Last week, we witnessed a tragic event. On November 13, 2023, Judge Ociel Baena was found dead along with his partner, Dorian Herrera. This fact is only a reminder of the spiral of violence, stigma and discrimination suffered by people from the LGBTTTIQ+ community in our country.

We condemn his death, but we also commemorate his life and his legacy, which were marked by enormous challenges, which he always faced with enormous courage. Ociel was the first electoral magistrate and became the first non-binary person to hold that position in Mexico, making his community visible and showing pride in who he was. In addition, he managed to be the first person to receive a non-binary passport in the country.

His fight was also carried out through social networks where he shared his ideas, taught about the political-electoral rights of the LGBTTTIQ+ community and, above all, to respect them. Her struggle was clear, the conquest of public spaces for all people belonging to the community. Likewise, she held conferences in various states of the country on inclusion policies and affirmative actions in favor of minorities. Without a doubt, her activism in favor of the rights of non-binary people will be marked in the country’s history.

The murder of Judge Ociel Baena alerts us that as a society we still have a lot to work on. We must eradicate discrimination, violence based on sexual orientation and hate speech. Violence against this population group can occur in various forms, from the most subtle, but no less painful, such as systematic invisibility and exclusion, but it finds its most cruel and brutal form in hate crimes that result in death. of the victim.

Hate and discrimination must end. Inclusive language does not kill, hate does. Ociel Baena broke paradigms and stereotypes, raised his voice and today, his echo will last forever. This highly sexist and homophobic country is going to change. The battle for respect and inclusion of people from the sexual diversity and non-binary community is accompanied by thousands of people. On November 13, in various parts of the Mexican Republic, civil society came out to condemn his death.

We must work so that each person finds the conditions that allow them to develop in an environment free of violence, that regardless of their orientation their rights are respected and, as Judith Butler said, we must not forget that “Whatever the freedom for which “We fight, it must be a freedom based on equality.” Rest in Peace, Magistrate Ociel.