Changes in Attitudes towards LGBTQ+ People in Latin America

• In Event: Perspectives on Gender and Identity

Abstract

Latin America has experienced an unprecedented expansion of LGBTQ+ rights in the last decades, including recognizing same-sex marriages, legalizing adoption for same-sex couples, and adapting regulations to respect the gender identities of trans people. Amid this expansion of rights, how have attitudes towards LGBTQ+ people changed in the region? Combining public opinion data and in-depth interviews, we trace the evolution of tolerance and acceptance.

In line with prior work, we find that younger people are consistently more accepting of LGBTQ+ populations. But we also show that older generations have grown more accepting over time. In many cases, the change in attitudes over time within a generation is at least as large as the difference across generations. To elucidate the individual-level processes by which people change their minds, we present data from in-depth interviews. And we connect broad societal shifts in attitudes towards LGBTQ+ people to transitions to democracy and to the strategic framing of LGBTQ+ rights as human rights rather than minority rights.

Authors

• Eli Gavin Rau, Tecnológico de Monterrey

• Mariela Szwarcberg Daby, Reed College