A group of men wearing black hoods attacked the capital of Chile’s Pride parade on June 29.
Last week, at the beginning of the parade, a group of men arrived at the fences surrounding the participants and a truck which was at the start of the parade. The men then began punching and kicking activists and those in the parade, The Washington Blade reported. They also reportedly use a skateboard to threaten violence against marchers.
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The hooded men also threw stones and paint at floats, damaged parade infrastructure, and broke a truck’s headlight. Organizers believe the violence was related to calls on social media to boycott the parade before it took place. The attackers allegedly opposed the parade’s message of safety, belonging, and inclusion.
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Movement for Homosexual Integration and Liberation (Movilh), a Chilean LGBTQ+ activist group, released a statement describing and condemning the attack and asking for information about the attackers.
“As we do every year, we fence the truck with our volunteers to prevent anyone from being run over or hurt by the wheels,” said Movilh. “The hooded men approached the fence to break it, hitting our volunteers and people outside of our organization with their feet and fists who, in an act of solidarity, tried to dissuade them.”
Javiera Zúñiga is a spokesperson for Movilh. Zúñiga told The Blade that “after the attack that we faced during the Pride March, we published in our social networks the few images that were available from that moment.”
“What we are basically asking is that anyone who has seen something and can recognize any of the aggressors write to our email or (contact us) through our social networks so that we can file complaints and do whatever is necessary to find those responsible.”
Chile offers full LGBTQ+ legal protections including anti-discrimination protections in employment, education, and public accommodations; same-sex marriage and adoption rights; a ban on conversion therapy; healthcare protections for intersex and transgender individuals; and other rights.