Thousands in Argentina participated in the “Marcha Federal del Orgullo Antifascista y Antirracista” to protest President Javier Milei’s statements at the Davos summit, where he linked the LGBTQ+ community to pedophilia and criticized gender policies. The march united various organizations and individuals demanding an end to regressive policies and defending inclusion.
On February 1, 2025, massive protests erupted across Argentina in response to President Javier Milei’s controversial remarks at the World Economic Forum in Davos. In his speech, Milei equated LGBTQ+ identities with pedophilia, criticized feminism, and denounced progressive policies as a “cancer that must be extirpated.”
The “Federal March of Anti-Fascist and Anti-Racist Pride” was organized by LGBTQ+ collectives, feminist groups, human rights organizations, trade unions, and opposition politicians. Demonstrations took place in Buenos Aires and other major cities, including Córdoba, Rosario, Bariloche, Salta, and Jujuy. International solidarity marches were also held in cities such as Amsterdam, Barcelona, Mexico City, Cologne, Geneva, London, Paris, Rio de Janeiro, and São Paulo.
In Buenos Aires, protesters gathered at the National Congress before marching to the Casa Rosada, the presidential palace. Participants carried rainbow flags and banners with slogans like “rights are not negotiable” and “we will not go back into the closet.” The demonstrations aimed to defend hard-won diversity advances and denounce Milei’s anti-“woke” pronouncements.
The protests were further fueled by the government’s recent decree banning gender-affirming treatments for minors, which reversed a 2012 law that allowed such procedures with parental consent. The administration justified the ban by claiming that children lack the cognitive maturity to make irreversible decisions and labeled the application of “gender ideology” to children as child abuse.
These events underscore the deepening divide in Argentina over LGBTQ+ rights and the growing resistance against the government’s conservative policies.
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