by Tuisina Ymania Brown and Luz Elena Aranda, co-secretaries general at ILGA World
When Pope Francis called for civil unions and spoke of the right of our LGBTI communities to a family, joy has been the first reaction for many of us.
For Catholics he is not only our spiritual father, but a hugely influential voice globally to hundreds of millions of people. His words of inclusion will resonate and hopefully drive inclusive change in countries, churches, communities and homes around the world.
After many years of being shut out in the darkness of exclusion, should we be surprised by these words that express support for us to access a most basic level of humanity?
Although unprecedented for a Pope, the support expressed by His Holiness is a basic level of human right protection.
Yes, we have a right to a family;
Yes, whether or not we have come out, we hope that our families won’t turn away from us;
Yes, we have a right for our love to be legally recognised. At least 28 UN member States have marriage equality, and 32 more recognise some form of civil partnership for same-sex couples.
And whilst we celebrate the support from Pope Francis, it is also a reminder for us that what may be obvious for LGBTIQ communities and allies may still not be for many across the world.
We are still conveniently scapegoated by conservatives and religious leaders for their own political gains, and the current pandemic gave us many examples of this - from campaigns in India falsely accusing trans people of spreading the virus, to multiple attempts to remove legal gender recognition.
Laws continue to target us. In 68 countries worldwide, for example, consensual same-sex relations are punished by law, and at least 13 have provisions that explicitly criminalise trans persons. From ‘conversion therapies’ to medically unnecessary surgeries on intersex children, horrific practices are the harsh realities we’re subjected to. We are being told that we need to be ‘fixed’, despite our own knowledge that there is absolutely nothing wrong with us.
The acceptance and respect we call for is seldom given for granted by society at large, and this is why words such as those of Pope Francis will resonate with many in our communities. There is hope that we use them to potentially make a real lasting difference.
We know how life-changing it will be for tens of millions of LGBTI persons worldwide – both LGBTI Catholics themselves and those living in traditionally Catholic societies - to hear these words. Our hope is that they will warm the hearts of those who have rejected or left faith because they were repeatedly made feel unwelcome, as well as offering hope to those whose faith stands unwavering. Read more via ILGA