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May 17th is commemorated worldwide as the day against violence towards LGBTI* people. It is officially known as the International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia, and Transphobia . However, at Presentes we prefer to avoid using the term "phobia" because it is not an illness . Therefore, we refer to it as LGBT Hate.

Why this date? 

The date was first commemorated in 2005 to remember that on May 17, 1990, the World Health Organization (WHO) removed homosexuality from the classification manual of mental diseases. 

Its creation in 2004 stemmed from the Paris-based IDAHO Committee, which that year launched an annual campaign to raise awareness of violence against LGBTI+ people, culminating in the establishment of this International Day to draw attention to the violence, discrimination, and exclusion experienced by LGBTI+ people around the world. May 17th is a day to coordinate and focus response and prevention efforts, as well as to remind states of the importance of creating and strengthening public policies to prevent LGBTI+ hate.

It represents an iconic date for all people who want to join to make visible, from their different roles and spaces, the violence faced daily by people who live with diverse sexual orientations, expressions or gender identities, sexual or bodily characteristics outside of heterocisnormativity. 

The motto for 2023

Although a central theme is chosen each year to focus actions, the International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia, and Biphobia is not intended to be a centralized campaign, “but rather a moment when everyone can take action, on the theme and in the format they wish,” as stated on the May 17th website. In 2023, the slogan for this day, decided based on extensive consultation with organizations, is Always Together: United in Diversity.

The date goes by different names and the acronyms vary. Initially it was IDAHO (an acronym for International Day Against Homophobia), then IDAHOT (when transphobia was included), and finally IDAHOBIT (when biphobia and intersexphobia were included). Some even include intersexphobia in the commemoration. However, there is no consensus among intersex communities that all of them feel represented by this day. 

May17.org documents some of the activities carried out in more than 130 countries where actions are being deployed .

International organizations such as MERCOSUR or the European Parliament recognize the date, and others linked to the United Nations carry out commemorative activities.

Violence and discrimination in the world

While Latin America has been one of the regions with the most progress in human rights for LGBTI+ people in recent years, violence and discrimination continue to threaten their human rights. This vulnerability is often exacerbated by other factors that contribute to inequality in our region, where sexual orientation and gender identity are intersected by other layers: racialized identities, migration, sex work, people living with HIV, among others.  

The information compiled in the ILGA World Database indicates that true equality remains a long way off for LGBT+ people . This is highlighted by the international organization. To this day, ILGA reminds us that:

-The death penalty is legally prescribed for consensual same-sex sexual acts in 6 UN member states. In 5 others, there is no full legal certainty.

-Up to 64 UN member states criminalize consensual same-sex sexual acts. 62 of them criminalize de jure (laws that criminalize consensual same-sex sexual acts); 2 criminalize de facto (in practice, based on other laws).

-At least 51 UN member states have laws, rules, and regulations that prohibit forms of expression related to issues of sexual and gender diversity. Even in educational settings.  

LGBT+ Advances

According to ILGA data, to date

-11 UN member states have taken steps to ban so-called "conversion therapies" at the national level. 

-7 have introduced national restrictions on unnecessary interventions in intersex youth, and 20 allow legal recognition of gender based on self-determination. 

Same-sex marriage is now a reality in 33 UN member states.

In 58 UN member states, laws exist to protect people from hate crimes based on sexual orientation. However, only 37 do so based on gender identity, 9 on gender expression, and 5 on sex characteristics. “Despite this progress, history has taught LGBTQIA+ communities that hard-won gains can easily be taken away,” the organization states. “ This year’s theme focuses on the power of solidarity across movements, identities, and borders to continue driving change .