Central America
Hundreds Marry as Mexico Celebrates Marriage Equality, Gender ID Law
The nation continues to make strides in equality. Jubilant transgender folks and same-sex couples celebrated in Mexico City on Friday. The Associated Press reported 120 couples were able to marry under the slogan, “Hand in hand, we march with pride,” a representative of Mexico’s capital city said in a statement. Many transgender people were also… Read more »
Hundreds Marry as Mexico Celebrates Marriage Equality, Gender ID Law
The nation continues to make strides in equality. Jubilant transgender folks and same-sex couples celebrated in Mexico City on Friday. The Associated Press reported 120 couples were able to marry under the slogan, “Hand in hand, we march with pride,” a representative of Mexico’s capital city said in a statement. Many transgender people were also… Read more »
Marriage Equality Now Legal Across All of Mexico
In Mexico, marriage equality is officially extended to everybody across the nation, regardless of where they live. The enactment of marriage equality represents the successful completion of a process that took more than 12 years. Tamaulipas legalized marriages between same-sex partners when its legislators voted in favor of the measure Wednesday night, making it the… Read more »
Hundreds Marry in Mass LGBTQ+ Wedding in Mexico City
In Mexico City, hundreds of same-sex couples were married Friday during the first Pride celebration since the pandemic forced the city’s annual mass ceremony to be postponed two years ago due to health concerns. A band played traditional tunes like Mendelssohn’s “Wedding March” as couples exchanged their vows, the Associated Press reports. The city’s government… Read more »
Kissing Gay Men Arrested On Mexican Beach
Two gay men were arrested shortly after the pair kissed on a public Mexican beach. After seeing the two men handcuffed and escorted away a crowd rallied, forcing the police to release them, Out reports. A video of the incident showing the two men being handcuffed by armed officers was uploaded to Facebook (check it… Read more »
Honduras amends constitution to make legalising marriage equality almost impossible
The conservative Central American country of Honduras has amended its constitution to make legalising marriage equality and abortion almost impossible. Although homosexuality was legalised in Honduras in 1899, same-sex marriage has been banned in the country since the constitution was amended to explicitly forbid it in 2005. This amendment also prevented same-sex adoption and the… Read more »
From The Field: Misunderstood and mistreated; transgender women in Mexico
A group of transgender women in Mexico City has been telling the UN how despite living with discrimination and the threat of physical violence, they have managed to help others in a poor neighbourhood of the Mexican capital during the COVID-19 crisis. The Women of “Casa de las Muñecas Tiresias” shelter, have been providing up… Read more »
Mexico City Archbishop Backs Civil Unions For Gay Couples
Mexico’s highest-ranking Catholic bishop has said that he agrees with recent comments by Pope Francis in support of civil unions for gay and lesbian couples. Francis made the comments in Francesco, a documentary on Pope Francis that premiered in October at the Rome Film Festival. “Homosexuals have a right to be a part of the… Read more »
Mexico City Bans ‘Ex-Gay’ Therapy
Lawmakers in Mexico City on Friday approved a bill that criminalizes therapies that attempt to alter the sexual orientation or gender identity of people who identify as LGBT. Such therapies go by names such as “conversion therapy,” “reparative therapy,” “sexual orientation change efforts” or “ex-gay therapy.” According to Reuters, the bill received support from several… Read more »
Ruling Legalizing Gay Marriage In Costa Rica Takes Effect Tuesday
Conservative lawmakers in Costa Rica are attempting to block a ruling legalizing same-sex marriage from taking effect on Tuesday. Costa Rica’s constitutional court in 2018 struck down the nation’s ban on gay and lesbian couples marrying. The court’s majority opinion gave lawmakers 18 months to change the law. Otherwise its ruling would take effect on… Read more »
Same-sex marriage has finally been legalised in Costa Rica
Equal marriage has finally been legalised in Costa Rica, with the first-ever same-sex marriage registrations to be processed at the end of this month. According to Q Costa Rica, the country’s Civil Registry will begin processing the registrations on May 26. Official Luis Guillermo Chinchilla told the publication that everything had been prepared, and said:… Read more »
First murder of transgender woman in El Salvador this year reported
Editor’s note: The Washington Blade published a Spanish version of this article on Sunday. Ciudad Delgado, El Salvador — A transgender woman was found dead in El Salvador on Jan. 17. The body of Briyit Michelle Alas, 22, was found in the Santa Margarita 2 neighborhood of Ciudad Delgado. She was not immediately identified because… Read more »
Being gay in Guatemala is ‘a political issue’
Aldo Davila took office this month as Guatemala’s first ever openly gay member of parliament. He spoke to DW about this historic moment in a country where homophobia is still rampant. Guatemala’s Aldo Davila has been interested in politics since he was a teenager. He has always empathized with those struggling in Guatemala’s unequal and… Read more »
Costa Rica says YES to marriage equality and transgender rights
The IACHR has issued a landmark ruling stating that Costa Rica must guarantee same-sex couples have equal rights and have given transgender individuals rights to name and gender change on official documents. On Tuesday, the Inter-American Court of Human Rights (IACHR) issued a landmark ruling that recognises same-sex marriage and transgender rights in Costa-Rica. The… Read more »
Sorry about it homophobes, but Belize’s appeal courts just unanimously ruled that gay sex is definitely legal
A battle against an outdated colonial law has finally come to an end, after the court of appeals in Belize unanimously upheld a 2016 ruling that a ban on gay sex is unconditional. Section 53 of the country’s criminal code, which dubbed same-sex desire as “against the order of nature”, was found to go against… Read more »
Sorry about it homophobes, but Belize’s appeal courts just unanimously ruled that gay sex is definitely legal
A battle against an outdated colonial law has finally come to an end, after the court of appeals in Belize unanimously upheld a 2016 ruling that a ban on gay sex is unconditional. Section 53 of the country’s criminal code, which dubbed same-sex desire as “against the order of nature”, was found to go against… Read more »
Gay marriage in Baja: reforms aim to address discrimination
Mexicali — Same-sex marriage is legal in Baja California. Sort of. To get married in the state, gay and lesbian couples are legally required to overcome costly and lengthy legal obstacles that heterosexual couples never face. The process involves applying for a marriage license, getting rejected by a local clerk, and filing an injunction with… Read more »
Gay marriage in Baja: reforms aim to address discrimination
Mexicali — Same-sex marriage is legal in Baja California. Sort of. To get married in the state, gay and lesbian couples are legally required to overcome costly and lengthy legal obstacles that heterosexual couples never face. The process involves applying for a marriage license, getting rejected by a local clerk, and filing an injunction with… Read more »
Interview-Guatemala’s first openly gay congressman braces for battle
Guatemala’s first openly gay congressman Aldo Davila was only elected two months ago and has yet to take up his seat, but death threats have already stopped him walking the streets of his own city. “People have written messages, ‘You want get to Congress on January 14th, you will die before’,” said the 41-year-old veteran… Read more »
Popular trans television presenter gunned down in Honduras
Santiago Carvajal is now the 78th person in the media to be murdered since 2001 Beloved transgender television presenter, Santiago Carvajal, died on Saturday (6 July)in Honduras after she was shot on Friday. She died at Mario Catarino Rivas Hospital in San Pedro Sula, the Central American country’s second most important city, according to El… Read more »
Gay characters make history as leads of new Mexican telenovela
LGBTI characters are becoming more visible on soaps worldwide A telenovela in Mexico made history on Sunday (23 June) by starring gay characters as the leads for the first time ever. Juntos, El Corazon Nunca se Equivoca, which premiered last night, is a spinoff of another telenovela, Mi Marido Tiene Mas Familia, which ran from… Read more »
Guatemala Elects First Openly Gay Congressman
Guatemala has elected its first openly gay congressman. According to the AP, Aldo Iván Dávila Morales, who is living with HIV, will take his seat in Guatemala’s congress in January. He will represent a Guatemala City district. “I’m happy, with a lot of mixed feelings,” the 41-year-old Dávila told the outlet. “The worry is I’m… Read more »
Mexican consulates worldwide instructed to perform same-sex marriages
Mexico City – Mexico’s foreign affairs secretary has instructed the country’s consulates throughout the world to allow all citizens, regardless of gender, to marry in their offices. Foreign Secretary Marcelo Ebrard says that a democratic country can’t be built by excluding part of society. More than a dozen Mexican states and the capital allow same-sex… Read more »
One step closer to equality for LGBTI people in Costa Rica
President signs in decrees which include housing benefits and greater recognition of same-sex couples Costa Rica has passed a number of measures which grant various legal and welfare rights to the LGBTI community. The decrees were signed into effect by President Carlos Alvarado on Friday (December 21). The new measures allows same-sex couples in Costa… Read more »
Costa Rica’s Constitutional Court Rules Nation’s Gay Marriage Ban Unconstitutional
Costa Rica’s constitutional court has struck down the nation’s ban on same-sex marriage. According to Reuters, the court’s majority opinion, made public Thursday, will take effect in 18 months. In January, the Inter-American Court of Human Rights (IACHR) called for marriage equality in the region. As a signatory country, Costa Rica is bound by the… Read more »
Exclusive: Nicaragua activists attend Victory Institute workshop
Santa Lucia, Honduras — Five activists from Nicaragua who are participating in protests against their country’s government attended a regional LGBTI workshop that took place in Honduras over the weekend. The activists — who are from the Nicaraguan capital of Managua and the city of Chinandega — are among the 28 people who attended the… Read more »
Costa Rica’s top court rules against gay marriage ban
Bogota (Thomson Reuters Foundation) – Costa Rica’s top court has ruled that a ban on same-sex marriage is unconstitutional, a decision seen as a win for gay rights activists and welcomed by the country’s new president. The Supreme Court gave lawmakers up to 18 months to legalize gay marriage, which has long been opposed by… Read more »
Belize Supreme Court Overturns Anti-Gay Law
A law in Belize criminalizing same-sex intimacy was ruled unconstitutional on Wednesday by the country’s Supreme Court. The challenge to Section 53 of the Belize Criminal Code, which banned “carnal intercourse against the order of nature” and disproportionately affected gay men, was brought by Caleb Orozco, who leads LGBTQ rights group United Belize Advocacy Movement.… Read more »
3 LGBT Rights Activists Murdered In Southern Mexico
According to the AP, the bodies were found on a road between Taxco and Cuernavaca. The bodies had bullet wounds to the head. The victims were identified as activists Ruben Estrada, Carlos Uriel Lopez and Roberto Vega. Roberto Alvarez, a security spokesman for Guerrero, said Tuesday that the killings may have been linked to extortion.… Read more »
Mexico City’s gay subway – in pictures
David Graham had heard that gay men in Mexico City used the underground as a cruising labyrinth – and its ground zero was the legendary ‘last car’. Could it be true? The Last Car: Cruising in Mexico City by David Graham is published by Kehrer Source – The Guardian
Costa Ricans Reject Presidential Candidate Who Opposes Same-Sex Marriage
Costa Rican voters on Sunday rejected a presidential candidate who rose to political prominence by campaigning against marriage rights for gay and lesbian couples. According to The Washington Post, Carlos Alvarado of the ruling Citizen Action Party received 60.8 percent of the vote, while his opponent, Christian evangelical pastor Fabricio Alvarado of the National Restoration… Read more »
Gay club provides normalcy in one of world’s most dangerous cities
San Pedro Sula, Honduras — The two dance floors at Dance Floor, a gay club in the Honduran city of San Pedro Sula’s Zona Viva, were full of people shortly before 11:30 p.m. on Saturday. Two men in their early 20s were dancing perreo, which roughly translates into “doggy style” in English, in one corner… Read more »
El Salvador’s Supreme Court Blocks Constitutional Ban On Same-Sex Marriage
El Salvador’s Supreme Court has blocked a change to the nation’s constitution that would bar same-sex marriage. According to the AP, the nation’s highest court blocked lawmakers from ratifying the measure. The constitutional change would recognize marriage as a heterosexual union and prohibit same-sex couples from adopting children. For the measure to become law, it… Read more »
An incredible court ruling just ordered 16 countries to make same-sex marriage legal
A landmark court ruling has ordered 16 new countries to make same-sex marriage legal. The Inter-American Court of Human Rights reached a decision today on a marriage equality petition submitted two years ago by Costa Rica President Luis Guillermo Solis. 20 countries agreed to follow the court’s rulings when they signed the American Convention on… Read more »
Muxes: gender-fluid lives in a small Mexican town
In the latest Guardian documentary we meet three muxes, people whose gender identity is unique to the Oaxaca region and the indigenous Zapoteca culture In Juchitán, Mexico, muxes – children identified as male at birth, but who choose at a young age to be raised as female – are embraced as part of the community.… Read more »
Sir Ian McKellen honours Belizean LGBT activist who battled to overturn anti-gay law
Sir Ian McKellen has presented this year’s David Kato Vision and Voice Award to an activist who successfully battled to overturn Belize’s anti-gay laws. The David Kato Vision and Voice Award is presented every year in memory of murdered Ugandan LGBT campaigner David Kato. This year, the award was presented by veteran actor and LGBT… Read more »
Mexico’s gay couples fight backlash against same-sex marriage
The supreme court ruled last year that restricting marriage to heterosexuals was discriminatory but well-funded Christian groups are staging a fightback After 19 years together, Inés Acevedo and Yolanda Torres finally tied the knot last September, at a collective wedding in the Mexican city of Querétaro. But their marriage was tragically short lived: less than… Read more »
Belizean LGBT activist to be honoured with David Kato Award for battle to overturn anti-gay law
An LGBT activist from Belize is the winner of this year’s David Kato Vision and Voice Award, in recognition of his successful battle to overturn his country’s anti-gay laws. The David Kato Vision and Voice Award is presented every year in memory of murdered Ugandan LGBT campaigner David Kato. Mr Kato, a Sexual Minorities Uganda… Read more »
The UN’s LGBT expert has advocated for a global partnership to end violence
He advocated for unity in his keynote speech at the International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association (ILGA) in Bangkok. Vitit Muntarbhorn said: “resolute action is required to stop the violence and discrimination affecting not only LGBT communities but also the human rights defenders working with them… “this goes hand in hand with the… Read more »
Belize Government Opens Door For Appeal Of Court Ruling That Legalized Gay Sex
Belmopan, Belize, Monday September 12, 2016 – After weeks of insisting it would not appeal a decision by the country’s chief justice that made sex between consenting homosexuals legal, the Belize government is challenging one aspect of it. It wants the interpretation of the word “sex” in the Constitution to remain male/female instead of extending… Read more »
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