Erick Iván Ortiz Godoy (born February 14, 1991) is a Salvadoran a LGBTQ+ activist and politician. He is a member of the Salvadoran LGBTI+ Federation, and is one of the country's most visible activists.[1] In the 2021 elections, he ran for the Legislative Assembly in El Salvador, becoming the first openly gay man to aspire to a legislative position in the country.[2]
Erick Iván Ortiz | |
|---|---|
 Ortiz in 2022 | |
| Born | Erick Iván Ortiz Godoy February 14, 1991 Santa Ana, El Salvador |
| Education | Escuela Superior de Economía y Negocios, Luis Amigó Catholic University, George Mason University |
| Occupations | Politician, LGBTQ+ activist |
Political party | Nuestro Tiempo |
Life and career
editErick Iván Ortiz Godoy was born on February 14, 1991, in Santa Ana, El Salvador. He studied economics at Escuela Superior de Economía y Negocios (English: Higher School of Economics and Business), and later studied human rights at the Luis Amigó Catholic University in Medellín, Colombia.[3] Additionally he trained in social leadership from George Mason University in Fairfax County, Virginia, United States.[3]
Following the series of homophobic comments that took place during the 2014 presidential elections, he decided the following year in 2015 to create, along with other activists, the Colectivo Normal (English: Normal Collective).[3] The Colectivo Normal is a social and cultural activism group that sought to influence the fight against sexist and homophobic violence and discrimination through protest and art. Later, other organizations joined the Colectivo Normal, and formed the Salvadoran LGBTI+ Federation.[3]
He began his political career as part of the Nationalist Republican Alliance (ARENA) the conservative political party, where he was director of the national youth wing.[3] He later joined the Nuestro Tiempo (English: Our Time) party, made up mostly of young people, and served as its director of political affairs.[4][5]
For the 2021 legislative and municipal elections, he ran for the Legislative Assembly under the Nuestro Tiempo party, becoming the first openly gay man to seek a legislative position in the country's history.[3] His proposals included the passage of an anti-discrimination law and a gender identity law.[6] During the election campaign, Ortiz was barred from promoting himself in traditional media outlets for attempting to reclaim the term "culero" as part of his campaign slogan and suffered discrimination from passersby because of his sexual orientation.[7] He was ultimately not elected, but received more than ten thousand votes in the district he represented, the department of San Salvador.[8]
In early 2022, he joined the Global Equality Caucus initiative, which had officially launched in Latin America that year. Ortiz continued to lead the Colectivo Normal, in addition to serving as the communications secretary for the Salvadoran LGBTI+ Federation.[8] In 2022, Ortiz received death threats, which he publicly denounced.[5][9] The perpetrators of the death threats were never identified.[9]
References
edit- ↑ Kirvin, Larios (July 12, 2022). "El activista gay que desafía a Bukele: "Ha hecho retroceder al movimiento LGBT+ a sus inicios"". Infobae (in Spanish). Archived from the original on May 29, 2023. Retrieved June 11, 2026.
- ↑ Villarroel, Gabriela (February 22, 2021). ""No ven vallas de mi campaña por presión del Consejo de Publicidad": Erick Iván Ortiz". GatoEncerrado (in Mexican Spanish). Archived from the original on June 1, 2023. Retrieved June 11, 2026.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 Valle, Ernesto (August 7, 2020). "Primer hombre abiertamente gay competirá para diputado en El Salvador". Washington Blade. Archived from the original on July 28, 2021.
- ↑ García, Jessica (October 26, 2023). "Nuestro Tiempo no inscribió a Ramiro Navas y a Erick Iván Ortiz para las diputaciones 2024". Noticias de El Salvador (in European Spanish). Archived from the original on November 8, 2023. Retrieved June 9, 2026.
- 1 2 Velásquez, Eugenia; Rodríguez, Milton (April 20, 2022). ""¿Dónde ponemos el cadáver, lo enterramos o lo dejamos en el río?". La amenaza que recibió el Director de Asuntos Políticos de Nuestro Tiempo" ["Where do we put the body, bury it or leave it in the river?" The threat received by the Political Affairs Director of Our Time]. Noticias de El Salvador (in Spanish). Retrieved June 11, 2026.
- ↑ Castellón, Gabriela (January 27, 2021). ""Necesitamos abordar el problema estructural de la discriminación social"". FOCOS (in European Spanish). Archived from the original on April 1, 2023. Retrieved June 10, 2026.
- ↑ Avelar, Bryan (February 25, 2021). "Político salvadoreño abiertamente gay no puede hacer campaña en las calles" [Openly gay Salvadoran politician cannot campaign in the streets]. Vice (in Spanish). Archived from the original on February 24, 2024. Retrieved June 10, 2026.
- 1 2 Valle, Ernesto (January 24, 2022). "Global Equality Caucus trabaja por igualdad LGBTQ en Latinoamérica". Washington Blade. Archived from the original on March 8, 2022. Retrieved June 10, 2026.
- 1 2 Villarroel, Gabriela (September 12, 2023). ""El único que viola la Constitución es el que se quiere reelegir": Erick Ortiz, candidato a diputado por Nuestro Tiempo" [“The only one who violates the Constitution is the one who wants to be re-elected”: Erick Ortiz, candidate for deputy for Nuestro Tiempo]. La Prensa Gráfica (in Spanish). Archived from the original on April 9, 2024. Retrieved June 11, 2026.