The Politics of LGBTQ Rights Expansion in Latin America and the Caribbean

by Javier Corrales

The first section of this Element reviews the history of LGBTQ rights in the region since the 1960s. The second section reviews explanations for the expansion of rights and setbacks, especially since the mid 2000s. Explanations are organized according to three (1) the (re-)emergence of a religious cleavage; (2) the role of political institutions such as presidential leadership, political parties, federalism, courts, and transnational forces; and (3) the role of social movement strategies, and especially, unity. The last section compares the progress on LGBTQ rights (significant) with reproductive rights (insignificant). This Element concludes with an overview of the causes and possible future direction of the current backlash against LGBTQ rights.

69 pages, Kindle Edition

Published April 7, 2022

About the author

Associate Professor of Political Science at Amherst College, Javier Corrales authored or co-authored "U.S.-Venezuela Relations since the 1990s: Coping with Midlevel Security Threats", "Dragon in the Tropics: Hugo Chávez and the Political Economy of Revolution in Venezuela" and "Presidents Without Parties", edited "The Politics of Sexuality in Latin America" and is a contributor to The Huffington Post. His research has been published in academic journals such as Comparative Politics, World Development, Political Science Quarterly, World Policy Journal, Latin American Politics and Society, Latin American Research Review, Current History, and Foreign Policy. He serves on the editorial board of Latin American Politics and Society.