In the last two decades, a lot of progress has been achieved in terms of globally promoting and expanding LGBTQ+ rights. Yet while some countries have provided more inclusive and just policies, based on activism and changes in public opinion, others have contested the advances in LGBTQ+ rights with reference to their culture or sovereignty. The question of reframing LGBTQ+ rights as human rights for those individuals aims to avoid the polarization over those rights as special and/or ‘Western’. 

Join us as we explore international LGBTQ+ politics and its relation to anti-gender and post-colonial policies, as well as relevant topics such as same-sex marriage, the role of international institutions in promoting rights, and LGBTQ+ refugees.

Presented by the Václav Havel Program for Human Rights & Diplomacy, in collaboration with LGBTQA Initiatives, Multicultural Programs and Services; the Ruth K. and Shepard Broad Distinguished Lecture Series; the Kimberly Green Latin American and Caribbean Center; the Center for Women’s and Gender Studies; and the Jewish Museum of Florida-FIU.

Panelists:

Jessy Abouarab, Visiting Assistant Professor, Center for Women’s and Gender Studies, FIU

Ana Helena Chacón, Former Second Vice-President of Costa Rica

Markus Thiel, Associate Professor, Department of Politics and International Relations; Director, EU-Jean Monnet Center of Excellence, FIU

Moderator:

Erica Jayne Friedman, Associate Director, LGBTQA Initiatives, FIU