Latin American culture is commonly known for its richness, vibrancy, and complexity. Though each Latin country’s history and culture can easily stand on its own, the region is united by the warmth and humility with which most Latin Americans conduct their daily lives. Often overlooked, however, is the discrimination against various sub-populations of Latin American society. Latinos of black, Asian, and indigenous descent have been historically discriminated against, resulting in these communities being severely underfunded and underserved by their respective governments. Unfortunately, queer communities in Latin America often experience similar amounts of exclusion and structural violence. 

Discrimination within Latin American culture runs deep. In fact, Latin America is the region with the highest rates of violence against the LGBTQ community, specifically those of transgender and gender nonconforming identities. A shocking 78% of transgender homicides occur in Latin America, highlighting a severe lack of protections for the trans community as well as the astounding amount of transphobia that is embedded in Latin American society (Habib, 2018). Transphobia is defined as “fear, hatred, disbelief, or mistrust of people who are transgender, thought to be transgender, or whose gender expression doesn’t conform to traditional gender roles.”^[10] Pronounced disparities between cisgender and transgender individuals exist within every social determinant of health. In Bolivia, 70% of trans youth never complete their education, and in Argentina 45% of trans youth drop out of school due to harassment, intimidation, and bullying.^[8] Machismo, the toxic masculinity seen in Latin culture, and religion are the two largest contributors to transphobia in this region. Both factors are deeply intertwined with Latin American morals and values, leading to gender identity-based discrimination that impacts every aspect of life for gender nonconforming Latines. 

Latin American culture dons significant social authority on men, who are typically the heads of households and main providers for families. For decades, if not centuries, men’s ability to command their household with little to no input from other members has been justified by the physical contributions they provide. Over time, this structure of household roles has resulted in harmful social and behavioral trends due to an abundance of machismo in Latin American society. Machismo involves an aggressive and overbearing attitude held by men that leads them to act based on the notion that they are superior over anyone who is not also a cisgender male.^[9] This exaggeration of masculinity is one of the largest contributors to the high rates of domestic and intimate partner violence in Latin America, but is also a significant factor when discussing transphobia and transfemicide.

Since Latin America’s colonization, Catholicism has been by far the most practiced faith in the region. With just under 70% of all Latin Americans identifying as Catholic, it is no surprise that cultural values are also heavily based in religion.^[7] While race and ethnicity did not show notable associations with transphobia as isolated predictors, religion has been found to be a significant factor. Catholicism regards any gender nonconforming identities as immoral, highly influencing the attitudes of Latin Americans Catholics against transgender people. The degree to which an individual adheres to their faith is associated with a higher likelihood of holding transphobic beliefs, with traditional Catholics being most likely to discriminate against gender nonconforming persons. Fundamentally, Catholicism supports traditional family structures, headed by a married pairing of cisgender men and women. Gender nonconformity threatens the foundational basis of this religion leading to a general rejection of it from Latin American society.^[1] From a religious perspective, trans folks are consciously deviating from the form in which God created them. This deviation is understood as an act of defiance against God.^[3] Though Catholicism preaches peace, love, and community, it paradoxically leads to in-group attitudes and behaviors from its followers. 

Overall, not nearly enough research has been done to study transphobia in the region, leaving trans populations exposed to continued oppression and discrimination at all societal levels. Awareness for inequities faced by this group has been primarily raised by prominent pop cultures figures. During his “Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon” performance in early 2020, reggaetonero Bad Bunny wore a t-shirt calling out the murder of Alexa Negrón Luciano, a homeless trans woman in Puerto Rico.^[2] In the days following this homicide, Puerto Rican media still refused to acknowledge Alexa’s female identity and would continuously refer to her as “a man in a skirt.” Evidently, there is much work to be done to educate, increase visibility, and change societal attitudes across all Latin American countries. 

Transphobia in Latin America can be tied to some of what the region’s societal values and morals are rooted in: machismo and religion. The exaggerated assertiveness and sexism that are associated with machismo create an authoritative social hierarchy in which gender nonconforming individuals sit at the very bottom. Moreover, religious values that label trans people as immoral and nontraditional unjustly sustain discriminatory beliefs and behaviors. One can only hope that figures with important social influence continue to use their platforms to increase visibility for trans Latinos and to raise awareness regarding trans issues. Perhaps by increasing Latin American society’s exposure to trans communities, individuals will become more accepting and empathetic. Only then will Latin America be able to move past its transphobic nature and begin significant sociopolitical change to give trans communities the human rights and protections they have been denied for far too long.

References 

[1] Acker, G. M. (2017). Transphobia among students majoring in the helping professions. Journal of Homosexuality, 64(14), 2011–2029. https://doi.org/10.1080/00918369.2017.1293404

[2] Brito, C. (2021, May 7). Bad bunny calls attention to the killing of a transgender woman. CBS News. 

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/bad-bunny-transgender-woman-alexa-negron-luciano-shirt-tonig ht-show-starring-jimmy-fallon/. 

[3] Campbell, M., Hinton, J. D., & Anderson, J. R. (2019). A systematic review of the relationship between religion and attitudes toward transgender and gender-variant people. International Journal of Transgenderism, 20(1), 21–38. 

[4] Frequently asked questions about transgender people. National Center for Transgender Equality. (2020, September 4). 

[5] Habib, Y. (2018, November 30). The reality of violence and transphobia in Latin America. AL DÍA News. https://aldianews.com/articles/culture/reality-violence-and-transphobia-latin-america/54500.

[6] Lanham, M., Ridgeway, K., Dayton, R., Castillo, B. M., Brennan, C., Davis, D. A., Emmanuel, D., Morales, G. J., Cheririser, C., Rodriguez, B., Cooke, J., Santi, K., & Evens, E. (2019). “we’re going to leave you for last, because of how you are”: Transgender women’s experiences of gender-based violence in healthcare, education, and police encounters in Latin America and the Caribbean. Violence and Gender, 6(1), 37–46. 

[7] Lipka, M. (2020, May 31). 7 key takeaways about religion in Latin America. Pew Research Center. Retrieved October 5, 2021, from 

https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2014/11/13/7-key-takeaways-about-religion-in-latin-amer ica/#:~:text=Latin%20America%20remains%20overwhelmingly%20Catholic,the%20Brazilian% 20and%20Mexican%20censuses. 

[8] Lopez, O. (2020, October 7). ‘unable to learn’ – transgender schools in Latin America offer a fresh chance. Reuters. 

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-latam-lgbt-schools-trans/unable-to-learn-transgender-schools in-latin-america-offer-a-fresh-chance-idUSKBN26S02F. 

[9] Nuñez, A., González, P., Talavera, G. A., Sanchez-Johnsen, L., Roesch, S. C., Davis, S. M., Arguelles, W., Womack, V. Y., Ostrovsky, N. W., Ojeda, L., Penedo, F. J., & Gallo, L. C. (2016). Machismo, Marianismo, and Negative Cognitive-Emotional Factors: Findings From the Hispanic Community Health Study/Study of Latinos Sociocultural Ancillary Study. Journal of Latina/o psychology, 4(4), 202–217. https://doi.org/10.1037/lat0000050 

[10] Planned Parenthood (n.d.). What’s transphobia?: Facts about transphobic discrimination. Planned Parenthood.