Costa Rican Legislature Declared Homophobia Free

Costa Rica's Legislative Assembly was declared free of homophobia¹, transphobia², lesbophobia³ and all kinds of marginalization by sexual diversity.

The motion was adopted by 28 legislators, but some legislators of the Partido Liberación Nacional (PLN) - ruling party and the Partido Unidad Social Cristiana (PUSC) voted against.

Legislator Fabio Molina said that "societies change so we support this motion, we support the evolution of humans."

The initiative was proposed by the Partido Acción Ciudadana (PAC) as part of the National Day Against Homophobia.

According to legislator Carmen Muñoz, the proposal is merely a recognition of the struggle of sexually diverse people for their civil rights. Public institutions, said the PAC legislator, have an obligation to promote and defend human rights.

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Homophobia¹
Homophobia is a range of negative attitudes and feelings towards homosexuality or people who are identified as or perceived as being LGBT. Definitions refer variably to antipathy, contempt, prejudice, aversion, and irrational fear.[1][2][3] In a 1998 address, author, activist, and civil rights leader Coretta Scott King stated that "Homophobia is like racism and anti-Semitism and other forms of bigotry in that it seeks to dehumanize a large group of people, to deny their humanity, their dignity and personhood."

Transphobia²
Transphobia (or less commonly cissexism, transprejudice, and trans-misogyny, referring to transphobia directed toward trans women as part of the larger cultural negativity towards femininity, or trans-misandry, referring to transphobia directed toward trans men) is a range of negative attitudes and feelings towards transsexualism and transsexual or transgender people, based on the expression of their internal gender identity (see Phobia – terms indicating prejudice or class discrimination).

Whether intentional or not, transphobia can have severe consequences for the target of the negative attitude. Many trans people also experience homophobia from people who associate their gender identity with homosexuality. Attacking someone on the basis of a perception of their gender identity rather the perception of their sexual orientation is known as "trans bashing", as opposed to "gay bashing".

Lesbophobia³
Lesbophobia (sometimes Lesbiphobia) comprises various forms of negativity toward lesbian women as individuals, as a couple or as a social group. Based on the categories of sex or biological gender, sexual orientation, lesbian identity, and gender expression, this negativity encompasses prejudice, discrimination, and abuse in addition to attitudes and feelings ranging from disdain to hostility.

As such, lesbophobia is sexism against women that intersects with homophobia and vice-versa. Cynthia Petersen, a professor of law at University of Ottawa, has defined lesbophobia as also including "the fear that women have of loving other women, as well as the fear that men (including gay men) have of women not loving them."