National Observatory of Hate Crimes
By Hector Ramirez Betancourt
The Observatory is a collective effort to combat the maximum expression of violence against the LGBT population: hate crimes.
The violence faced by lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans people in Mexico has been highlighted by different records placing our country in second place worldwide in Latin America. In recent years, the climate of violence has become general, which has contributed to discredit the figures, rather alarming, of hate crimes. The largest number of crimes recorded in journalistic reports are against trans women and gay men, which does not necessarily mean that hate crimes against lesbian women or other dissident identities and orientations do not occur.
In 2018, several LGBT organizations in Mexico took the necessary steps for the United Nations Human Rights Council to include hate crimes against LGBT people in the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) and recommended an adequate record of crimes of hatred suffered by LGBT people in our country to the Mexican government. As a result, Fundacion Arcoiris decided in 2019 to promote the creation of the National Observatory of Hate Crimes against LGBT people in order to respond to the gaps in the records of these crimes.
In this sense, the general objective of the Observatory is to make visible the gaps in the registers of hate crimes and acts of violence against LGBT people in all the States of the Republic through the construction of an observatory that allows having disaggregated information to influence the care and follow-up of cases.
Fundación Arcoíris respecting sexual diversity A.C: is the entity which carries out the general coordination of the Observatory and monitors its activities, it also works both in the areas of research and in political advocacy. As well, It is in charge of the education and training of the people who are part of the project.
This Observatory has been initiated by 10 current LGBT organizations, groups and networks of different States of the Republic, amongst them; Gender, Ethics and Sexual Health-GESS., ExploraT, Lavanda CLIT, Asociación Arcoiris, Become Visible, San AElredo, Cohesion of Diversities for Sustainability-CODISE, Collective Vallarta LGBT, National System for Promotion and Training in Sexual Health-SISEX, Fátima , I am Human, Environmental, Diversity Guerrero, Michoacán is Diversity, Full Life-and last not least, Center for Support of Trans Identities and Fundación Arcoiris for Respect of Sexual Diversity ,.
From our trench we have to demand to the state congress the classification of hate crimes in the state.
This is a general description of what the National Observatory of Hate Crimes is. In another document we will talk about its report, which leads us to realize that there is still much to do on this issue.
