News
Suprema Corte de México reconoce el derecho de parejas del mismo sexo a Seguridad Social
Orden beneficiará a miles de personas LGBTI


La Segunda Sala de la Suprema Corte de Justicia de la Nación (SCJN) reconoció en su sesión del miércoles el derecho de las parejas mexicanas del mismo sexo a acceder a los beneficios del Instituto Mexicano de Seguro Social (IMSS), una acción que persigue la igualdad en materia jurídica, donde la población LGBTI aún no es completamente favorecida.
Este fallo convierte al artículo 130 de la actual Carta Magna mexicana, que restringía este derecho únicamente a las parejas heterosexuales, en inconstitucional, pues resulta violatorio de los derechos de la Seguridad Social, así como de los principios de no discriminación y de protección a la familia, establecidos en los artículos 1, 4 y 123 de la Constitución vigente.
A través de un comunicado, la Suprema Corte informó que sus magistrados analizaron un caso donde el IMSS había denegado la pensión de viudez a la pareja de una persona homosexual fallecida y que era un trabajador asegurado por esa institución. Así, la SCJN determinó que tal decisión resultaba discriminatoria, lo que abre el camino para la restitución de esta injusticia.
Desde noviembre de 2018, el Senado de la República había dado pasos en favor de esta iniciativa, al avalar la propuesta del ex senador y actual director del IMSS, Germán Martínez, para garantizar el derecho a la Seguridad Social a las parejas del mismo sexo.
Para Francisco Robledo Sánchez, conferencista y socio director de la Alianza por la Diversidad e Inclusión Laboral (ADIL), esta ley “salda una deuda para todo tipo de familias y, sobre todo, a cabezas económicas familiares, sin distinción de su estado civil, el sexo de su pareja y configuración familiar”.
El abogado Armando Ocampo recibe la noticia como un impulso más y un mensaje claro de igualdad sustantiva que manda la Corte al Legislativo, “ya que actualmente está pendiente por la Cámara de Diputados apruebe la reforma a la ley del IMSS para que esto sea realidad y no a golpe de mazo de justicia y en casos aislados, sino que se aplique por igual en todo el país”.
Robledo declaró al Washington Blade que en realidad las parejas homosexuales han tenido acceso a servicios de Seguridad Social desde hace años, solo que hasta ahora se formaliza con la Ley Federal. “Antes se podía realizar bajo ordenamientos administrativos que ya estaban en marcha hace 5 o 6 años. Ahora, lo que se logra es que no haya excusa o pretexto de que se puedan registrar a parejas del mismo género en todo tipo de prestaciones”.
Añadió Robledo que esta ley no solo beneficia a parejas del mismo sexo, “sino también pone en igualdad de condiciones a mujeres, e incluso, a trabajadoras del hogar, que les permite como generadoras económicas primarias, poner de beneficiarios a sus cónyuges”.
Jaime López Vela, abogado y experto en derechos humanos, señaló en una entrevista concedida al canal del Congreso mexicano que “la Seguridad Social es lo que nos permitirá una guardería para nuestros hijos, la posibilidad de atender cualquier enfermedad, cotizar para tener un retiro y proteger a nuestros cónyuges o concubinos en caso de deceso de alguno de ellos”.
Ocampo, quien se ha convertido en el primer gay mexicano en ganar un juicio por homofobia, afirmó que esta victoria significa que también se elimina el lenguaje sexista y genitalizador de la ley del IMSS, por cuanto a que solo para efectos de seguridad social es viable reconocer la unión entre hombre y mujer, lo que está siendo expulsado del orden jurídico.
Según el Comité de Derechos Económicos, Sociales y Culturales (DESC) de México “el derecho a la seguridad social es de importancia fundamental para garantizar a todas las personas su dignidad humana cuando hacen frente a circunstancias que les privan de su capacidad para ejercer plenamente los derechos reconocidos en el Pacto (…) incluye el derecho a obtener y mantener prestaciones sociales, ya sea en efectivo o en especie, sin discriminación, con el fin de obtener protección”.
La posibilidad de acceder al Seguro Social de una pareja del mismo sexo ha sido una de las principales demandas y preocupaciones de la población LGBTI mexicana. De los más de 12.000 matrimonios gais que se han efectuado desde 2009 en el país, uno alto por ciento se concretó por los beneficios legales que se desprenden de esta unión, como el Seguro Social.
“Falta culminar el proceso legislativo en la Cámara Baja — manifiestó Ocampo — y que esto sea una realidad en todo el país y no solo en casos aislados y con lo complejo y cuantioso que es sostener un litigio constitucional de tres años en el mejor de los casos”.
Por su parte, Robledo agregó que aún falta que se cambien los reglamentos de las instituciones de Seguridad Social, primero estaba la Ley, ahora faltan las leyes menores o Reglamentos de Operación.
Hasta febrero de 2017, y según el Padrón de Beneficiarios del Programa IMSS-BIENESTAR, estaban inscritas al Seguro Social más de 13 millones de mexicanos.
Spain
Spanish women detail abuses suffered in Franco-era institutions
Barcelona-based photographer Luca Gaetano Pira created ‘Las Descarriadas’ exhibit

A Barcelona-based photographer, audiovisual artist, and activist has created an exhibit that profiles Spanish women who suffered abuse in institutions that Gen. Francisco Franco’s dictatorship established.
Luca Gaetano Pira, who is originally from Italy, spoke with women who the regime, which governed Spain from 1936-1975, sent to Women’s Protection Board institutions.
The regime in 1941 created the board the country’s Justice Ministry oversaw.
Franco named his wife, Carmen Polo, as the board’s honorary president. Then-Prime Minister Felipe González fully dissolved the board in 1985, a decade after Franco’s death.
Gaetano’s exhibit is called “Las Descarriadas” or “The Misguided Women” in English.
“These are women who were detained between 1941 and 1985 for reasons that are unthinkable today: being lesbian, poor, pregnant out of wedlock, rebellious, politically active … or simply considered ‘morally suspect,'” Gaetano noted to the Washington Blade.
Groups affiliated with the Spanish Catholic Church ran these institutions. Gaetano pointed out they were “presented as social assistance centers.”
“In reality, they were spaces of punishment and forced reeducation, where isolation, unpaid work, and psychological violence were the norm,” he said. “Many of the survivors are still alive. Their testimonies are powerful, urgent, and of extraordinary current relevance.”
The regime sent more than 40,000 women to Women’s Protection Board institutions.
“Despite its seemingly benevolent name, it was in fact one of the most powerful instruments of moral and social control over women during and after the dictatorship,” notes the exhibit. “Under the guise of care and re-education, this institution functioned as a repressive apparatus that punished women who deviated from the ideal feminine model imposed by Franco’s regime: submissive, obedient, married, and dedicated to motherhood within the Catholic family structure.”
The Spanish Catholic Church last month issued a public apology, but Gaetano described it as “very soft” and noted “the women did not accept it.” Gaetano also compared the Women’s Protection Board institutions to Ireland’s Magdalene Laundries.
The Associated Press notes tens of thousands of “fallen” women were sent to the laundries that Catholic nuns operated in Ireland from the 18th century until the mid-1990s. Then-Irish Prime Minister Edna Kenny in 2013 issued a formal apology for the abuses that women suffered in the laundries and announced the government would compensate them.
The Spanish government has yet to offer compensation to the women abused in Women’s Protection Board institutions.
“My work focuses on recovering the historical memory of marginalized communities, particularly through the portrayal of survivors of institutional violence and the use of archival materials,” Gaetano told the Blade, noting he has also sought to highlight the repression that LGBTQ people suffered during dictatorships in Portugal and Latin America.
Gaetano’s exhibit can be found here:
District of Columbia
Gay GOP group hosts Ernst, 3 House members — all of whom oppose Equality Act
Log Cabin, congressional guest speakers mum on June 25 event

U.S. Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) and three women Republican members of the U.S. House appeared as guest speakers at the June 25 meeting of Log Cabin Republicans of D.C., the local chapter of the national LGBTQ Republican group with that same name.
The U.S. House members who joined Ernst as guest speakers at the Log Cabin meeting were Celeste Maloy (R-Utah), Kat Cammack (R-Fla.), and Julia Letlow (R-La.).
Neither D.C. Log Cabin Republicans President Andrew Minik nor spokespersons for Ernst or the three congresswomen immediately responded to a request by the Washington Blade for comment on the GOP lawmakers’ appearance at an LGBTQ GOP group’s meeting.
“Please join us for an inspiring evening as we celebrate and recognize the bold leadership and accomplishments of Republican women in Congress,” a D.C Log Cabin announcement sent to its members states.
“This month’s meeting will highlight the efforts of the Republican Women’s Caucus and explore key issues such as the Protection of Women and Girls In Sports Act and the broader fight to preserve women’s spaces in society,” the message says.
It was referring to legislation pending in Congress calling for banning transgender women from participating in women’s sports events.
According to media reports, Ernst and the three congresswomen have expressed opposition to the Equality Act, the longstanding bill pending in Congress calling for prohibiting discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity in the areas of employment, housing, and public accommodations.
The Log Cabin announcement says the meeting was scheduled to take place at the Royal Sands Social Club, which is a restaurant and bar at 26 N St., S.E. in the city’s Navy Yard area.
D.C. Log Cabin member Stuart West, who attended the meeting, confirmed that Ernst and the three congresswomen showed up and spoke at the event.
“It was a good turnout,” he said. “I would definitely say probably 30 or 40 people attended.” West added, “Four women came to talk to a group of mostly gay men. That’s something you don’t see very often.”
District of Columbia
D.C. police seek public’s help in July 5 murder of trans woman
Relative disputes initial decision not to list case as hate crime

D.C. police are seeking help from the public in their investigation into the murder of a transgender woman who they say was shot to death at about 12:30 a.m. on Saturday, July 5, on the 2000 block of Benning Road, N.E.
But the police announcement of the fatal shooting and a police report obtained by the Washington Blade do not identify the victim, 28-year-old Daquane ‘Dream’ Johnson of Northeast D.C., as transgender. And the police report says the shooting is not currently listed as a suspected hate crime.
It was local transgender activists and one of Johnson’s family members, her aunt, who confirmed she was transgender and said information they obtained indicates the killing could have been a hate crime.
“On Saturday, July 5, at approximately 12:51 a.m., Sixth District officers were flagged down in the 2000 block of Benning Road, Northeast, for an unconscious female,” a July 5 D.C. police statement says. “Upon arrival, officers located an adult female victim suffering from gunshot wounds,” it says.
“D.C. Fire and EMS responded to the scene and transported the victim to a local hospital where after all lifesaving efforts failed and the victim was pronounced dead,” the statement says.
A separate police flyer with a photo of Johnson announces an award of $25,000 was being offered for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person or persons responsible for the murder.
The flyer identifies D.C. police Homicide Detective Natasha Kennedy as being the lead investigator in the case and says anyone with information about the case should contact her at 202-380-6198.
Longtime D.C. transgender rights advocate Earline Budd told the Blade that one of the police investigators contacted her about the case and that she also spoke to Detective Kennedy. Budd said police confirmed to her that Johnson was a transgender woman.

One of Johnson’s family members, Vanna Terrell, who identified herself as Johnson’s aunt, told the Blade that Johnson used the first name of Dream and had planned to legally adopt that name instead of Daquane but had not gotten around to doing so.
Terrell said she and other family members learned more about the incident when one of two teenage high school students who knew Johnson’s brother contacted a friend and told the friend that they recognized Johnson as they witnessed the shooting. Terrell said the friend then called her to tell her what the friend learned from the two witnesses.
According to Terrell, the witnesses reportedly saw three men approach Johnson as Johnson walked along Benning Road and one of them called Johnson a derogatory name, leading Terrell to believe the men recognized Johnson as a transgender woman.
Terrell said one of the witnesses told the friend, who spoke to Terrell, that the man who shot Johnson kept shooting her until all of the bullets were fired. Budd, who said she spoke to Terrell, who also told her what the witnesses reported, said she believed the multiple shots fired by the shooter was an “overkill” that appears to have been a hate crime. Terrell said she too believes the murder was a hate crime.
In response to an inquiry from the Blade, Officer Ebony Major, a D.C. police spokesperson, stated in an email, “At this point there is nothing in the investigation that indicates the offense was motivated by hate or bias.”
Terrell said a memorial gathering to honor Johnson’s life was scheduled to be held Saturday, July 12, at River Terrace Park, which is located at 500 36th St., N.E. not far from where the shooting occurred.

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