Noticias

In view of the Pope's visit to Paraguay, from 10-12 of July, SOMOSGAY will present a campaign inviting and urging the Catholic Church to respect LGBT people and their families, highlighting the attitude of the Pope himself, who positively mentioned LGBT people in different occasions.

SOMOSGAY considers the gesture of Pope Francisco towards LGBT people as a breakthrough, considering the ultraconservative context that has characterized the Vatican at the time of their ancestors.

The attitude of dialogue also helps to deconstruct the myth that LGBT people can not be Christian or may not profess a faith or religion, which is promoted by fundamentalist sectors to deny rights and justify intolerant attacks against other people based on their sexual orientation and/or gender identity.

“One can be lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender AND a Catholic at a time; there is no contradiction between being an LGBT person and being a religious person. Respect for personal beliefs is inherent in democracy” says Sergio López, activist of SOMOSGAY. “We recognize that human diversity also exists within the Catholic Church, especially in Paraguay, being the Latin American country with the highest percentage of Catholics, with a rate of 89%. We hope that the religious leaders of our country catch up with the Holy Father and join its stance of openness and reconciliation”, reaffirmed.

In that sense, SOMOSGAY calls to abandon the positions of intolerance and insults dehumanizing LGBT people. "Denying rights, attacking people and ignore their families goes against Catholic principles of love and respect, we hope that -as in the days of the dictatorship, the choice of the Paraguayan Catholic Church is in favor of and unprotected and persecuted in our time, among those who are lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people, " said López.