Today, in the commemoration of the International Day against Homophobia, Lesbophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia, Amnesty International launches the course Diversxs: the urgency of taking action for LGBTIQ+ rights, as a tool that promotes information and training on human rights and LGBTIQ+ rights, and that responds to the urgency of contributing to eradicate the violence and discrimination that deeply harm the dignity of LGBTIQ+ people across the globe.
According to the latest Amnesty International reports between 2021 and 2023 the increase in cases of homo-lesbo-transphobic violence is alarming. in the Americas 316 of the 375 murders of trans and gender diverse people perpetrated worldwide between October 2020 and September 2021 were reported, disproportionately affecting trans women in the region, where 70% of these murders occurred in Central or South America, with Brazil being the country where more murders of transgender women were recorded worldwide.
In parallel, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights has pointed out that life expectancy of trans women in Latin America is only 35 years, while most States in the region continue to fail in guaranteeing the rights and mechanisms that would help trans people to emerge from exclusion and have the same rights in terms of recognition of their identities, the right to health, education and decent work.
“Today, in the International Day against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia, it is necessary to remember that LGBTIQ+ people face high rates of violence and discrimination, largely motivated by misinformation, lack of awareness and the advance of hate speech by conservative groups” said Yahir Zavaleta, regional coordinator of Diversxs.
“That is why we have created this course that provides relevant knowledge that allows to enter and learn about the rights of LGBTIQ+ people, as well as a series of didactic tools that promote self-reflection and a call to action in the face of violence and discrimination faced by gender-diverse communities in different contexts and situations that occur in Latin America and the Caribbean”
Diversxs: the urgency to take action for LGBTIQ+ rights is a 2-hours course relevant for activists, human rights defenders, allies, teachers, parents, public officials, and the general public who are interested in expanding their knowledge and acquiring new tools for the defense of human rights and LGBTIQ+ rights within their communities. Signing up for this course is completely free and upon completion of the course a final certification is provided. No previous knowledge of the subject is required, only a commitment to act in favor of human rights and LGBTIQ+ rights.
To begin to train yourself in the field of LGBTIQ+ rights and recognize the importance of your involvement in the call to eradicate violence against people with diverse sexual orientation, gender identity and/or expression, we invite you to access the following link:
For Amnesty International it is crucial to create tools and materials with based on a human rights education approach, in which rights holders – and in the case of this manual, LGBTIQ+ people who have faced violence and discrimination – can reflect and be aware of the context that surrounds them, identify the internal and external resources they have to build and/or strengthen their capacities, as well as analyze ways to promote the recognition of their rights to develop individual and collective actions.
For more information or to request an interview, please contact Yahir Zavaleta at [email protected]
For more information on Amnesty International’s Diversxs – Diversity under Attack project, please visit the following link: www.diversxs.lgbt/
