Discover more of the most important events for the Latin LGTB+ community, learn how it has been evolving through the years and be part of this new era where a path of equality and acceptance its starting for Argentina, Ecuador and Peru.
ARGENTINA – Pride Week
This amazing parades take place in one of the most gay-friendly cities of Latin America, Buenos Aires. This spirited city has a display of celebrations and events during one colorful and vibrant week and one annual parade on early Saturday in November, this to honor the founding on 1067 of “Nuevo Mundo” the first gay association in Argentina.
The first parade ever in Buenos Aires was back in 1992, where only 300 people attend the event and some even wore masks to protect their identities. Nowadays and 28 years later the pride parade is one of the biggest in Latin America with more 100,000 people from different parts of the world united celebrating love.
During this week various events take place, but the last part is the central parade that has the same route and pass by Avenida de Mayo, Casa Rosada, Plaza de Mayo and more important buildings, ending in the congress where displays of music, dances and speeches from representatives of the community are given. Of course the night will not end there but continue into clubs, pubs and bars!
ECUADOR – Pride Week
Ecuador had its own stonewall moment which was on 1997, when unfairly people was punished due to homosexual practices under the Ecuadorian law of that time. When after much torture and abuse finally on 1998 a new law took place to vindicate the Ecuadorian LGTBQ+ community where discrimination to any gender orientation will no longer be accepted and additionally to that people was given their esthetics freedom which was in in favor to trans people. Ecuador then become the 1st country in Latin America to include a low that protect the community in its constitution and the 3rd in the world.
On this environment is that the first Pride Parade was organized in Quito on 2001 almost a hundred people attended the event to celebrate equality. These days’ massive parades are taking place on Quito and Guayaquil. To check more details of the parade ORGUIO as the Ecuadorian call their pride parade in honor to the word pride in Spanish that is ORGULLO, the ORQUIO website includes all the details of the next event in 2020 such as the route, timelines, venues and so much more.
PERU – Pride Week
Everything started back in 1995 when the Gay and Lesbian community got tired of the police abuse at the time. Then a group of the activist of the LGTBQ+ community decide to make a protest in Parque Kennedy in Miraflores where only 24 people attended the event, they were pretty much activists and founders of the Mhol first gay and lesbians’ association in Peru. Surely, it was not easy and they were scared and they also used masks to protect not only their identities but also their families and jobs.
From there and little by little the community grew stronger until finally in June of 2002 the first LGBTQ+ Pride Parade took place in Lima. Nowadays not only a massive parade takes place in the capital there are also movements between June and July in different departments inside the country which is quite remarkable. Even though there is still a lot to fight for this is an amazing example to keep working and participate on this parades.
Every country has a story to tell and its own stonewall moment, let’s learn from the past and move towards a brighter future of equality and inclusivity.
