Amada

AMADA I am Amada. I am 12 years old. I always felt like a girl although I was not born that way. When I was younger, my family could not see who I was, yet because they loved me they did a lot of research and realized that inside, I was a girl. Once I […]

Andy y Patty

ANDY Y PATTY In March 2020, the pandemic struck Guayaquil. My partner Patty and I lost our jobs. We were left without a place to live, and had contracted COVID-19. We took refuge at my aunt’s apartment. Patty developed a high fever, her kidneys ached, and her blood pressure dropped. As soon as she started […]

José y Santiago

JOSÉ Y SANTIAGO Few are willing to embrace the challenges of raising a child orphaned by violence or abandonment. We long for that experience. We have been together for thirteen years, but the law continues to deny us the possibility of having a child. As a family we have already overcome challenges imposed on us […]

Odalys

ODALYS To live as a transgender woman in Ecuador is to experience violence every day. I was sent to prison as a young woman. I was beaten and raped. Throughout that struggle, my mother’s support never wavered, she was the hope that never abandoned me. Women in Ecuador face many struggles. The brutality of prison […]

Édgar

EDGAR I did not want to exist. That idea came to me again and again, as the only solution to my pain. I grew up as a «weird» child, in a deeply homophobic world. I learned that the only way to protect myself was to remain invisible.  I made an effort to be the best […]

Doménico

DOMÉNICO There is more to identity than the names and labels society chooses for us. My journey of self-discovery began only after I recognized that I was trans non-binary. Once I’d opened my mind to the possibilities of my being, I could no longer take refuge in traditional gender roles.  The only true names are […]

Gustavo y Oscar

GUSTAVO Y ÓSCAR This May we will have been together for six years. We are a couple and a family. / Gustavo is a professional dancer; when I saw him dance the first time it was so sensual. Then he won me over with his honesty, his strength. / Oscar is so different from what […]

Mati

MATI I am comfortable in my own skin, I identify as non-binary and do not care about the judgement of others. Yet I think back to my childhood; spent in constant fear and persecution. Somewhere inside me that little boy still hides alone, curled in a fetal position, under the school desk, fearful of the […]

Koranji

KORANJI Every day I feel the pressure to conceal my true self under makeup and feminine clothing. Whether in public or at work; society demands that you not only perform a role, but you look the part. It is more important that your appearance adheres to the heteronormative values of others, than expresses your essence. […]

Cris y Diana

DIANA Y CRISTINA It was finding you, in the brief touch of your hand, in the long embrace of your hug. Our love is not defined by labels. We do not take turns playing man or woman. We love each other with the masculinity and femininity that lives within us both. /I love Diana, her […]