Against homophobia in sports
Football player Macarena Sánchez's name gained relevance to the general public after the club she played at, UAI Urquiza, fired her with no prior warning. Her protests against the decision drew attention to the vulnerabilities faced by woman football players in Argentina. Some time later, she joined the women's team at San Lorenzo Club.
Sánchez is also a lesbian feminist activist and social worker. After the current Frente de Todos administration took power, Sánchez became director of the National Youth Institute. Since then, she's been working from her public position for women and LGBTIA+ people's rights.
Why is it so hard to talk about homosexuality in men's football lockers?
In 2020, Nicolás Fernández's story made it to the headlines: a football player from the Pampa regional league who had no problem openly talking about his sexuality. What was so noteworthy about this? For the first time, a football player was breaking down the taboo about homosexuality in the field.
A decade has gone by since equal marriage became law in Argentina. It is unbelievable how traditional masculinities still hold such strong prejudices.
However, this case helped stir the issue up all over the world: "I've received messages from amateur football players from Spain, Peru, the United States. All of them told me this meant a step forward for them, that it helped them so much. It's crazy, it's gone viral across the world. I'm truly surprised. I've been contacted by journalists of all areas, from everywhere, even Latin American radio shows, to interview me!"
Have you heard about what happened to football player Maira Sánchez?
"Vallejos, our coach, told me she had to sack me. She said a higher-up had mentioned my full name and said he had seen me kissing a teammate, so I had to go."
Maira Sánchez is a football player currently playing for Club Atlético Argentino de Rosario's women's league. She previously played for Rosario Central, until her coach fired her amidst mistreatment and discrimination issues based on her sexual orientation. She filed a complaint before the National Institute Against Discrimination, Xenophobia and Racism (INADI).
A few months ago, Vallejos accused Sánchez of "kissing a teammate" within the club facilities, which was considered grounds for removing her from the team.