Cuba is on the verge of making history as its new draft of the country’s constitution opens the path to same-sex marriage. Government officials came out on Saturday to talk shows and newspapers over this historic event especially considering that Cuba once persecuted homosexuals.

According to the United Nations Human Rights Campaign, Cuba has made great strides over the past decade on LGBT rights including approval of sex-change operations and banning workplace discrimination based on sexual orientation. Many believe that the change in Cuba’s government towards the LGBTQ community are due to the high-profile advocacy of Fidel Castro’s niece Mariela Castro.

While several legislative proposals to recognize same-sex unions have been met with a slow pace based strongly on the country’s legislative process and the built-in stereotypes of its LGBTQ citizens and the country’s macho society.

If the new constitution of Cuba includes same-sex marriage, the thinking among scolars is that perceptions of the LGBTQ community will start to change. “Once the new constitution is voted on and approved, it will replace Cuba’s 1976 Soviet-era Magna Carta, the secretary of the council of state, Homero Acosta, told lawmakers on Saturday.

What was also surprising was the wording of the draft. Elaborated by a commission headed by former President Raul Castro ― Mariela Castro’s father ― the country’s definition of matrimony will be written as between two individuals rather than between a man and a woman.

“The possibility of marriage between two people strengthens our project’s principles of equality and justice,” said Cuban lawmaker Homero Acosta.

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There is of course still many obstacles to overcome as the country’s conservatives are gearing up for a major battle. In fact Reuters reported that five evangelical denominations shared a statement on social media last month declaring marriage “exclusively the union of a man and a woman, according to the Bible.”

Churches throughout the country also plastered neighborhoods with anti gay marriage posters with statements “I am in favor of the original design ― the family as God created it,”. They even went so far as to post a picture of a heterosexual couple with a boy and a girl.

LGBT rights activists were not about to let right wing conservatives get away with this and retaliated with their own billboard campaign which one read, “I am in favor of Cuban design ― a very original family,”. In their poster photo they displayed a panoply of different family configurations that of course included same-sex couples.

Article by: Paul Goldberg, Staff Writer

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