Pride Month in Focus: DIDESEX

June 16, 2023 

In recognition of Pride Month, we’re highlighting members of our network that are working to support the LGBTQ+ community through sport. Today, we’re highlighting DIDESEX (Diversidad, Deporte y Sexualidad/Diversity, Sports and Sexuality). We spoke to Co-Founder and Project Coordinator, Fernando Luna, who shared the non-profit's mission to promote sexual diversity and inclusion in Mexico and work to create safe sport spaces for the LGBTQ+ community in the country.  

DIDESEX was founded in 2010 to fight discrimination in sports that is based on sexual orientation and gender identity. It also works to create safe spaces for the LGBTQ+ community to practice sport and work on their personal development, drawing them away from social vulnerabilities such as prostitution. Luna explains that this phenomenon in Mexico is due to various socioeconomic and personal factors, many of which are experienced by the country’s queer people and LGBTQ+ community who don’t have many job opportunities because of discrimination. 

The organization works to create inclusive social environments that support vulnerable groups such as youth, people with HIV and the LGBTQ+ community through sport and positive models of coexistence. It is a human rights defender and promotes sports to further activism, advocacy and equality. DIDESEX's founders and leaders are athletes and activists with experience on issues of sexual and cultural diversity and public health. Its three main areas of focus are: Sexual Diversity, addressing human rights for all; Sport, promoting LGBTQ+ community rights in sports in Mexico and achieving recognition through government institutions; and Sexuallity, guaranteeing the sexual and reproductive rights of all people.

The non-profit uses sport as a tool to address problems around equality, homophobic hate crimes, stigma and discrimination, gender-based violence and reproductive rights. It develops and brings together sports leaders from across Latin America to promote the visibility and recognition of LGBTIQ sport in the region. 

“Sport has traditionally been a breeding ground for discrimination and exclusion. LGBTQ+ athletes have often faced invisible barriers that limit their opportunities and prevent them from fully competing and expressing themselves. However, thanks to organizations like DIDESEX, the status quo has been challenged, paving the way for equality in sports,” said Luna. 

In Mexico, 1 in 20 people aged 15 and over self-identify as part of the LGBTQ+ community. With the country also being the second top country for hate crimes in Latin America after Brazil, there is obvious work that needs to be done to eliminate discrimination. Despite legal advances recognizing same-sex marriages and the criminalization of discrimination, sexual minorities suffered 305 reported violent acts motivated by hate between 2019 and 2022. According to The National Observatory of Hate Crimes Against LGBTI+ Persons in Mexico, in 2022 alone, there were 22 reported disappearances and 62 murders, attacks and suicides, with the majority of the victims aged between 25-29 years of age who were trans women or homosexual men. 

DIDESEX currently works in Mexico City, Nuevo Leon, Veracruz, Morelos, Queretaro, the State of Mexico and Puebla, supporting people aged over 18. Through sports, such as basketball, athletics, swimming, football, volleyball and beach volleyball, the organization has been able to support people from prisons, indigenous communities and the LGBTQ+ community. 

Its social programming and sessions are led by volunteers and members of the association. DIDETRANS, its current project, intends to raise the resources to finance the first volleyball team made up of transgender women in Mexico and the second transgender girls' soccer team. The project provides support networks and resources for trans athletes through mentoring programs, access to specialized training and assistance in navigating gender-specific sporting categories. 

Luna explains that it is essential to provide support for trans athletes in the midst of the rising trans-athlete bans in the United States, where restrictions are limiting sports participation in schools and competitions and encourages the public to donate to projects involving transgender athletes. “It is crucial to remember and reaffirm the fundamental values of equality, inclusion and respect in sport. Every individual, including trans athletes, has the universal right to participate in sports without discrimination or unfair barriers. Sport has the power to bring people together and foster physical, mental and emotional development, regardless of gender identity.” 

The organization also implements community projects such as creating new sports spaces for LGBTQ+ people and carrying out and participating, in awareness campaigns and tournaments – both nationally and internationally – since 2013. In addition, it advocates for change in governance and institutions. DIDESEX is the first organization to place the issue of sexual diversity in sports as one of the main topics within a political advocacy agenda on a Latin America level.

“LGBTQ+ inclusion in sport is based on the fundamental principle of equality. All individuals, regardless of their sexual orientation or gender identity, have the right to participate in sport without fear of discrimination, harassment or exclusion. By denying LGBTQ+ people access to sport or limiting their opportunities, they are being denied their basic right to equal opportunities and to fully participate in society.” 

DIDESEX will once again participate in the Gay Games – a tournament intended to promote freedom and rights for LGBTQ+ people. This year’s event will take place in November in Mexico and Luna explains the organization’s excitement in taking its trailblazing athletes and first trans women’s volleyball and soccer team to the tournament among others. 

DIDESEX were 2017 Beyond Sport Global Award shortlisters.