Queer Leadership in Latin America
By: Tasha Sandoval
Tags: Equality, Colombia, Politics, LGBTQ, Queer

I’ve been back in Bogotá, Colombia’s Andean capital, for about three months. I say “back” because I was born here, but really, I’m a total gringa. 28 years later, I moved back to Bogotá to reconnect with my roots, and just in time to witness a major event in Colombian history.

On October 27, Senator Claudia López became Bogotá’s first elected woman mayor and the city’s first openly lesbian mayor.

As an American, it took me a while to understand the significance of mayoral elections in Bogotá, but trust me, they’re a big deal. As Colombia’s political and economic hub, Bogotá is home to about 20% of the country’s population. This means that its executive seat is almost the most powerful position in the capital, second only to the President’s.

An openly LGBTQ+ person in a position of significant power is still a big deal in 2019. But the significance of an openly LGBTQ+ person in power in Latin America — a traditional, often machista part of the world — is even greater.

Colombia has a complex history, one that until three years ago, was marred by a 50+ year guerrilla civil war.

While the peace accords have been signed and the war has officially ended, signs of continued, unreported conflict abound. Just in August, several major guerilla leaders released a call to arms video, suggesting a possible break in the peace process.

Meanwhile, Colombia is one of the most economically unequal countries in Latin America, second only to Honduras according to the World Bank’s Gini Index measures. Income inequality is visible and palpable in the capital, where the difference between the wealthy North and the poor neglected South is fully imbedded into the social status quo.

Beyond the context of war and economic inequality, is the social context of norms, traditions, and violence against the LGBTQ+ community.

Traditional machismo still dominates much of the culture, especially in more rural, less economically-developed areas. LGBTQ+ advocacy organization, Colombia Diversa, and SinViolencia LGBTQ+ found that there is a “Colombian paradox” in LGBTQ+ equality. While Colombia has been one of the most progressive countries in the region in terms of political advances, their 2019 report found that it still has the second-highest rate of LGBTQ+ murders in Latin America.

Bogotá, the country’s booming cultural capital, is a different story. Walking around el parque de los hippies, the epicenter of Bogotá’s thriving gayborhood, Chapinero, it is easy to get the impression that the city is a fully-evolved, socially progressive place. While that’s true in some areas, Colombia’s LGBTQ+ leaders are steadfast in their belief that the culture still has a long way to go. Bogotá is just the beginning; hence Claudia López.

Claudia López: Who is she?

Claudia López is a member of the Alianza Verde, Colombia’s green party that lies in the center on the Colombian political spectrum (which is on the left on the American spectrum). As the name suggests, their major platform involves environmental sustainability as well as anti-corruption. López rose to political prominence in 2013 as a senator after years as a political investigator for the Electoral Observation Mission and for Coporacion Neuvo Arco Iris. As Senator, she has spoken out against political corruption in a country where stealing public funds for persona gain has become commonplace. After a failed bid for a presidential candidacy in 2018, López moved on to conquer the city’s top seat.

López has never hidden who she is.

She is out and proud and happily partnered with fellow Senator Angélica Lozano. Lozano has been a greater public advocate for LGBTQ+ rights however, especially during her stint as vice-Mayor of Chapinero. Meanwhile, López’s mayoral campaign noticeably lacked a strong position on LGBTQ+ issues. The plan only included 3 vague proposals: to expand and strengthen community centers, to train public servants to avoid stigmatization and violence, and finally, to develop sensitivity trainings in the workplace to reduce exlusion based on sexual orientation.

And yet, López has been highly criticized for flip-flopping (á la John Kerry) and for being too tied to the establishment. I can’t help but draw some parallels to Democratic primary candidate Mayor Pete in the U.S. who is also LGBTQ identified but to the center of the political left.

Still, the existence of these openly LGBTQ+ political leaders is significant. While major violence and discrimination against LGBTQ+ people continues, LGBTQ+ leaders will stand as symbols of acceptance and progress.

When will we get a truly radical queer leader?

Being queer is still a radical act, so LGBTQ+ politicians can’t appear to veer too far to the left if they want to be viable candidates — at least for now.

Meanwhile, incredible queer social activists in Colombia, like activist and biologist Brigitte Baptiste, are working to diversify the cultural discourse. Advocacy organizations have also cropped up in the new millenium, like Colombia Diversa, a nonprofit that, since 2004, has been working to defend and expand LGBTQ+ rights in Colombia.

Bogotá’s annual pride march also signals change and progress. It’s first iteration in 1982 saw 30 participants, while 2019 saw 70,000 people on a rainy day. Though it may have nothing on Mexico City, which has historically held the symbolic title of most LGBTQ friendly city in the region, Bogotá continues to make great strides, relative to the larger Latin American context.

Revolution in the air

While Claudia López prepares to take office in the new year, Bogotá has a lot of other issues on its plate. A paro nacional, or national strike, is scheduled for Thursday November 21 after several transportation and student strikes paralyzed the capital almost weekly throughout September and October. 40 different labor unions, student organizations, and indigenous organizations have called for the nation-wide strike.

Protesters will be striking against the violent murder of social leaders, the violent ESMAD riot police, pension and labor reform proposals, and the government in general. The common catalyst for the strike is current conservative President Iván Duque, who is experiencing record low approval ratings of 26% and whose party took a nationwide beating in the recent elections. Union leaders are increasingly calling for the President’s resignation.

Taken within context, Colombia’s government is worried. In the last three months, Latin America has seen a wave of social unrest. Starting in Chile, September saw a major revolt to neoliberalism, followed by October protests against austerity measures in Ecuador, and most recently, the all-but-forced resignation of longtime Bolivian President, Evo Morales.

Is Colombia next? And if so, how will Bogotá’s new mayor respond when she takes office in January?

An unknown but exciting path forward

As a young queer living in Boston, I often took my (mostly) liberal surroundings for granted. Even now in Bogotá, mainly sticking to liberal bastions like Chapinero and Teusaquillo, it’s also easy to feel relatively comfortable. As much as I would like to think that LGBTQ tolerance should be expected, I don’t think we’re there yet. López’s win was a reminder that an LGBTQ friendly and tolerant environment in Bogotá is still something to be consciously grateful for. Though her campaign proposal for LGBTQ+ rights was scant, there’s reason to believe that she will do more in practice. With revolution in the air, anything is possible.