News
Migrantes LGBTI+ llegaron a la frontera de EEUU
Grupo de casi 80 personas están en Tijuana
Dentro de poco se cumplirá un mes desde que Loly Méndez salió de El Salvador. (Foto por Yariel Valdés González/Tremenda Nota)
Nota del editor: Yariel Valdés es reportero de Tremenda Nota, una revista electrónica independiente en Cuba que reporta sobre la comunidad LGBT y otros grupos minoritarios en el país. Tremenda Nota es la pareja de contenido del Washington Blade en Cuba.
Yariel Valdés está actualmente en Tijuana, México. Su nota salió originalmente en el sitio web de Tremenda Nota el martes.
TIJUANA, México — Un grupo de migrantes LGBTI+ espera en Tijuana, México, para alcanzar la frontera estadounidense. Decenas de personas dejaron la caravana de al menos 5.000 centroamericanos para evitar el acoso de sus propios compañeros de viaje.
Hace más de 22 días, Loly Méndez emprendió el viaje más largo de su vida. Cerca de 4.400 kilómetros separan por tierra a El Salvador de Estados Unidos. Aun así, Loly decidió unirse a uno de los grupos de migrantes centroamericanos que huyen de la violencia en sus países natales, y avanzan hacia la frontera de Estados Unidos.
Loly, mujer transgénero, cosmetóloga, no vio solo la meta del “sueño americano,” sino la oportunidad de huir de la violencia y la transfobia. Una pandilla la había asaltado y robado en su propio país.
“Doy gracias a Dios porque no me quitaron la vida, ni me violaron,” dice.
En su adolescencia, Loly ya sabía que era una mujer. Sin embargo, el clima de intolerancia que vive en su país de origen le impidió completar el cambio de imagen que deseaba.
“Nunca sabes si vas a amanecer (viva) — dice —. Yo no dejo de pensar en mi amiga, cómo la asesinaron, la estrangularon y la tiraron de un puente. Teníamos planes de salir de allá juntas (de El Salvador), pero la gente le puso odio porque ella ya lucía como una mujer.”
Cruz Torres, director de Diversidad Sexual de la Secretaría de Inclusión Social de El Salvador, estima que 600 personas LGBTI+ han sido asesinadas en los últimos 24 años en ese país centroamericano. Al menos 145 de los crímenes ocurrieron en solo tres años, desde 2015 a 2017.
La frontera, a un paso
“Todas las personas homosexuales que viajamos en esta caravana venimos con el propósito de ser libres, de trabajar, de no ser delincuentes,” explica Loly a Tremenda Nota. “Yo jamás me he prostituido y no voy a otro país a eso.”
La salvadoreña llegó a la localidad Playas de Tijuana el pasado domingo como parte de una avanzada de casi 80 personas de la comunidad LGBTI+, integrantes de la primera caravana de más de 5.000 migrantes centroamericanos.
El grupo llegó escoltado por oficiales del Instituto Nacional de Migración de México y por observadores de varias comisiones de derechos humanos del país azteca. Arribaron a la ciudad fronteriza después de pasar por San Luis Río Colorado (Sonora) y Mexicali, la capital del estado de Baja California.
César Mejías, uno de los migrantes y portavoz no oficial del grupo, declaró que esta primera caravana alcanzó el norte de México antes de lo previsto porque recibieron apoyo de “una organización de Estados Unidos, que también pertenece a la comunidad LGBTI+.” Mejías prefirió no mencionar el nombre de sus patrocinadores.
En Tijuana aumentó la incertidumbre de los migrantes. “Duele saber que ahora nos vayan a deportar para nuestros países,” comenta Kecha Cataleya, una transgénero hondureña de 24 años.
“En 2015 me aventaron gas y me prendieron fuego, aún se me miran las marcas,” cuenta. La joven también asegura que las maras (pandillas) obligan a las personas trans a vender drogas y prostituirse.
Según la organización no gubernamental Transgender Europe, Latinoamérica tiene las tasas mundiales más altas de violencia contra la comunidad LGBTI+.
El Salvador, por ejemplo, ha registrado “aterradores crímenes de odio hacia las personas LGBTI” en los últimos años, según un reporte del grupo COMCAVIS Trans (Comunicacndo y Capacitando a Mujeres Trans). Se trata de “actos que se producen con mayor crueldad de lo usual: mutilaciones, excesos de violencia llegando al extremo de múltiples disparos, cuerpos atados, desmembramiento de partes genitales y acciones de tortura sistemática.”
Cuando Kecha Cataleya y sus compañeros llegaron a la calle Olas Altas, en la sección Coronado, varios vecinos protestaron. “Gracias a Dios — cuenta César Mejías — ellos ya comprendieron quiénes somos, qué es lo que vamos a hacer y cuánto tiempo vamos a estar aquí.”
Mejías y el resto del grupo, en el cual viajan varios menores de edad, esperan por sus “apoderados legales” para iniciar el proceso de asilo político en los Estados Unidos. “Queremos hacer las cosas bien,” añadió.
La caravana LGBTI+ arribó el pasado domingo 11 de noviembre a Tijuana, México. (Foto de Yariel Valdés González/Tremenda Nota)
Sin embargo, el presidente norteamericano Donald Trump ha intentado cerrar todas las puertas de Estados Unidos a los migrantes centroamericanos. El pasado 9 de noviembre el mandatario firmó una orden ejecutiva que prohíbe la entrada al país de forma ilegal por la frontera con México. Si los migrantes centroamericanos accedieran a la nación del norte a través puntos de entrada no autorizados, serían arrestados y perderían el derecho de permanecer en el país o solicitar asilo.
A finales de octubre el gobierno norteamericano anunció el despliegue de 5.200 militares en la frontera con México. Aunque Trump no mostró ninguna prueba aseguró en la red social Twitter que las caravanas “también están formadas por algunos matones y pandilleros muy malos.” En otro de sus tweets amenazó a los migrantes: “¡Esta es una invasión de nuestro país y nuestro ejército te está esperando!”
Unos son más iguales que otros
Durante el trayecto, los integrantes LGBTI+ de la caravana caminaron a la par de sus compatriotas hondureños, salvadoreños y guatemaltecos. Cruzaron a nado los mismos ríos, atravesaron las mismas cercas fronterizas, durmieron bajo la intemperie común, padecieron el mismo frío y la misma hambre. Sin embargo, su condición de personas LGBTI+ provocó que fueran discriminados por sus propios compañeros.
“No me esperaba eso de ellos porque todos somos migrantes y veníamos juntos. Pensé que teníamos que apoyarnos,” denunció la salvadoreña Noe Alvarenga.
“Como somos la comunidad más vulnerable — acota Loly — hemos sufrido la violencia, el machismo que viene dentro de esa caravana. Hemos sido mal vistos, nos gritan cosas.”
La antropóloga social Marta García Ortega, investigadora del Colegio de la Frontera Sur de México, coincide en que dentro del conjunto de migrantes, la comunidad LGBTI+ es particularmente vulnerable, “porque no solo están solicitando un derecho al asilo, también están en mayor riesgo, y requieren atención especial, como las mujeres.”
Varios niños se cuentan en la caravana que alcanzó la localidad Playas de Tijuana, a orillas de la frontera norteamericana. (Foto de Yariel Valdés González/Tremenda Nota)
En efecto, la discriminación, la homofobia, la violencia y los crímenes de odio lanzaron a Loly Méndez, Kecha Cataleya, Noe Alvarenga y César Mejías a un camino de miles de kilómetros, desde sus países natales hasta la frontera norteamericana.
“Vivir como yo deseo vivir, siendo lo que soy, sin que nadie me discrimine, sin necesidad de ocultarme, sin que vengan unos maleantes a la vuelta de la esquina y me golpeen…Eso es lo que quiero,” confiesa Mejías.
El recorrido, sin embargo, no termina en la frontera estadounidense. Ahí deberán emprender otra “caminata” por el sistema legal norteamericano.
Las caravanas que en pocos días tocarán las puertas de Estados Unidos han inaugurado un proceso sin precedentes en la historia reciente de las migraciones forzadas, cree la investigadora Marta García Ortega. “Esto ya no es solo un movimiento de éxodo, es un movimiento por los derechos sociales, por los derechos civiles, por el derecho a migrar.”
District of Columbia
D.C. Council approves expanded grant funding for Mayor’s Office of LGBTQ Affairs
Measure introduced by Zachary Parker faces second vote
The D.C. Council on June 9 gave its first round of approval to an amendment to the city’s fiscal year 2027 budget that calls for increasing the number and size of funding grants that the Mayor’s Office of LGBTQ Affairs provides for local organizations providing services for the LGBTQ community.
The amendment, titled the “LGBTQ Community Grant Amendment Act of 2026,” was introduced by D.C. Council member Zachary Parker (D-Ward 5), the Council’s only gay member.
The amendment calls for the LGBTQ Affairs office to issue a $980,000 grant in fiscal year 2027 to a private, nonprofit organization in partnership with the office “for the purpose of supporting programs that promote the welfare of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and questioning community.”
The organization would also initiate its own fundraising effort to expand the amount of funds beyond the amount the office would provide, enabling it to provide larger grants to a greater number of local LGBTQ organizations.
Among other things, the amendment says the organization chosen for this new role should have a “proven track record of success in grant making and fundraising” and agree to undergo an annual audit and submit quarterly reports to the office on its use of the funds it receives.
Under its rules for approving legislation, the Council must hold the second vote on the budget bill with the Parker amendment before it is sent to Mayor Muriel Bowser for her signature. It must then go to Congress for a congressional review that does not require approval, but could result in a vote to disapprove the measure, an action Congress usually does not take.
In a June 12 statement, the D.C. LGBTQ Budget Coalition called the D.C. Council’s initial approval of the Parker amendment, “a historic measure that establishes the District’s most sustainable model for a vehicle for investing in LGBTQ communities.”
The statement adds, “The legislation arrives at a critical moment, as LGBTQ-serving organizations face unprecedented uncertainty. Growing demand for services is colliding with shrinking resources, federal attacks on LGBTQ programs, and ongoing threats to local funding streams.”
It says the new program that the Parker amendment would create, if it reaches final approval, “creates a durable mechanism to protect and expand investments in the organizations that thousands of District residents rely upon every day.”
A spokesperson for the mayor’s office said he was looking into the mayor’s position on the Parker amendment but didn’t immediately get back with a response.
Germany
German group slams White House’s LGBTQ rights record ahead of World Cup
LSVD says trans, nonbinary soccer fans safety ‘not guaranteed’ in US
A German advocacy group on the eve of the 2026 World Cup sharply criticized the Trump-Vance administration over its anti-LGBTQ policies.
The World Cup will take place in the U.S., Canada, and Mexico through July 19. The tournament began on Thursday in Mexico City with Mexico beating South Africa 2-0.
“In the USA, democracy is being gradually dismantled,” said Julia Monro of Federation Queer Diversity, a German LGBTQ and intersex rights group known by the acronym LSVD, in a statement released on Wednesday. “In particular, the human rights of trans, intersex, and nonbinary individuals, as well as other queer people, are facing massive attacks and political instrumentalization by the Trump administration.”
The LSVD statement notes sports “has a special responsibility in this situation because it conveys values worldwide that extend beyond the playing field: fairness, respect, and inclusion.”
“This must apply to everyone, including trans* and nonbinary people,” says LSVD. “Those who love sport must also protect those who can only experience it under difficult circumstances.”
“The public visibility of queer people is being pushed back, companies and organizations with diversity strategies are being pressured, and laws for trans*, intersex, and nonbinary people are being tightened,” added the group. “This is not a fringe issue, but directly affects everyday life, mobility, and safety. The way minority rights are treated is a measure of the state of a democratic society. Inhumane measures must not be normalized. The international community must not remain silent as attention on the host country, the USA, increases. The Trump administration could exploit this media platform for further inhumane purposes, in order to transfer its homophobic agenda to other countries.”
LSVD also stressed the “safety of trans* and nonbinary soccer fans is currently not guaranteed in the USA.”
“We advise all queer fans to inform themselves carefully beforehand and to take precautions for their safety,” it said.
The Council for Global Equality is one of the more than 100 organizations that issued a travel advisory for the U.S. ahead of the World Cup.
LSVD in its statement pointed out the German government in 2025 issued a travel advisory for trans and nonbinary people who are planning to visit the U.S. The warning specifically noted President Donald Trump’s executive order that banned the State Department from issuing passports with “X” gender markers.
InterPride, the organization that coordinates WorldPride events, issued a travel advisory for trans and nonbinary people who planned to travel to the U.S. for WorldPride that took place last summer in D.C.
“Due to an executive order issued by the U.S. president on Jan. 20, all travelers must select either ‘male’ or ‘female’ when applying for entry or visas. The gender listed at birth will be considered valid,” read the InterPride advisory. “If your passport has ‘X’ as a gender marker or differs from your birth-assigned gender, we strongly recommend contacting the U.S. diplomatic mission before traveling to confirm entry requirements.”
LSVD notes the German government reiterated its 2025 travel advisory ahead of the World Cup.
“Anyone traveling with a different gender entry, with an ‘X’ marker in their passport, or who does not conform to the state’s expectations during checks, must expect problems in the USA,” said LSVD.
Virginia
Gay 1920s-era Hollywood star to be honored in Staunton, Va.
Billy Haines became acclaimed designer after anti-gay policies ended his acting career
A project is underway in Staunton, Va., to honor William ‘Billy’ Haines, who was born and raised in Staunton before becoming an out gay 1920s and early 1930s-era Hollywood movie star whose acting career ended around 1934 when he refused demands that he conceal his sexual orientation and end his relationship with his male partner.
Haines left the movie business around that time to start what became a highly successful interior design and furniture business in Los Angeles that he led until his death in 1972 at age 72, and which remains in business today, according to the Arcadia Project, a Staunton-based nonprofit initiative.
In a statement released last month, Arcadia Project announced it is working to revitalize a long-vacant movie theater in downtown Staunton that it plans to rename after Haines. It says a fundraising campaign is under way to support efforts to reopen the theater and the larger building in which it is housed as a “dynamic mixed-use cultural center.”
The statement notes that Haines left Staunton at age 14 and resided in Hopewell, Va., and Greenwich Village in New York City until 1922, when he was “discovered” by a talent scout and sent to Hollywood.
“Between 1922 and 1934, Haines appeared in 54 movies during his meteoric and highly successful career,” the Arcadia Project statement continues, noting he transitioned from silent movies to talkies and was fully open about being gay. “But when Hollywood’s moral crackdown of the 1930s demanded that he end his relationship with his longtime partner Jimmie Shields, Haines refused,” it says.
“For LGBTQ people – then and now – Haines’s choice resonates deeply. Rather than deny who he was, he reinvented himself as an interior designer to the stars,” according to the statement.
It says he helped invent the so-called Hollywood Regency style home and designed homes for Hollywood legends such as Joan Crawford, Gloria Swanson, Carole Lombard, George Cukor, and Jack Warner as well as for political figures like Ronald Reagan when he was governor of California.
“As there is no monument, marker or public recognition for Haines in his hometown of Staunton, Va., Arcadia Project, in collaboration with the LGBTQ+ community in Staunton seeks to commemorate him inside a new cultural center,” the statement says.
It quotes Arcadia Project Executive Director Pamela Mason Wagner as saying, “Naming the movie theater in Haines’ honor is more than an act of historical recognition – it is a powerful statement about visibility, belonging, and whose stories are valued in our community.”
The statement says project leaders hope to open the cultural center in early 2027, with a fundraising campaign seeking to raise $250,000 to renovate the theater.
“If the full goal is not reached, a smaller space within the building will be named for Haines, scaled to the amount of funds raised,” it says. “We truly hope friends and admirers of Billy Haines everywhere will want to participate.”
Donations for the project can be made through this site: www.thearcadiaproject.org
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