For far too long, LGBTQ Latinos have gone underappreciated or unrecognized by both the larger Latino community, and the mainstream LGBTQ movement. Our issues were once overlooked, our existence ignored—we were hardly invited to the table to discuss policies that affected either the LGBTQ community or the Latino community. But as Latinos continue to become a politically powerful community ( as the previous elections have shown ), and as LGBTQ equality becomes more of a reality, it is imperative that LGBTQ Latina/os take a more prominent role moving forward.
The history of LGBTQ Latino activism is often disregarded, even though LGBTQ Latino/as have been active and leading in almost every national and local civil rights movement. Often, this activism is only credited to the coasts; but the Midwest, specifically Chicago, has been a hotbed for LGBTQ Latino activism and leadership.
In Chicago, it was LGBTQ immigrant youth from the Immigrant Youth Justice League ( IYJL ) who boldly came out in public in front of the Federal Building as both undocumented and queer during the first "Coming Out of the Shadows" event. Mona Noriega is one of the highest ranking openly out LGBTQ appointed officials in Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel's administration, and she has been active in Latina lesbian activism in Chicago for many years. Since 2007, Modesto "Tico" Valle has been the CEO for the Center on Halsted, the largest LGBTQ community center in the Midwest.Most recently, David Munar has been chosen to lead one of the largest LGBTQ agencies in the country; making him, one of the few openly out, and HIV positive, Latinos leading a major organization. The problem is not that there is a shortage of LGBTQ Latina/os, but rather that our stories and our contributions were always perceived to be marginal.
But that is changing: LGBTQ Latina/os will no longer sit idly.
Twenty-five years ago, the Association of Latino Men for Action was founded out of the need to create safe spaces for gay, bisexuals, and questioning members of the Latino community. While many knew of one another and had interacted in an array of social gatherings, they lacked the opportunity to come together and discuss the issues that affected them as gay, bisexual and questioning Latino men. Many grew tired of living two separate lives; indeed, they were exhausted by the homophobia from their families and fellow Latinos, and simultaneously frustrated with the racism of the predominantly white LGBTQ community. ALMA provided respite, safety—and a community.
Now, as the Association of Latina/os Motivating Action—a more-inclusive, advocacy-driven organization—we have chosen to go from just creating safe spaces, to building bridges that will lead us from the sidelines and into the centerfold. Our community refuses to be an afterthought, we will no longer only exist on the margins.
By repudiating the margins, ALMA has been leading the fight towards an LGBTQ-inclusive immigration reform bill. ALMA helped create, and has been leading, the LGBTQ Immigrant Rights Coalition. The coalition has advocated that new immigrant-friendly legislation be sensitive to the unique experiences of the LGBTQ community. Even though anti-gay conservatives in the U.S. Senate refused to pass a bill that protected families in same-sex relationships, LGBT activists continued to push for the passage of an immigration bill.
We could not, and we will not, allow such "divide and conquer" political games to scare us into conceding. To be sure, we must pursue stronger bridges, so our allies will remain unmoved by the political games of those in power.
ALMA led the marriage equality efforts in the Latino community. Regrettably, while most marriage campaigns across the country have historically ignored or paid very limited attention to the Latino community, ALMA and a coalition of other LGBTQ Latino organizations were in our communities building support for the bill. Along with United Latino Pride, and other Latino activists, we led the "Latinos for United Families: Immigration Reform and Marriage Equality Now!" campaign. As Latinos, many of us immigrants, knew that we could not just pick and chose one campaign, or one identity; we had to find a way to highlight and push these intersections. Our marriage campaign, focused on one of the most important elements of our culture—families. Throughout the campaign, we were determined to talk to every single member of the Latino caucus, introduce them to Latino/as in same-sex relationship, and remind them that as Latinos we do not turn our back on families.
Because we refused to live in the margins, every single member of the democratic Latino caucus voted in favor of the bill. This was something we were not anticipating, especially since powerful forces, like the Catholic Church, threatened the Latino elected officials. Yet all of our Latino leaders stood with the LGBTQ community—this is no small victory, especially not in Illinois politics. However, during all the celebrations, there was very little public recognition of their efforts and commitment. ALMA remains eternally grateful, and proud, to call the members of the Latino Caucus true allies.
Even though the passage of the bill was critically important, one of our biggest goals was to develop and strengthen long-lasting relationships with our Latino/a community. While engaging in conversations with Latino leaders, we asked them why they supported marriage equality. For many of them, their response was "I support their rights," they being LGBTQ people. While this answer may suffice for some, it implied that LGBTQ civil rights don't directly impact their constituency; it does not recognize that we are a part of their own community. Being advocates for the Latino community should mean being advocates for LGBTQ Latinos. We are our families' children, parents, uncles and aunts, brothers and sisters, and grandparents. We are part of the Latino family and not outside of it.
ALMA envisions a world in which same-sex couples can embrace each other in our communities, like La Villita, without any shame. We strive to see a world in which transgender individuals can live and work in our communities, like Humboldt Park, without fear of violence. We are working to create a world in which young LGBTQ Latina/os can feel comfortable and loved by our families and classmates.
ALMA will continue to advocate and advance the Latino LGBTQ agenda. We will reengage with our roots and create action with our familias in order to celebrate our entire community. We will no longer live on the margins.
Luis Roman and Kenny Martin-Ocasio are co-chairs of the ALMA board of directors' advocacy committee.
