The evolution of LGTBI+ rights in Spain over the last few decades has been marked by a combination of social mobilization and political decisions. The approval of same-sex marriage in 2005, the regulation of legal sex changes in 2007, or the Trans Law of 2023 are some of the legislative milestones that have placed Spain among the countries with the most advanced legal framework in this matter.
Behind these advances are leaders from different parties and institutions who promoted reforms, defended legislative changes, or contributed to raising visibility. DEMÓCRATA reviews their biographies and milestones:
Pedro Zerolo
Pedro Zerolo is, without a doubt, one of the most relevant figures in the history of LGTBI rights in Spain. During the nineties, he became one of the main reference points for the movement, first as president of COGAM and later at the head of the State Federation of Lesbians, Gays, Transsexuals and Bisexuals (FELGTB), from where he led the demand for same-sex marriage and full legal equality for same-sex couples.
His leap into institutional politics came with the PSOE. He was a councilor for the City of Madrid between 2003 and 2015 and secretary of Social Movements of the Federal Executive Commission of the party, positions from which he maintained close communication with the Government of José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero during the processing of the Same-Sex Marriage Law.
As recognition for his career, the City of Madrid renamed the former Plaza de Vázquez de Mella in 2015 with the name of Plaza de Pedro Zerolo, located in the Chueca neighborhood, one of the main symbols of the movement. From this space, the opening speech of the Madrid Pride (MADO) festivities is celebrated every year, a permanent tribute to those who contributed decisively to the conquest of legal equality for the community.
José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero
José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero presided over the Government of Spain between 2004 and 2011. Under his mandate, Law 13/2005 was approved, which made Spain the third country in the world to recognize marriage between people of the same sex with full equal rights, including adoption.
The processing of same-sex marriage was marked by strong political and social opposition. The People's Party voted against the law and filed a request for unconstitutionality before the Constitutional Court, which was not resolved until 2012, when the high court upheld the norm. In parallel, the Spanish Episcopal Conference supported massive mobilizations in Madrid in defense of the traditional family model and showed outright rejection of the reform.
Two years later, the socialist government pushed through the 2007 Gender Identity Law, which for the first time allowed for a change of registered sex without the need for surgical intervention. Zapatero made the expansion of civil rights one of the hallmarks of his governments and personally defended these initiatives in the face of strong opposition from multiple sectors of society.
Carla Antonelli
Carla Antonelli has been one of the main institutional representatives of the trans community in Spain. An activist since the late seventies, she began her advocacy work at a time when transsexuality was still heavily stigmatized and legal recognition for trans people was practically nonexistent. For decades, she participated in campaigns for the depathologization of transsexuality, the recognition of gender identity, and equal rights.
In 2011, she made history by becoming the first trans woman to hold a seat in a Spanish parliament, as a PSOE deputy in the Assembly of Madrid. However, in 2022, she left the socialist ranks due to disagreements with other internal factions critical of the Trans Law. A year later, she was elected senator for Más Madrid, also becoming the first trans woman to be part of the Senate.
Irene Montero
Irene Montero held the Ministry of Equality between 2020 and 2023, a period in which the rights of the LGTBI community, and especially those of trans people, became a central focus of the Government's legislative agenda. From her department, she promoted the Law for the real and effective equality of trans people and for the guarantee of the rights of LGTBI people, definitively approved in 2023.
The law introduced far-reaching changes in the Spanish legal system. Among them, the recognition of gender self-determination for those over 16 years of age, the elimination of the obligation to present medical or psychological reports to modify the registered sex designation, specific protection measures against discrimination, the prohibition of conversion therapies, and the strengthening of public policies for equality and awareness. The processing of the law was marked by discrepancies both within the Government itself with the socialist wing of the coalition and between different sectors of the feminist movement and the LGTBI collective.
During her time at the head of the ministry, Montero surrounded herself with profiles with a long history in LGTBI activism such as Boti García Rodrigo or Beatriz Gimeno.
cogam
COGAM is an LGTBI association founded in Madrid in 1986 that works in defense of the rights of the collective and offers psychological, legal, and social support services, in addition to developing education, health, and awareness programs. Over the years, it has consolidated itself as one of the reference entities of the Spanish associative movement and is part of the State LGTBI+ Federation (FELGTBI+).
Several of the figures remembered in this review have been linked to this organization. Pedro Zerolo was at COGAM between 1992 and 1995, while Boti García Rodrigo was there between 2003 and 2012.
Beatriz Gimeno
Beatriz Gimeno is one of the most prominent figures in LGTBI and feminist activism in Spain and chaired FELGTB between 2003 and 2007, a decisive period in which same-sex marriage and the Gender Identity Law were approved. In 2015, she made the leap to institutional politics as a deputy for Podemos in the Assembly of Madrid. Later, between 2020 and 2021, she was appointed director of the Institute of Women and for Equal Opportunities by the Ministry of Equality, under the mandate of Irene Montero.
Boti García
Like Gimeno, Boti García has been linked to the associative movement for more than three decades. First, as president of COGAM and later, at the head of FELGTBI. From both organizations, she participated in the main demands of the collective, such as the campaign for same-sex marriage, the recognition of the rights of trans people, and the fight against discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.
In 2020, she made the leap into institutional politics by being appointed Director General of Sexual Diversity and LGTBI Rights in the Ministry of Equality, led by Montero. This Friday, the Ministry of the Presidency, Justice and Relations with the Courts presented her with the Medal of the Order of Constitutional Merit in recognition of her career.
Miquel Iceta
Miquel Iceta set a precedent in Spanish politics when, in October 1999, he publicly came out as homosexual during an event organized by the Socialist Youth of Catalonia during the regional election campaign. At the time, he was a member of Congress and the PSC candidate for the Parliament of Catalonia. With that gesture, he became the first Spanish parliamentarian to openly declare himself gay.
Subsequently, he has served as minister on two occasions in the governments of Pedro Sánchez: first, heading the portfolio of Territorial Policy and Public Function (2021) and later, as head of Culture and Sport. Beyond his government work, Iceta has contributed to normalizing the presence of openly LGTBI politicians in Spanish institutions, becoming a benchmark for visibility within national politics.
At this point, it is also worth mentioning the judge and Minister of the Interior, Fernando Grande-Marlaska, who broke taboos within the Judiciary. In October 2005, while a Magistrate of the National Court, he normalized the visibility of the community by speaking openly about his homosexuality and marrying his husband.
Jerónimo Saavedra
Jerónimo Saavedra was twice president of the Government of the Canary Islands, mayor of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, and held two ministerial portfolios during the last governments of Felipe González: first, he was minister for Public Administrations between 1993 and 1995, and subsequently, minister of Education and Science between 1995 and 1996.
In December 2000, he made his homosexuality public in the prologue of the book Outing in Spain. Spaniards come out of the closet, becoming the first former Spanish minister and one of the first high-level institutional leaders to speak openly about his sexual orientation. At a time when there were hardly any LGTBI political role models, his decision had significant symbolic value.
Cristina Cifuentes
During the presidency of Cristina Cifuentes in the Community of Madrid (CAM), two regional laws of special relevance were approved: the Comprehensive Transsexuality Law and the Law for the Comprehensive Protection against LGTBIphobia and Discrimination based on Sexual Orientation and Identity.
These regulations temporarily placed Madrid among the autonomous communities with the broadest and most advanced regulation regarding the protection of LGTBI rights and received broad recognition from the community's organizations.
However, her successor at the head of the CAM, Isabel Díaz Ayuso, reversed and substantially reformed the Trans Law through a proposal approved by the Assembly of Madrid. Among the changes introduced by Ayuso's Executive, gender self-determination was eliminated, and the requirement for medical reports for hormone therapy was re-established.
Víctor Gutiérrez
Former international water polo player and PSOE deputy, Víctor Gutiérrez has become one of the most recognized voices in Congress on LGTBI rights.
His parliamentary activity has focused particularly on the fight against hate crimes, conversion therapies, and the defense of measures aimed at strengthening the legal protection of the community. Precisely, last week, the Equality Commission of the Congress gave the green light to the opinion of the Organic Law proposal to reform the Penal Code and sanction conversion practices aimed at LGTBI+ people. The initiative was approved with the negative vote of PP and Vox and must now be submitted for the approval of the plenary session of Congress.
The project incorporates a new article 173 bis in the Penal Code which sets prison sentences of between six months and two years for anyone who carries out acts, methods, programs, techniques, or procedures of aversion or conversion on another person, of a psychological, physical, pharmacological, or any other nature, aimed at modifying, repressing, eliminating, or denying their sexual orientation, their sexual identity, or their gender expression, when it affects their bodily integrity, their physical or mental health, or constitutes a serious impairment of their moral integrity.
