For many years, Antonio held on to the promise that the inexplicable attraction he noticed toward others of his same sex would disappear. As he grew up, a book given to him by an aunt—perhaps because “she could sense it”—told him that what he was feeling was a phase, something common among teenagers; something that, with time, would “go away.” The man, now 73 years old, remembers finding comfort in those pages. Back then, he would repeat to himself, like a prayer: “It’s okay, this will pass”.

He grew up in the 1960s aware of his “inclination toward men.” However, the image he encountered in childhood of a “homosexual person” was shaped by the reductive stereotype of that era: the effeminate, flamboyant man who walked a certain way or said certain things. Mockery toward those who expressed behaviors that strayed from traditional gender norms was the rule in the streets and in popular culture.

“What is known as the gay community didn’t exist. I didn’t know there were other people like me. I thought I was a freak, because I didn’t know anyone else who was like that”, he says. “Before ‘coming out,’ I felt bad, because I would say: ‘I don’t want to be like this.’ Before accepting myself, I didn’t want to”.

Antonio, who preferred not to reveal his identity, sifted through his memories while seated on a stool at the bar of Tía María Liquor Store, a space that, over the years since its opening in the 1980s, became an oasis for the LGBTQ+ community. The dim exterior of the establishment, located on a corner in Santurce, gives no hint of what lies inside: balloons, flags, and posters in rainbow colors, the global emblem of sexual and gender diversity.

He was not the only one taking advantage of the quiet afternoon—before peak nightlife hours—to have a beer or play a game of pool, but he was one of the few who agreed to speak with El Nuevo Día about what it was like growing up in years of open rejection toward this segment of the population. Beside him, after some thought, Javier—encouraged by his friend—decided to join the conversation.

“I knew I was different; I prayed a lot to God to change me. (…) Always, since I was little, I always knew. But I also found that I had uncles, cousins, who were in the community, and I said: ‘I’m not the only one,’” Javier (a pseudonym), 75, recounts. He remembers being “rebellious”, finding refuge in religion, and from an early age deciding that he would fight for his rights.

Despite the contempt and homophobia he experienced because of his sexual orientation, the man found refuge in his life partner, with whom he was about to reach 50 years of relationship—14 of them legally married—before an illness took him away.

The reality of Antonio and Javier is testimony to an era in which being gay was understood as a problem that needed to be corrected, and it contrasts with the advances in rights, visibility, and acceptance that have transformed the lives of later generations.

“It was very different from what we live now. Obviously, now we have governments trying to roll back what we have achieved, but I never imagined, when I was growing up, that I would have the right to marry someone of my own sex, that discrimination in employment would be prohibited, that there would be protections to prevent bullying and school harassment”, said human rights activist Pedro Julio Serrano.

As part of the celebration of LGBTQ+ Pride Month, Serrano, 51, highlighted visibility, respect, and social acceptance in Puerto Rican society as “one of the most significant achievements we have had as a society”.

“I have witnessed a radical change in how we were treated, when we were criminals in the eyes of the State, to becoming citizens—still second-class citizens, because we still don’t have all rights—but at least we are beginning to be recognized with fuller citizenship”, he added.

While he acknowledged the magnitude of the progress—including the recognition of same-sex marriage in 2015, the signing of the law prohibiting discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity in employment in 2013, and the right of same-sex couples to adopt, among others—Serrano lamented recent attempts by the governments of Puerto Rico and the United States to roll back hard-won rights.

“People think history is linear, that we just keep advancing chronologically and that’s it. But history shows us, both with the rights of other groups such as Black people and women, that it is not linear. There are advances and there are setbacks, and that is what we are seeing right now with the LGBTQ+ community. Although we have made a lot of progress, we are currently in a period of obscurantism that is eliminating important protections and also limiting the number of safe spaces we have”, he stated.

According to an analysis by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), since January 2025, at least eight bills have been introduced in the legislature that threaten LGBTQ+ rights. Three have been signed into law by Governor Jenniffer González: Law 63-2025, which prohibits gender-affirming medical treatments for people under 21; Law 14-2025, which declares religious freedom a fundamental right; and Law 26-2026, which bans the installation of inclusive, mixed, or gender-neutral bathrooms in government agencies, public corporations, municipalities, and the University of Puerto Rico.

Some measures still under legislative consideration include House Bill 166, which seeks to exclude transgender women in the custody of the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation from spaces aligned with their gender identity; HB 164, to prohibit transgender youth from participating in sports teams matching their gender identity; and HB 912, which seeks to ban the use of inclusive language in government documents and entities.

“From the ACLU of Puerto Rico, we will continue defending and advocating for the rights of LGBTQ+ people, and particularly transgender people, who are facing persecution that is being advanced by current federal and local administrations in Puerto Rico—actions that even put people’s lives at risk", said attorney Annette Martínez Orabona, executive director of the ACLU of Puerto Rico.

Antonio and Javier, witnesses to the years of struggle that preceded the acquisition of many of the rights now at risk, have experienced greater social acceptance in recent decades, but they are also aware of the new wave of attacks against their community and attempts to render them invisible once again.

“They want to take away our hard-won rights, rights that are fundamental to us. (The present) has been better, but governments punish us relentlessly, they want to strip us of our rights, they belittle us, they mock us’, Javier said, adding a call to LGBTQ+ youth: “You have to keep fighting. If you get too comfortable, a lot will be lost. It’s better to keep fighting”.

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This content was translated from Spanish to English using artificial intelligence and was reviewed by an editor before being published.