Present. The attack occurred on Montevideo Street, between Rivadavia Avenue and Bartolomé Mitre Street. There, a group of homophobic men emerged from a house and, shouting “degenerate faggots,” struck three gay men with a hockey stick and threatened them as they were leaving the march. Within minutes, dozens of people gathered at the scene to condemn the attacks. Around 10:00 PM, the on-duty judge arrived. He ordered a search warrant and the arrest of one of the attackers. Hours later, he was released and charged with assault.

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In the document submitted to the court, the lawsuit—led by lawyer and lesbian feminist activist Luciana Sánchez, a member of the Collective for Diversity (COPADI)—argues that Law 26.791, against femicides, incorporated hate crimes and gender-based violence against gender identity, sexual orientation, and/or gender expression (Articles 80 and 81 of the Penal Code, as amended), and that these aggravating circumstances also apply to crimes of assault, among others (Articles 89, 90, 91, and 92 of the Penal Code). “The violence perpetrated by the perpetrators of the reported acts against the LGBTIQ community constitutes hate speech against our gender identity, gender expression, and sexual orientation,” the document states.

"A context of structural homophobia"

“From our conversations with the young men, it’s clear they are determined to wage a legal battle for LGBTQ+ pride. The incident occurred in the context of the march, and that sparked a reaction of LGBTQ+ pride,” Marcelo Suntheim, a member of CHA, told Presentes. He added, “This attack affects us as members of a collective.” The organizations are linking the attack on the three young men to the one suffered last week by a member of Ciervos Pampas. Jonathan Castellari: “We want the justice system to assess this fact within a context of structural homophobia because if an attack goes unpunished, there is a risk that it will continue to be repeated.”

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David Cohen, the Director General of Coexistence in Diversity for the City of Buenos Aires, told Presentes: “We are very concerned about what happened after the march. Regardless of whether it was an isolated incident, it puts us on alert, as happened with Johnny, and motivates us to rethink everything that is still lacking. These are very violent cases with a clear homophobic connotation. They are warning lights that should flash for us as a government and as citizens,” he said.