Great controversy has caused during the last hours the announcement of President Gabriel Boric on the utmost urgency to the bill to establish the National Day of Lesbian Visibility. This is mainly due to criticism from the opposition to this action by the government.
The main questions focused on the fact that priorities should be on other issues, such as drug trafficking or citizen security. Secondly, since the proposed anniversary is the same date as Flag Day, July 9.
“We deeply regret that the right seeks to install an artificial polemic to continue dividing the country and to insist on something that is completely false, patriotism and pride in sexual diversities are not contradictory,” said Deputy Emilia Schneider.
Given all this controversy, the minister of the General Secretariat of the Presidency (Segpres), Ana Lya Uriarte, reported yesterday that the Executive would seek to change the date related to the LGBTQ+ community. This quickly raised the opinion of pro-government parliamentarians, who opposed the government’s decision.
Likewise, the deputies who promote the legislative proposal: Marcela Riquelme, Francisca Bello, Camila Musante, Erika Olivera, Emilia Schneider, among others, were also not aware of the extreme urgency of the bill, even though they are the authors of the norm.
However, during this afternoon, the Secretary of State met in Congress with Parliamentarian Schneider, although they did not provide further details about the conversation, since the government would have entered into talks to continue evaluating the change of dates.
“We have spoken with Minister Ana Lya Uriarte of the Segpres, to clarify this situation, to make ourselves available to strengthen the channels of dialogue,” said the deputy. In addition, during this day, the extreme urgency of the project was also removed.
Reactions of organizations
It should be noted that although Lesbian Visibility Day is not institutionalized, it is a date that for years lesbofeminist organizations have commemorated in memory of the crime against lesbian sculpture, Monica Briones, which occurred in 1984.
For this milestone, it is that since it was decided to remove the extreme urgency, groups have shown their opinion and have pointed out that the setback in the decision of the executive, which would have been influenced by political opinions, is regrettable.
“What was an initial joy from lesbian and dissident organizations, was later transformed into a sea of hate speech and false news promoted by ultra-right parties and conservative left-wing political sectors that claimed for themselves a date that had as its sole objective an act of justice and reparation,” they said in a public statement.
Along the same lines, the signatory organizations – among which are the Lesbofeminist Network and the 8M Coordinator – argue that the date is a necessary action to make visible the violence that lesbian women must face to this day.
“The case of Monica, murdered for being a visible lesbian, has not been the only one, and they realize that violence on our bodies is a structural continuum of the society in which we live, examples of the violence experienced by being lesbians, they are also the cases of María Pía Castro, Susana Sanhueza, and Nicole Saavedra in the region of Valparaíso”. Underline.
At the close of this note, the individuals and organizations that adhere to the public statement are:
Lesbofeminist Network
Network Dissidents
Office of Diversity and Dissidence of the commune of Bosque, RM
Prevention Vineyard
Chueca Bar
Feminist Teaching Network, REDOFEM
Fuerza Diversidad Foundation, Fifth Region
Collective Lesbipulli
8M Coordinator
LGBTI+ MAP
Chilean Network Against Violence Against Women
Overflowing Feminist Economy Cooperative
NGO Amaranta
Erika Montecinos, Lesbofeminist activist
Marion Stock, Lesbofeminist activist
Elizabeth Campos, lesbofeminist activist
Constanza Valdes, Counselor of the National Institute of Human Rights
Alondra Carrillo Vidal, 8M Feminist Coordinator
Roxana Vega, MUMS
Franco Fuica
Marcelo Aguilar, Valparaiso Gay Action
Rodri Mallea, Dissidents in Network
María Eloísa Gutiérrez Jara, Breaking the Silence
Lilith Victoria Athena,Dissident Panthers
Francisca Fernández Droguett, Assembly of Women and Dissidents, Movement for Water and Territories.
Cynthia Shuffer,8M Feminist Coordinator – USACH IDEA Scholar
Victor Gaby, Gender and Dissidence Program, Municipality of Recoleta
Valeria Cárcamo Castillo, Redofem Akunkawa, Association of Lay Women
Andrés Veas, Gay Action
Francisca Herrera, La Peluquería Records
Elizabeth Muñoz Gárate, Network of Women’s Defense Lawyers
Inta Rivas, Constituent Time
Francisca Pemjean, Collective Acuerpar
Soledad Falabella, Professor Faculty of Philosophy and Humanities University of Chile
Catalina Bolívar, NGO Reconstructing Spaces
Daniela Peña, Office of Diversity and Non-Discrimination of the commune of Quisco, Fifth Region.
Thamaggi Alvarez, Office of Diversity and Non-discrimination of the commune of El Tabo, Fifth Region.
Gloría Andrea Figueroa Licanqueo, Mesa Diversidad commune Quilpué, Fifth Region.
Fr. Alexander Imaña Herrera, Office of Diversity and Non-discrimination of the Municipality of Macul, RM.
Jackeline Saldivar, Rebellion Resistance and Love (RRA).
Francisca Cáceres, Powertrans.cl
Fabiola Gutiérrez, Network of Feminist Journalists and Communicators of Chile
Fabiola Hernández Parra, Collective Rebellion
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