Despite Progress, LGBTI Latin Americans Still Fighting for Their Lives Sandra Cuffe - teleSUR
go to original May 17, 2016

Gay rights in Latin America (The Economist)

LGTBI people in Latin America and the Caribbean continue to be criminalized and killed because of who they are and who they love.

Rainbow pride flags are flying throughout the hemisphere this week, in celebration of the International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia.

Recent years have seen significant advances in LGBTI rights, particularly in South America. However, people in Latin America and the Caribbean continue to be criminalized and killed because of who they are and who they love.

Homophobia and transphobia manifest in a range of ways in the region, including violations of basic rights to identify, health, education, work and housing, according to Josefina Valencia Toledano, co-secretary of the International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association (ILGA) for Latin America and the Caribbean.

“In addition to the obstacles to the exercise of all rights, extreme violence also occurs in our region. Hate crimes, murders due to homophobia and transphobia, and 'corrective' rapes of lesbians are among the most unfortunate expressions of the violence,” Valencia Toledano told teleSUR English.

A decentralized campaign and day of action, the International Day Against Homophobia was established in 2004 to draw attention to the violence and discriminaton against LGBTI people around the world. Transphobia was explicitly added to the name in 2009, and Biphobia followed in 2015.

May 17 was chosen to commemorate the date in 1990 when the World Health Organization declassified homosexuality as a mental disorder.

Read the rest at teleSUR

Related: Today Is International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia, and Biphobia (Chicago Now)

Related: Homophobic/Transphobic Violence Not Only Impacts #LGBTI Students (UNESCO)

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