finally, the paper discusses the complexities of caste- and class-based social stratification in determining not only family exclusion but also their access to other support systems and resources such as education and healthcare.

LAY SUMMARY
This paper discusses how the socio-cultural context, including caste and class distinctions, makes sexual identity disclosure challenging for queer youth in India. It examines how family dynamics influence disclosure decisions and offers recommendations based on Bowen family systems theory that have research and practice implications for increasing familial acceptance.