In Central America, the violent gangs that control many marginalized communities often single out lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) people – extorting, threatening and sometimes even killing them. LGBTI people in the region often have no choice but to flee their homes in search of safety. Many stay within their own country, becoming part of the internally displaced population.
Grecia Villalobos is a Salvadoran trans woman who works for COMCAVIS TRANS, a UNHCR partner that helps protect the rights of LGBTI people in El Salvador. She met Mexican actor and UNHCR High Profile Supporter Alfonso Herrera last spring when the actor toured UNHCR’s operations in the small Central American country. Herrera portrayed Hernando on Netflix’s hit series Sense8 – a show praised by critics and LGBTI groups for its exploration of sexual and gender identity­. He asked Grecia to chat with him by video last month about her work, the risks LGBTI people face in El Salvador and the effects COVID-19 has had on the people she serves.

Read the story in Spanish: https://www.acnur.org/noticias/historia/2020/6/5ef6b7c34/hay-muchos-riesgos-y-limitantes-para-las-personas-lgbti-en-estos-momentos.html#_ga=2.26784888.419046704.1602525261-1181030147.1578932055