Caribbean Island Nations Are Repealing Colonial-Era Anti-LGBTQ Laws
In the Caribbean, where LGBTQ people have few legal protections, some islands are overturning draconian sex bans.
In the Caribbean, where LGBTQ people have few legal protections, some islands are overturning draconian laws.
Photographer: Aurelien Meunier/Getty Images
In the last 12 months, a cluster of neighboring countries have overturned laws criminalizing consensual sex between same-sex partners.
The Caribbean island nations of Antigua & Barbuda, St Kitts & Nevis and Barbados all recently repealed “buggery” or “sodomy” laws. Two more in the region could follow, as courts in St Lucia and Grenada weigh the legality of their sex bans. If they follow suit, they would have successfully halved the number of countries with such laws in the Commonwealth Caribbean in less than a decade.