Ecuador

Demographics

Estimated Total Population:

17 million

World Bank, 2018

Estimated SGM Population:

N/A

N/A

Estimated Total SGM Adult Population:

N/A

N/A

Estimated % of SGM Adults (18+):

N/A

N/A

Ecuador was the first country in the Americas to include a non-discrimination clause on the basis of sexual orientation in its 1998 constitution. (Lind and Keating 2013). This constitution also decriminalized homosexuality, though reports suggest that this technical change did not have meaningful effects (Rausenberger 2016). The country redrafted its constitution in 2008 in a way that both helped and hurt Ecuador’s SGM population. The 2008 constitution extended anti-discrimination protections to those of differing gender identities and expanded the idea of families to the “familia diversa”—recognizing that families often look different from a husband, a wife, and their children (Rausenberger 2016). However, this constitution also reaffirmed that homosexual couples could not be married or adopt children (Rausenberger 2016). SGM organizations are extremely active in Ecuador and activism has, in part, led to victories such as the legalization of gay marriage in 2019 and the closing of clinics dedicated to “curing” homosexuality (Equal Eyes 2019, Lind and Keating 2013).

Ecuador's Laws and Policies from ILGA World Report (2019)

RECOGNITION
Marriage for Same-Sex Couples
Yes
Civil Unions
Yes
Joint Adoption
No
Second Parent Adoption
No
PROTECTION
Employment Nondiscrimination Laws
Yes
Broad Protections
Yes
Criminalization of Violence
Yes
Ban of Conversion Therapy
Yes
CRIMINALIZATION
Consensual Same-Sex Acts are Legal?
Yes
Gender
Does Not Apply
Max Penalty (Yrs in Prison)
Does Not Apply

Selected Published Studies, Reports, and Other Documents

(2019). Ecuador: Gay Marriage Takes Effect.Equal Eyes. https://equal-eyes.org/database/2019/7/10/ecuador-gay-marriage-takes-effect

Almario, M., Riggle, E. D. B., Rostosky, S. S., & Alcalde, M. C. (2013). Positive themes in LGBT self-identities in Spanish-speaking countries. International Perspectives in Psychology: Research, Practice, Consultation, 2(1), 1–13. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0031055

Amy Lind & Christine Keating. (2013) Navigating The Left Turn, International Feminist Journal of Politics, 15:4, 515-533, DOI:10.1080/14616742.2013.813162

Botello-Peñaloza, Hector y Guerrero Rincón, Isaac. (2018). Incidencia de la violencia física en la población LGBT en Ecuador. Civilizar Ciencias Sociales y Humanas 18 (35): 129-138, julio-diciembre de 2018 DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.22518/usergioa/jour/ccsh/2018.2/a10

Day, Shelbi D. (2005). Sexual Orientation And Human Rights: The Use of Human Rights Law to Address Sexual Orientation-Based Discrimination And Violence in Ecuador. [Master’s Thesis, University of Florida]. http://etd.fcla.edu/UF/UFE0013124/day_s.pdf

Hernandez, Isabel et. Al. (2016). Risk Factors Associated with HIV Among Men Who Have Sex With Men in Ecuador. American Journal of Men’s Health, 11:5, 1331-1341, DOI:10.1177/1557988316646757

Rausenberger, Julie. (2016). Different Bodies, Same Rights? The Sexual Politics of ‘LGBT’ in Ecuador. Ku Leuven, 6:2, https://www.academia.edu/21996145/DIFFERENT_BODIES_SAME_RIGHTS_-_The_Sexual_Politics_of_LGBT_in_Ecuador

Saavedra, Luis. (2018). As Gender Violence Increases, Victims Are Blamed in Ecuador. Latin America Digital Beat. https://digitalrepository.unm.edu/notisur/14590

Veguez, María Emilia Viteri. (2018). What is the Effect of Intervention to Change Attitudes Towards Transgender Individuals in the Workplace Environments in Ecuador?. University of San Francisco. http://192.188.53.14/bitstream/23000/7375/1/138300.pdfVéliz

Valencia, Y. (2019). Perspectivas de la adopción homoparental en el Ecuador. IUSTITIA SOCIALIS, 4(1), 177-192. doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.35381/racji.v4i1.547

World Bank. (2018). Ecuador.Data. https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SP.POP.TOTL?locations=EC