In the international pride month, Paraguay was also painted in all colors

A bit of history

For more than 50 years, the demands of the LGTBIQ+ liberation movement have resonated worldwide, especially since the Stonewall riots (New York) in June 1969. This event marked a crucial moment of confrontation against authoritarian and conservative culture. It was significant in a context of emerging new social movements that politicized gender and sexuality, embracing pride as a banner of struggle and international celebration to demand respect for sex-gender diversities.

In Paraguay, ten years before the well-known Stonewall case, the LGTBIQ+ community had already made their demands visible. In September 1959, an anonymous letter was published in a newspaper, known as the “Letter from an Amoral” in response to the controversial Case 108, where the police conducted a series of arbitrary arrests and torture of men and women suspected of being homosexuals. The letter called on Paraguayan society to respect the dignity and rights of people, regardless of their sex or sexual orientation.

More than half a century later, far from implementing anti-discrimination policies, the Paraguayan state still has a historical debt to the community. To this day, it continues to deny the right to equal marriage and a law against all forms of discrimination. Additionally, state policies continue to foster the reproduction of gender stereotypes that stigmatize any sex-gender expression or sexual orientation that deviates from the norm. An example is the educational policy promoted by the Ministry of Education and Sciences known as the “Manual of the 12 Sciences”, whose content is criticized for being unscientific. Instead of promoting comprehensive sexuality education, it introduces religious narratives, undermining the rights of sexual diversities.

Faced with these challenges, the Paraguayan LGTBIQ+ movement has organized marches twice a year for over 20 years. These marches take place in June, coinciding with the international month of pride, and in September, in commemoration of the first public demand for the rights of the LGTBIQ+ community in Paraguay with the publication of the “Letter from an Amoral.” This year, the international month of pride was marked by massive actions where thousands of people of all ages, especially young people, took to the streets with banners questioning heteropatriarchal mandates. Various actions took place during June, and as every year, TEDIC was present, offering our resources to the entire community. Join us in this recap of the moments shared with the LGTBIQ+ community!

Marches and celebrations during the international day of LGTBIQ+ pride

Committed to defending the rights of the LGTBIQ+ community and promoting digital security, we participated in the mobilization organized by SOMOSGAY under the slogan “Roguata Tekoporã Rapere” or “Walking on the Path of Well-being” in Spanish, which brought together thousands of people to march through the historic center of Asunción. At the end of the march, we shared resources from our campaigns Libres y Segures en Internet and #MisDatosMisDerechos from our stand in the public space and also from the stage.

We also participated in the march and festival organized by the Paraguayan Network of LGTBIQ+ Artists (REPAR+), where more than four thousand people gathered under the slogan “Reborn in Unity.” This organization emerged as an initiative to promote the dignity, visibility, and defense of the rights of LGTBIQ+ artists in Paraguay. From TEDIC, we took the stage to support and celebrate the founding of this new organization, highlighting the decentralization of actions and opportunities for artists in the community. We also invited the entire community to freely use the digital security resources and other tools available on the “Libres y Segures en Internet” website, a resource specifically designed for the LGTBIQ+ community, and emphasized the need to collectively work towards the enactment of a personal data protection law for all people in Paraguay.

The celebrations continued with the pride festival

And because a month is not enough to celebrate so much pride, the first week of July saw the Pride Festival, produced by the AYVU organization. This major event brought together Paraguayan drag artists, entrepreneurs, vendors, and many others. At the festival, we participated in a fair space where we again offered resources and information about our campaigns Libres y Segures en Internet and #MisDatosMisDerechos to all the more than 200 people who came to share a moment with us. The event was filled with political demands, advocating for the right to be who we are, to live in peace, and to combat the culture of hatred towards the LGTBIQ+ community in Paraguay.

During the event, we also paid tribute to Amarú Gaspar, a beloved member of the LGTBIQ+ community and a rural activist. Amarú was an ambassador for diversity at TEDIC and worked with us in creating material on the importance of the LGTBIQ+ struggle in rural areas. Sadly, his life was cut short under strange and violent circumstances. With #JusticeForAmarú, we honored his legacy and his contribution to the movement.

At TEDIC, we reaffirm, as every year, our commitment to a more inclusive world, where all people can live proudly and without violence, being who they are.