Rainbow flags and colourful smoke waved across the Argentine capital of Buenos Aires on Saturday, as thousands of people flocked to the streets for the annual LGBTQ pride march, fuelled by growing hate speech and violence against gay people in the country, and an unsupporting government.
The festive and somehow revolutionary atmosphere permeated in the morning at the historical landmark of Plaza de Mayo, the seat of Argentine government, imbued by a swelling crowd jointly standing for equal rights.
The main event took place in the afternoon, when participants paraded from the main city square to the National Congress, with dozens of well-decorated floats moving alongside the horde of activists, students and tourists.
Organised by more than 60 non-governmental, trade union and political organisations, this year’s Argentine pride march took place under the slogan “Against Hate and Violence: More Pride and Unity.”
It was the annual event’s 34th edition, but second under the right-wing government of President Javier Milei, who has taken steps to reduce judicial protections of LBTQ members since taking office in December 2023.
Activists call out Milei
Milei’s actions against the marginalised group, including a series of disparaging remarks about same sex marriages, elimination of a ministry overseeing gender issues and dissolution of a national anti-discrimination body, makes Saturday’s event more essential and meaningful, according to organisers and participants.
“These days, with the current government, there is a lot of hate.”
“You can see it in the streets and on social media,” college student Nahuel Vassallo was quoted as saying by Agence France-Presse.
“That’s why standing here to defend our rights and who we are is so key.”
For 22-year-old Karina Fernandez, another participant in the march, the climate for the gay community in Argentina has become more tense under Milei’s administration.
“I feel like it’s more dangerous for us now,” said the activist.
Speaking with EFE news agency, Argentine LGBTQ Federation leader María Rachid said this year’s pride march slogan “is a response to the discrimination, violence and hate crimes that have increased as a result of the Milei government’s legitimisation of hate speech.”
Maria Paula Garcia from Amnesty International-Argentina raised similar sentiments, calling out the Argentine president for not only supporting but aggravating the already worsening “hateful and violent rhetoric” against the LGBTQ community in the country.
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Hate crimes on the rise
According to the National Observatory of LGBT+ Hate Crimes, 102 cases of gender-based crimes were recorded across Argentina in the first half of 2025, up by 70% compared to the corresponding period of 2024.
Of the said number of cases, 17 were murders, deaths by structural violence and suicides, while the remaining 85 account for injuries to physical integrity, reported EFE.
“Nowadays, when you go out into the street, you don’t know if you’re going to live or die,” 18-year-old pride march participant Daira Rebeca Maldonado told the newspaper.
“As a young transgender person, I have unfortunately experienced many things that have led me to consider suicide or made me feel uncomfortable in both public and private places,” Maldonado added.
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Geoffrey H. Latayan 
Vivien Bernardino