Matcha Phorn-in ( Thai: มัจฉา พรอินทร์; born 1979/1980) [1] is a Thai feminist and activist for indigenous and LGBT rights.
Phorn-in grew up in Isan, as a member of an ethnic minority, [2] and was raised by a poor single mother. [3] [4] These factors led her to be bullied in school. [3] Starting at age 9, she began to work on the weekends to support herself and her mother. [3]
Phorn-in was able to attend university after receiving a scholarship. [3] After graduating, she participated in a one-year grauate program at Thammasat University. [3]
Phorn-in is the executive director of Sangsan Anakot Yaowachon, an organization which supports youth from marginalized communities, primarily in the villages on Thailand's border with Myanmar. [2] [5] She founded the organization in 2007. [5] In the organization's first decade, it was able to provide scholarship to 1,000 children, but the program was discontinued in the late 2010s due to lack of financial support. [5]
Phorn-in is a board member of International Family Equality Day (IFED), [6] and a former board member of ILGA Asia. [3] She is a regional council member of the Asia-Pacific Forum on Women, Law and Development (APWLD). [3]
Phorn-in has also spoken in favor of legal abortion up to 20 weeks, compared to Thailand's stricter legal standard of 12 weeks. [7] [8]
In 2020 and 2021, Phorn-in criticized the Thai government for not providing financial aid to ethnic minorities, who consequently were more harshly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. [9]
In 2023, Phorn-in was named to the BBC's 100 Women list. [10]
Phorn-in is a lesbian. [2] Her partner also works at Sangsan Anakot Yaowachon. [5] Phorn-in also has an adopted daughter, her biological niece, who was born in the early 2000s to Phorn-in's younger brother. [5] [11] [12] After he and his wife separated, their daughter was raised by her grandmother, until Phorn-in took her in at age 9. [12] However, Phorn-in was not able to legally adopt her daughter until she became a legal adult, as her extended family objected to Phorn-in having a woman as a partner. [11] [13]
Phorn-in and her family live in San Kamphaeng, Chiang Mai. [4] [12] In 2016, a neighbor set fires near their home several times, which Phorn-in believed were driven by homophobia; despite reports made to the police, no action was taken. [12]