Over the past decades, the feminist movement in Latin America has achieved historic victories in advancing gender equality. These milestones include transformative legislative reforms and robust public policies addressing sexual and reproductive rights, as well as gender-based violence (GBV). However, these hard-won gains — such as abortion legalization in Argentina, the decriminalization of abortion in Colombia (up to the 24th week of pregnancy), and the implementation of new care systems and strengthened laws against GBV in Chile — are currently under serious threat. A surging anti-rights agenda, fueled by specific governments administrations and conservative civic actors, seeks to dismantle this progress and roll back the protections that sustain gender justice across the region.
Mobilizing Fear and Traditions: Some Strategies Behind the Anti-Gender Narratives in Latin America
Anti-gender discourse in the region is often marked by an aggressive rhetoric that frames feminists and LGBTIQ+ communities as threats to the moral and social fabric of society. This narrative relies on stigma, stereotypes, and derogatory language. The rhetoric is rooted in conservative ideology, lacking factual or legal basis, and disseminated through social media by self-identified “good people” (typically aligned with white, middle-class, heteronormative values) who claim to be defending “traditional social norms”. A common thread for right-wing, far-right, and religious conservative actors (Catholic, Evangelical, Christian) is the use of the “gender ideology” concept. Coined by the Catholic Church in the 1990s, this term is weaponized to portray gender and sexual diversity as an existential threat to the heterosexual nuclear family.
Colombian Context: Anti-Gender Movements and Their Impact
In Colombia, anti-gender discourse has grown since the 2000s, first with the formation of anti-abortion groups like Unidos por la Vida (2006) and later, in 2014, the attempt to introduce a constitutional abortion ban. In 2016, the term “gender ideology” was used as a central argument to oppose the peace accord referendum. Opponents portrayed the gender-related provisions in the accord as an attempt to impose a controversial new social doctrine that would “convert” children to homosexuality and disrupt traditional gender roles and family values. This framing contributed significantly to the narrow rejection of the peace accord in the referendum, as conservative groups used fear of “gender ideology” to mobilize voters against the peace process.
Anti-gender narratives and their political proponents in Colombia work across three key areas: utilizing the media for disinformation, attacking legal and policy efforts that have already been achieved, and influencing civil society through hate speech, smear campaigns, and the stigmatization and delegitimization of the work and demands of human rights, feminist, and LGBTIQ+ organizations.
Right-wing leaders and conservative groups have used misinformation campaigns on abortion rights and queer rights to gain supporters, claiming that feminist and LGBTIQ+ efforts aim to dismantle traditional families or "confuse" children through comprehensive sex education. As Colombia approaches new presidential elections in 2026, some candidates – men and women – from right-wing parties are actively using anti-gender discourse as a central theme of their platforms.
Conservative groups in Colombia have used referendums as a strategy to challenge the right to abortion, seeking to overturn the Constitutional Court's 2022 decision that decriminalized abortion up to the 24th week of pregnancy by mobilizing public support and collecting signatures to force a popular vote. At the same time, anti-rights groups have intensified their campaigns in universities and educational spaces following the decriminalization of abortion, using misinformation and the green color of pro-choice branding to attract young women who are considering abortion, to gather their data, and to persuade them not to get an abortion – telling them it is a crime. These tactics have been observed by organizations active in the feminist movement in Bogotá.
Efforts to roll back rights have primarily targeted abortion access and gender diversity protections. While the 2022 Causa Justa ruling decriminalized abortion up to 24 weeks, implementation is uneven, as conservative and religious actors have formed parliamentary alliances to block access to services and obstruct progressive bills, including a ban on conversion therapies for LGBTIQ+ people. Along the way, civil society actors and human rights defenders have faced increasing attacks, such as violence during marches or protests, fueled by disinformation campaigns that encourage threats against feminist and queer activists.
Strategies of Resistance by Feminist and Queer Actors
In Colombia, feminist and queer movements have advanced rights by implementing diverse strategies. Strategic litigation, led by the Causa Justa coalition of more than 100 organizations, challenged Colombia's abortion laws by framing this not only as a women's issue but as a matter of public health, equality, and human rights. The building of a multi-sectoral coalition (legal, health, feminist, youth groups) and use of constitutional arguments meant that the voices of marginalized women (e.g., Afro, rural, youth) could be heard, demanding full decriminalization of abortion – and thus achieving the historic 2022 ruling that decriminalized abortion up to the 24th week of pregnancy.
Feminist organizations such as the Bucaramanga-based Fundación Mujer y Futuro, which engages with youth, rural women, and survivors of violence, are working on securing political empowerment, sexual rights education, and rural women's local leadership. Such organizations have built strong networks with rural and urban activists via participatory education.
Alongside many gains, numerous challenges remain. Feminist movements and collective efforts continue to defend the gains achieved for women's rights and diversity, demonstrating that multi-level, networked action, grounded in an intersectional perspective, can effectively resist and even reverse the anti-gender backlash.