As Pride Month comes to an end, civil society groups and Colombia’s LGBT+ community persist in an ongoing struggle to combat stigmatization, secure justice for past crimes, and ensure that authorities implement protections as guaranteed under the law. So far this year, in the Caribbean region alone, at least 15 LGBT+ people were killed. In 2020, attacks against LGBT+ leaders and trans people continue even amid the COVID-19 lockdown.
Last year, a study found that, out of nine countries in Latin America and the Caribbean, Colombia registered the highest number of killings of LGBT+ people over a five-year period. But nonetheless, ongoing violence against the LGBT+ community, especially against trans people, reflects a longstanding paradox in Colombia: on paper, the country has one of the strongest legal frameworks in Latin America defending the rights of LGBT+ people however, in practice these protections are rarely enforced.Īfter Brazil, Colombia is perhaps the most dangerous country in the Americas for LGBT+ people. Included in these feats is the historic recognition of LGBT+ people in the peace process with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), the first in the world to specifically include LGBT+ people. Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and intersex Colombians have been granted momentous protections over the past two decades.