Supreme Federal Court, Brazil: In a historic ruling delivered on 22-08-2023, the Brazilian Supreme Court with a ratio of 9:1 declared that homophobia is a crime and homophobic slurs as a form of hate speech and the same is punishable by prison sentence.
The matter was bought before the Supreme Federal Court by a prominent Rights group ABGLT. Justice Edson Fachin, said in his ruling that protecting LGBTQ+ citizens under the law was a “constitutional imperative.”
It was argued by ABGLT that, Brazil's legislature separately defines hate speech against a group, which it calls a “crime of racism” and hate speech against an individual, which it calls a “crime of racial injury,” LGBTQ+ citizens were not currently protected.
Earlier in 2019 the Supreme Court had held that homophobic hate speech is a crime equivalent to racism. The current ruling delivered on 22-08-2023 means that protections envisaged under the 2019 decision will be further extended.
Source: Pink News