Colombia.- More than a hundred thousand people of the LGBT community they turned this Sunday at Bogota streets with rainbow flags and dances holidays, in the largest Pride March in the history of the Colombian capitalreported the local mayor’s office.
The colorful parade traveled a downtown area of the city of about 8 million inhabitants and ended up in Simón Bolívar park where numerous artists and activists animated the celebration until late at night.
“Here we will continue, every day and hour, marching with pride for who we are, because we have the same duties and we demand the same rights. Not one more, not one less,” Mayor Claudia said from the stage and before the crowd. López, the first lesbian to come to power in Bogotá.
“40 years ago in the first Pride March there were 30 people, today we are +100,000! The biggest march in history!” López wrote minutes later on his Twitter account.
The marches also took to the streets of other cities in Colombia as Medellin (northwest), Cali (southwest) and Barranquilla (north).
“The truth is that I am very happy, I am very excited, I attend the March 11 years ago, and I haven’t seen one in a long time March with so many people (…) people’s perception is changing and that means a lot, the truth is that when it came my eyes watered,” he told AFP in Bogota the citizen Camilaa businesswoman 31 years old with blue hair who makes raincoats for dogs.
In a country traversed by half a century of internal warthe LGBT community is a frequent target of violence.
It is a day “in memory of all the people who have been victims of the conflict, victims of murder, victims of displacement for being people with different sexual orientation and gender identity, but also a day to celebrate because (…) we have made progress “, says Danilo Huertas, a 42-year-old human rights defender who marched in the capital wearing a hat and sunglasses.
at least 39 people of the LGBT community were murdered in 2022 in Colombiaaccording to the forensic authority.
In that same period the Ombudsman handled 394 cases of “bias violence,” of which 238 were against transgender people, 61 against lesbians, 123 against gay men and 21 against bisexual people, according to a bulletin.
On June 28, the presidential Casa de Nariño dressed in the colors rainbow to commemorate the pride dayby decision of the president Gustavo Petro, the first leftist to come to power in Colombia.
“The truth is, one has fun, one feels full of energy, of joy, what else gay than joy?”, says Leah Curse, her stage name, with a laugh, while walking in heels, purple hair and a bright outfit
#thousand #people #joined #festive #Pride #March #Bogotá #Colombia