Trans people suffered extreme persecution for nearly four decades under the fascist rule of Francisco Franco’s Spanish dictatorship (1939-1975).
Franco’s regime formed National Catholicism as the state religion, instilling a Catholic morality that judged gay and trans people as aberrant and contrary to natural law. Gay and trans people were viewed as diseased under Franco’s rule.
Franco’s lieutenant general Gonzalo Queipo del Llano chillingly remarked that “Whatever effeminate or diverted that insults the movement, it will be killed like a dog.”
Widespread abuse and persecution
Under Franco’s rule LGBTQIA+ people were sent to internment camps, abused and killed. Homosexuality was made illegal, and those in the queer community branded a ‘social danger’.
During incarceration trans people (along with other queer people) were tortured, as were many thousands of anarchists, leftists, and political opponents. Queer prisoners suffered severe abuse at the hands of other prisoners. This involved both torture and sexual abuse, they were forced into sex by the guards. Another form of torture was being deprived of both food and water. There are accounts of prisoners paying the guards to open cells and rape and beat the queers, to demonstrate that they were not themselves gay.
Tortured simply for being who they are
The internment camps known as ‘colonies’ were located in Badajoz, Huelva and Fuerteventura. Gay men and trans people were sent to them simply for existing. Franco’s regime accused them of “scandalous public behaviour” and feared that they would feminise the species. Inmates were subjected to electric shock ‘therapy’ to ‘re-educate’ them. This abuse is now seen as a very harmful form of entirely ineffective ‘conversion therapy’.
Modern Spain is a haven for trans people
By stark contrast, modern day Spain is a world leader for supporting trans people’s human rights. Spain’s 2023 “Ley Trans” (Trans Law) allows individuals aged 16 and older to change their legal gender on official documents through a simple self-declaration, eliminating the need for medical diagnoses or hormone therapy. The law also permits 14-15 year olds to change their gender with parental consent. Previously, a medical diagnosis required a humiliating psychological evaluation to determine if a person was uncomfortable identifying as their birth sex. The introduction of the new format of gender self-identification is a powerful step towards removing the social stigma and demonisation of trans people. A far cry from the extremely harsh and draconian treatment that trans individuals faced in Franco’s Spain.
Forgotten atrocities
The persecution of LGBTQIA+ people in Franco’s Spain has largely been overlooked and forgotten about. It is, however, important to highlight the persecution faced by minorities who live on the fringes of society. Awareness leads to better education, which in turn can help lead to much better acceptance of these groups of people in society. With rising persecution of minorities in both the UK and the US, it’s now more important than ever to highlight past atrocities. Raising awareness of how easily and quickly an accepting society can regress to one of fear, hatred, and persecution.
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